BATTLE OF THE BRANDS: BEAUTY SPONGES

Hello all,

So today I have a post that I am so excited for! It's another in the 'Battle of the brands' collection I'm trying to start (I did a contour kit one not too far back) and today this is a beauty sponge edition! 

I have been loving beauty sponges for so long as they apply products amazingly, they are so easy to use and also they stop you going crazy overboard as they soak up all the extra product! 

Also theres so many out there that are in competition with each other I thought I should share my thoughts on the two main brands, the original beauty blender and the real techniques miracle complexion sponge. 

I personally love both of these sponges and would use either of them (or both) on a daily basis. 

The first difference between these two products is the price. The beauty blender (pink) is £16 from most websites, such as bots and beauty bay and the real techniques (orange) is £5.99 from boots and superdrug.

The second difference is the shape. Both of these sponges are about 1 inch big when dry, and grow to about twice in size when wet, therefore as far as size goes, they're about the same. 

The shape of the beauty blender is a sort of egg/oval, with one pointed end and one rounded end. I like to use the round end for bouncing foundation all over the face and the pointed end for concealer on blemishes or under the eyes. 

As for the real techniques sponge, it has a similar shape in that one end is pointed however, the other has a flat side. I like this shape as you can use the flat side for foundation or concealer in all the nooks and crannies.

I like the shapes of both of these, as they are both multipurpose and make blending everything so easy! However I personally couldn't pick a favourite as they are both good for different reason! (but in the end they both do the same job)

As you can see in the picture, the two pointed ends are exactly the same shape, however the real techniques one is slightly more sharp (if we're being extremely picky) but the beauty blender is thinner. 

Next up is the most important test in my opinion! The squish/bounce test! I think this is super important as it shows how absorbing (is that a word?) they are, how easy they are to use (because who wants to hit their face with a hard sponge??) and how well they wash.

The real techniques one is very squishy as you can see from the top image the two pointed ends pushes all the way in and the middle is almost fully touching the other side. 

This ones is actually a teeny bit thicker than the Beauty Blender, simply because it is a thicker and smoother sponge material, so it's not as holey! 

However because of this slightly less squishy consistency it's harder to wash and the soap tends to get stuck inside, making it very time consuming to wash and when you wet ir for daily use not as much water can be squeezed out.

As for the Beauty Blender, the point again pushes fully in and my fingers were actually touching when pressing the whole sponge together. This again is because of the sponge material, as this one is a lot more holey, like a typical sponge, meaning it doesn't hold onto the water as much however i do sometimes have to re-wet it if I'm doing a full-face makeup. (eg thick foundation, concealer and cream contour) Also I do think it would be very easy to rip this sponge, as it's a lot thinner, so i find myself being very careful when I have false nails on or when I wash it.
Furthermore this sponge is super easy to wash, however I did notice that the first couple of washes the pink colour ran, which has never happened with the orange sponge!

In conclusion, I think both of these sponges are amazing. They both apply the products exactly the same, both cream and powders. I love both of the shapes, as they both do exactly the same thing! Because of this reason, I would maybe swing towards the Real technique ones, if you're on a budget or just want one to try, however the Beauty Blender is a real wonder and is so highly raved about I feel like even if you don't need it, you'll buy it just to see what the hype is (like me!)

Thankyou for reading I hope you enjoyed and found it helpful! Let me know which one you prefer and why!

Thanks again

Fern :)