Beauty Sponges have been around for a while now and it’s become a staple tool for makeup users everywhere, but recently, there has been a lot of hype about it with companies coming out with varieties in all shapes and sizes. I personally use a couple myself. It’s a known fact that beauty bloggers somehow kickstarted the beauty sponge era in the makeup world starting with the infamous Beauty Blender, granted makeup artist have been using cosmetic sponges before then. The iconic pink tear drop shape sponge slowly became the inspiration to many putting out their own version.
So why the hype on Beauty Sponges you ask, well apart from the part that it’s easy to use and it gives you an airbrush finish, it can also be used in many different ways. I got the chance to try out some of these wonderful Beauty Sponges and I’m about to give you the T on all of them.
First off is the iconic Beauty Blender, I got mine from Beauty Bay and it currently retails for £16.00. Let me start by saying that the BB sponge is definitely the first of its kind, with its soft texture whether it’s damp or dry foundation application goes on seamlessly as if it was your second skin. I personally have used mine to also apply moisturizer and primer and it has always given me a flawless finish. Here is another drugstore beauty sponge that I would recommend and that’s the B. Cosmetics Blending Sponge. One of the things I like about this brand as a whole is that they are vegan and the dense texture of their blending sponge which is also the downside as this means it’s a little difficult to blend your foundation if you use it dry as well as a fuller coverage which I’m not entirely a fan of. For £3.29 it’s definitely a semi good alternative. Next up is what I would definitely consider as my number 1 and can closely rival The Beauty Blender sponges and that is none other than the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge which retails for £5.99 from Boots in single package or 9.99 from Superdrug for 2 in a Pack and it also comes in varieties of shapes and sizes which I have yet to try but once I do I will surely love! This little guy does everything the BB sponges does and more. Not only is it a fraction of the price, I found it more durable than the BB sponges intact to me personally it’s more durable than any of the beauty sponges I have used throughout this Beauty Sponge War. Benefit created their own version of the beauty sponge for specific use on the eyes. The Benefit They’re Real Shadow Blender currently retails for £7.50 for the price it retails it’s the name you’re paying for and not the product itself. While the applicator itself had a good design for me it just does not work I found that it drys out the eye shadow and this is not a good thing for me as I have combination skin and it gives my eyelids a creased and dried out look which is not the most appealing look. A lot of my followers on both Snapchat and Instagram will know that I have been raving about the NYX Cosmetics and the too have their own version of Beauty Sponge which retails for £6.00 and can be purchased either on their website or at a participating Boots Chemist. This is another beauty sponge that I would recommend not only is it on the affordable side but its good quality provides an excellent finish similar to the B Cosmetics beauty sponge. By Terry is one of the brands that I have found to do exactly what they product say it would do and their foundation sponge brush is no exception. It claims to give you an airbrush finish upon use and it definitely does; because of its size being on the small size and it being connected to a brush handle, reaching the in between parts of your face is definitely easy. This beauty sponge retails for £25.00 at Cult Beauty so definitely put this on the luxe pricing. This beauty sponge is more on the high-end side mostly because of its branding. The Laura Mercier sponges retail for £13.50 for a pack of 4 which is not a bad deal but for me, it’s good with powder products as its more of a puff than a sponge (in my opinion). I found that when I used a liquid product with it that it absorbs the product more than it would leave on your skin but when I tried it with powders for when I baked under my eyes the product payoff was on point. For me, this is good for the baking process with powders but not for creams and liquids. Back to drugstore, Boots has their own version of beauty sponge and it retails for £3.50 which effectively makes it the cheapest of the bunch, not something I personally would recommend only because, it’s not the kind of beauty sponge you can use as an all around unlike the Real Techniques ones. Due to it shapes its really only good for sculpting your face, I found that when I applied the foundation with it, it was very streaky and does not blend the product well enough no matter how much you dab or swipe. When it came to sculpting with contour, it was definitely precise and gave me cheekbones for days. Last but not the least the beauty sponges that has high claims that to me was a little bit of a miss and that is the Vintage Company Blending Sponge Set retailing at £14.95. While it’s price point is on the affordable side and it’s texture and the finish it gives when in use is not that great they also claim to have the infused the sponges with Vitamin E. The brand claims that because the sponges are infused with Vitamin E it will help add more moisture to your skin which is not the case at all as the sponge soaks up a bit of the product and as you blend and tend to have a bit of a patchy finish, and we are not about that life! Going back to high end beauty sponges, Hourglass also came out with their own version of the beauty sponge and unlike the others this one is universal in shape and in use. The texture is almost similar to that of the BB sponge and it gives a similar finish to that of the Miracle Complexion sponge by Real Techniques. It works fabulously in blending both foundation application and cutting that cheekbone and I would say that for the price point of £18.00 it’s definitely a bang for your buck! Would say this to be in my top 5 picks of good beauty sponges.
Beauty Blender
B. Cosmetics Blending Sponge
Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge
They’re Real Shadow Blender
NYX Beauty Blender
By Terry Sponge
Laura Mercier sponges
Boots precision applicator blending sponge
Essential Blending Sponge Set Infused With Vitamin E
Ambient Strobe Light Sculptor
After trying out all these beauty sponges it’s safe to say that I am all sponged out!! Definitely going to stick with my trusty real techniques Miracle sponges as they are tried and true in my personal opinion and I highly recommend it to anyone who’s looking to into the beauty sponges band wagon.
Peace out beautiful people and I remember Beauty is what you make it, so don’t be afraid to show your own definition of beauty!