I Put The New Silicone Beauty Blender To The Test… And It Didn’t Go Well

I’m a massive fan of the classic Beauty Blender sponge, so when a Prae Beauty Silicone Blender (€12) landed in STELLAR HQ I knew I had to give it a go.

The silicone “sponge” has been all over the beauty internets of late, and promises great coverage, a flawless finish and less product wastage. Plus, it’s easier to clean and maintain than a regular beauty blender sponge, apparently.

I’ve tried many a make-up tool but was super-excited to give the silicone blender a go. After all, if it could provide good coverage and finish, as well as making my €30 bottle of foundation last longer, it’d basically be a dream come true. Here’s how I got on.

First impressions
The sponge looks and feels for all the world like a chicken fillet. It was cold and squishy to the touch, but felt like it could work a treat on my skin.

How to use it
The instructions were clear: apply foundation directly to your face, swipe product into place and dab with silicone blender until desired finish is achieved. I’m not used to applying foundation directly to my face but it was less messy than expected.  

How it went
Strike one came when I started “dabbing” the foundation in as instructed. When I swiped the foundation on my face with the silicone blender it literally highlighted every pore and hair I had on my face. Not good.

As for the “dabbing,” it took far longer than I’m used to. A good workout though. Even after I’d finished, the foundation sat on my skin rather than sinking in, and enhanced the pores around my nose and chin.

Blending it around my eyes and hairline was a disaster too, as it left marks and got caught in the hairs.

As well as trying the tool out with foundation, I put it to the test with my concealer under the eyes and bent the silicone blender to fit, but because the blender is hard, it was truthfully a little painful.

Did it live up to the hype?
I dabbed that silicone blender until I could dab no more and as much as I wanted this tool to my new go-to beauty blender, it just didn’t perform well for me. However, as suggested on the website, I used a wet complexion sponge to finish things off and that did give me my desired finish.

Cleaning it was a dream, as promised, and I can see what they mean by “less wastage,” as none of the product sinks in to the sponge.

In terms of application, it’s not a time-saver, as it took around three minutes to work the foundation as, as opposed to a minute with other tools. 

Verdict
Using it in tandem with a wet complexion sponge makes a good finish, but it’s a no from me, sadly.

By Ciara Gaughan.

Tags:

• Beauty Blender
• foundation
• Foundation Applicator
• Silicone Blender