Brand Overview: Benefit Cosmetics Make Up and Skin Care

So I decided to do a general review of Benefit rather than split it up into different products as so many of Benefit's products are multi purpose, or are off the wall. Benefit is such a popular brand, and when I first got into make up Benefit was the be all and end all for me.
Now I have had chance to get more into skincare and make up and try other brands I thought I would do a 'hot or not' round up of Benefits products including what I would buy again, what I would not and why!

The packaging is stunning. We have to give them credit there!

So lets start with make up. I actually have a bit less than I thought but here is the whole stash!

More cute packaging except for those rogue black compacts at the top there... I actually threw out the 'Get Even' compact as it was mostly gone and looked pretty icky.

Okay so lets start with eye products:

Longwear Powder Shadows, Browzings in medium, Theyre Real Mascara, Gimme Brow in Med/Dark and Tweezerman for Benefit Tweezers!

Firstly apologies for my pictures today which are worse than usual. I was washing all my bedding and then my cats curled up to sleep in the duvet and I felt too bad to move them off!

Okay so lets start with the good.

They're Real Mascara- this splits opinion, people either love it or hate it. Personally I love it and its the only mascara I currently use (though I only ever have one on the go at a time) This is a product I would repurchase.

Gimme Brow - I love this and would buy it again in a heart beat. I have dark brown hair and this matches my brows perfectly and gives them a natural defined look without being too bold.

Tweezerman Tweezers - Not technically a Benefit product but they are a bit of a collaboration. Cute tweezers that work well as tweezers. Whats not to love!

Things I would not repurchase:

Brow-zings - Okay this is a great product. it comes with powder and wax, two brushes and a small pair of tweezers I have clearly lost. As someone new to brows this is a god send as it has everything you need in one little compact. For me personally I won't repurchase as I prefer using the Gimme Brow or my Anastasia Dip Brow for when I want a more dramatic look. So although I would not repurchase this for myself I would recommend it to others.

Longwear Powder Shadows - Okay so I got these for the packaging, admittedly. Theyre so so pretty. They work okay as eyeshadows but they're nothing special, and for my money I would rather have Urban Decay shadows. I have them pictured above in the colours 'Pause for Applause' Lilac, 'Nude Swings' Rose Gold, and 'Pinky Swear' which is, of course, the pink.

Next lips!

Lipgloss in Fauxmance, Lollibop and Poutrageous, Posetint and Benetint

One of the lipglosses I got for free with the 'create your own make up bag' deal on Benefit but the other two I have no idea why I bought as I dislike the stickiness of lipgloss. They are all fairly sheer with only a sheer wash of colour. The packaging is adorable, which is so much of the appeal with Benefit. I would not repurchase these lip glosses.

Posietint/Benetint - I have put these in with lip products as personally for me these work best on my lips and I prefer other products for my cheeks. Posietint is ok, it gives a pink wash to the lips and is buildable but the colour is always very subtle. Benetint gives a lovely bitten look to the lips, and is a product I would purchase again. It tastes awful, so I wish they would fix that though!

Cheek products:

Fine One One, Dandelion, SugarBomb

Fine One One - This is described as a cheek and lip product but I am not sure who can get it to work on their lips, as I cannot! It works ok as a blush. I think the idea is highlight, blush and maybe a corally colour to go under the blush. There are better blushes and highlighters out there so this is not something I would buy again. Again the packaging is gorgeous.

Dandelion is a lovely natural pink and is a product I would buy again if I ever get to the bottom of it (and don't have a dupe in my giant stash...)

Sugarbomb has lovely pinks and purples in but when I swirl it all together the overwhelming colour is orange and it doesn't flatter me so it is not something I would buy again.

The great thing about the box blushes is the brush they come with. Anyone who wants the Nars Ita should grab a Benefit box blush instead!

Face products:

Confessions of a Concealaholic, Hello Flawless Powder in Shell and Big Easy in 01 Fair

Confessions of a Concealaholic is a great little kit to sample the different concealers that Benefit does. The big space contained a sample size of That Gal face primer which I love. I swap and change between That Gal and Clarins Beauty Flash balm which is why I have no That Gal currently. Then you get a little pot of Erase Paste in 02. This is usually a bit dark for me but the salmony undertones work nicely on my under eye circles. This is again a deluxe sample size, not a full erase paste. The you get Boiing in 1 and 2 (as you can see I have only used 1!) and Eye bright (pink square) and Lemonaid (yellow square) to brighten up the eye area. 

I wouldn't buy the kit again as it contains items that I would not use. I would buy Lemonaid, Boiing in 01 and possibly the Erase Paste (but might go down to 01 in that too)

Hello Flawless Powder in Shell (Gee I'm Swell) - This is in the lightest 'pink' shade, as Ivory (I Love Me) is too yellow toned for me. In all honesty though all of Benefits foundations run a little too yellow for me so once this is gone I won't be repurchasing as I find Illamasqua Powder Foundation in 115 is a better match. The texture and coverage are gorgeous though, velevety smooth, just a shame it does not match me well. It comes with a mirror, sponge and brush too which is convenient!

Big Easy in 01 Fair - I would definitely buy this again. I love the coverage and the 'more than a BB' cream feel. It is not heavy like a foundation but still offers medium coverage and evens out the skin tone well. The liquid to powder finish has a lovely texture after application. I prefer to use my Beauty Blender to apply as I find using a brush or fingers can leave streaks.

Nearly there, highlighters/primers!

Porefessional, High Beam and Girl Meets Pearl

Finally a picture where I would repurchase all of the pictured items!

Porefessional - This is amazing. Its a tinted primer which you pat into your face and it gives you a flawlessly smooth finish under your foundation, powder, or on its own. I would repurchase this forever! I have tried Maybelline Baby Skin which is supposed to be a dupe but it doesn't come close in my opinion!

High Beam is a gorgeous liquid pearly highlighter which goes on wonderfully and dries to a very natural highlight. The 'nail polish' style applicator is a little weird but the product works well so I will deal with it!

Girl Meets Pearl is another wonderful pearly sheen highlighter for a more intense highlight. You can also mix it into foundation to give a dewey finish. Really enjoy this product and, guess what, pretty packaging!

Overall I would say Benefit has some amazing products, but not every product is worth the money. Yes the packaging is by and large some of the quirkiest on the market but if I had my time again I would research my purchases more carefully and not be sucked in by the cute factor!

Okay one last bit, the skincare. This is an area where I feel Benefit excels across the board. It has gorgeous packaging and all of the products do what they say in the tin! I would buy all of these again!

Glittery Domo invasion...

Dream Screen SPF 45 - As a super pale girl I love any suncream. I wear it every day. This is a great product which leaves you with a matte face and soaks in quickly, unlike many other SPF products. It is pricey, but all sun cream is and you can find it for 20% off on sites such as feelunique quite frequently. There is a tiny sample glass bottle next to that just showing the attention to detail that goes into the samples!

Instant Comeback Serum - This is another product I managed to get for 20% off as again it is a pricey product. However as a night time deep moisturising serum I love it. It has a slight fragrance but it is pleasant. 

Triple Moisturing Cream - This is a bit hidden in this picture but this is a nice summer time day moisturiser. I love the glass packaging and it has a pump, however I am not sure how well that will work once I get to the bottom of the bottle. It is quite 'runny' though so may work just fine!

Total Moisture - This is a much thicker cream you can use either during the day or at night. Personally I use this every night, and during the day when my skin is very dry such as in winter. I have had this since Christmas last year and it is still going strong. 100% holy grail moisturiser! Nice heavy glass tub and of course being in a tub there will be zero waste!

It's Potent Eye Cream - I have been getting so many Eye Creams from my Memeboxes but I still love my It's Potent. It has really helped reduce my dark circles and again the thick glass packaging is a great display piece!

Moisture Prep Toning Lotion - I use this as a toner before my moisturiser. I find it less drying than other toners I have used and it seems to help with the absorption of my moisturisers. 

Remove-It Make Up Remover - Does exactly what it says on the tin, including getting rid of Theyre Real Mascara which can be a bit of a job!

Boo Boo Zap - This works great as a spot treatment, I put it on whenever needed, day or night, usually under my make up/moisturiser. At first I was surprised at how small it was for the cost but it has lasted me a long time. When I run out of this I am going to try Lush's Tea Tree spot treatment Grease Lightning to compare the two, purely as this is quite expensive.

So overall: Skincare = amazing. Make up = Lots of diamonds but you have to see through the cute packaging to find them!

Okay as promised a cute picture of my cat for getting through to the end!

Mushroom is not impressed with Urban Outfitters clothing, but they do make good bags...

xMx