Clarisonic vs Olay Professional Pro X Face Brush

I received the Olay Professional Pro X Face Brush for my birthday in April but this summer, I purchased the Clarisonic Mia and I thought that I would do a comparison post today seeing as they are both used for the same thing.

The Purpose

The purpose of these brushes is to deep cleanse your face daily. 

The Clarisonic Mia claims that:

• It is 6x better than cleansing with your hands
• 61% Greater absorption of Vitamin C after use
• 2x Daily use is proven safe and and gentle
• 94% report Softer Skin
• 90% report more glowing skin

Many people swear by these Clarisonics to keep their skin in good condition. The Clarisonic Mia 1 comes with one brush head called the 'Sensitive Brush Head' although you can purchase different ones. 

The Olay Professional Pro X claims that:

 Designed by a team of dermatologists along with Olay, the Advanced Cleansing System is professionally and clinically designed to cleanse hard to remove makeup 6X better vs. basic cleansing.

The Differences

• The Olay Professional Pro X is battery powered whereas the Clarisonic Mia 1 comes with a charger. The disadvantage with the charger is that it is not suitable for travel as the plug does not match different countries.
• The Olay Professional Pro X has two speed settings whereas the Clarisonic Mia only has one universal speed.
• The Clarisonic Mia stops after 1 minute to ensure you cleanse your face for the right amount of time.
• The Clarisonic Mias brush head moves much slower and feels like it suctions to your face more than the Olay Professional Pro X.

The Similarities

• Both come with a small cleanser.
• Both have replaceable brush heads.

The Price
The main difference with this product is the price. The Clarisonic Mia is $99 whereas the Olay Professional Pro X is $29.99.

Overall Thoughts
I found that neither of these completely cleared my skin or made it perfect but both make my skin appear more glowing and healthy overall. I think that the Clarisonic feels like it deep cleans your face better and really gets the dirt out more so than the Olay brush does but a huge disadvantage I find with the Clarisonic is that the power does not last for very long.

Overall, I like both of these brushes and I think that the Olay one is a great cheaper alternative but personally, I feel like the Clarisonic cleans my face better.

xoxo

To buy the Clarisonic Mia - http://www.clarisonic.com/shop-our-products/clarisonic-mia-CL11.html
To buy the Olay Professional Pro X - http://www.olay.com/en-us/skin-care-products/prox-advanced-cleansing-system

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Top 5 MAC Products

I have only just been beginning to love MAC and splurge more on their makeup but I am really glad I have. Still having a small MAC Collection, I find it helpful to know what others top picks are. These are mine.

1. Face and Body Foundation
I love this foundation because its perfect for me. I love lighter, natural foundations and this is just the one I love.

2. Satin Taupe Eyeshadow
This is a perfect colour. Its one of MACs most popular shades and I understand why. It is such a wearable shade, especially now that we are getting into autumn/winter. I find it can be incorporated into so many different makeup looks.

3. Syrup Lipstick
This was my first MAC purchase and I love this shade. It is so natural but perfect for this time of the year. I am still on a hunt for a natural pinky nude lipstick from MAC so leave any suggestions in the comments but this has been great too.

4. LadyBlush Cream Blush
This has got to be my overall favourite MAC product. I will have to do a review very soon because not a day has gone by since purchasing this that I haven't used it. Its the perfect neutral shade and it lasts for such a long time. I am in love with this shade!

5. Painterly Paint Pot
Not only is this a great base colour and primer, but it is also great on its own for cancelling out redness and veins on the lid. I want to try more Paint Pots because I can't seem to put this one down!

What are your top MAC picks? I would love to know because I'm always on the hunt for more MAC products.

xoxo

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Beginners Beauty - A Guide

Today I thought I'd do a slightly different post and incorporate the products that I would suggest a beauty beginner buy. I only got into makeup about a year ago and these are the products that I would recommend buying first. Most of these items are inexpensive since a beginner in makeup might want to test out more products before splurging some more. I know that's what I did.

Firstly, the makeup brushes. I found it really fun to buy new makeup brushes because I'd never really bought any before. The first ones I think I bought and that I would definitely recommend is the 'Real Techniques Travel Set'. This contains a multi-task brush, essential foundation brush and a domed shadow brush.

Secondly, I would recommend lips-wise the Maybelline Baby Lips or Revlon Lip Butters. I first bought the Baby Lips which is a great place to start considering how inexpensive they are.

For blushes, I would recommend Bourjois Blushes if you can get them or if you are in America, the NYX blushes. Both of these brands are really inexpensive but great quality. I also find that the colour range is great especially when you are starting out and want to experiment more.

As for face products, I would always suggest starting with a BB cream or lighter foundation to get used to the feel of something being on your skin all day. My personal, cheaper favourite is Bourjois' Healthy Mix Serum. For concealer I would go for Collections Lasting Perfection because it is only £4.19 but one of the best congealers you'll ever buy.

For eyeshadow, I think its best to buy a do-it-all palette and I would probably choose one from Sleek. I haven't actually tried a Sleek Eyeshadow Palette but people rate them very highly and they are really inexpensive. I would also try using a brown shadow for the eyebrows before venturing out into eyebrow products. I just think that this is a better way to test out how you like your brows looking.

For mascara, I would choose one from Maybelline. I honestly think that they are all great but my personal favourite is The Rocket. I think that this can look very natural or you can build it up to look more dramatic.

xoxo

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September Favourites

Its the end of September which means its time for a favourites post. All items mentioned are linked.

1. Soap and Glory Brow Archery
I've really loved this product for my brows this month. I had them tinted when I returned from my holiday late August so they were quite full already but recently the colour in the ends has begin to fade so I use the felt tip side of this to fill in the sparse areas.

2. Earth Therapeutics Precisso Blending Sponge from Kohls
I actually prefer this beauty sponge to my Beauty Blender and this month I have used this sponge most days. I find that it reallly blends your makeup out flawlessly but also makes it look natural. I love it.

3. MAC Cremeblend Blush in LadyBlush
I hauled this product late August and I've been using it ever since. This blush creates such a natural flush of colour which is great for me as I love natural makeup.

4. Abercrombie Top
I have been loving a top I bought this summer. I got it from Abercrombie and its just a plain grey t-shirt that says 'Stay Classic' on it. I have been wearing this in practically every outfit (I'm at school so its only weekends). I wear it dressy with a blazer and casual, it looks great both.

5. Shake it Off by Taylor Swift
I have had this song on repeat this month, I absolutely love it. I think its so fun, catchy and easy going. I   just love it.

6. Gossip Girl
I started watching this programme and watched 3 seasons in 3 weeks. Its such a great show and I've been addicted this montm=h.

7. Netflix
I watch Gossip Girl on Netflix along with lots of other films and tv shows. I think that its got such a great selection of good films especially for the price. Its super cheap when you think that you couldn't even get a DVD for the price of a month on netflix watching any tv show or film. Its a great bargain and since I'm a new member, this month has been free! I love it.

xoxo

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DIY Room Ideas

I have done a post before called Room Ideas in which I showed you some features of my bedroom but all of those were things I bought. Today I thought I'd show you some fairly cheap DIY projects. I only have two for today but if you like them let me know because my sisters want me to do some DIY things for them so I will be doing more.

Firstly, I made this cute little decoration to hang over my desk. I bought the string which has butterflies on it and pegs from Michaels in the sale for around $1. If you can't find these, I would suggest using some wooden pegs you already have or buying some from Dollar Tree or Poundland and painting them different colours and patterns. For the string, just use normal string, lace or ribbon and cut out butterflies to stick to them with a hot glue gun.

I hung the string up with blue tac and pegged on some of my Photo Booth photos with friends and family. I just think that this is a really cute idea to decorate your room and it only cost $2 to make!

My next DIY is this really cute way to hang necklaces. I asked my little sister to find me some pebbles in the garden or you could buy some. I washed them off and used a hot glue gun to stick them to the inside of my wardrobe but you could put them on your wall too. This would also look great if you painted them first.

If you try either of these ideas and want to send me pictures then my email is pinkcupcake7blog@yahoo.com and I'd love to see them.

xoxo PinkCupcake xoxo

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Minimal Product Makeup Look With As Few Products As Possible!

This look is quite a natural, everyday makeup look but with as few products as possible. This is for those of you who have very little time in a morning and need as few products as possible. I managed to do this look with just four products in total.

First take a medium coverage foundation. Rimmels Match Perfection or Maybellines Super Stay 24-hour foundation are good drugstore ones to use. I find this is great to use as both foundation and concealer because you can apply it sheerly to the whole face and more heavily to problem areas. You can use your fingers to apply this quicker.

Then take a bronzer, I'm using NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Powder in Sunny and use this to warm up your face as well as in the crease of your eyelid to add definition. You can also use this in your brows to slightly fill them in. You could also use this as an eyeliner.

Then take your favourite mascara, I'm using Benefits They're Real.

Finally take a lip balm or lipstick and use it both on your lips and cheeks. I'm using Baby Lips in Cherry Me. Blend it out with your fingers on the apples of your cheeks for a subtle glow.

xoxo

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Summer Hate-Its (Disappointing Products)

From the title, this may seem like a boring post where I will just rant about products but when I was looking at which if my posts have the most page views and comments, I realised that my top two were my 'Beauty and Fashion Favourites of 2013' and 'Disappointing Products of 2013'. Since I do a favourites post roughly every month, I thought that maybe I would start doing a disappointing products post every season.

So since you seem to like it when I rant, here goes! I also just want to note that even though these products disappointed me, you may like them. That's fine, obviously it's just personal preference but these are all products that I would steer clear of. I only had 3 products in this post but if you like it then I will include more in my next one.

1. BabyLiss Curl Secret
Although this product does work to create curls. I was very disappointed with it. I find that it takes such a long time to curl your hair because you have to use tiny strands and ontop of that, I get extremely nervous when doing the back of my hair that I will insert the strand in the wrong place resulting in my hair getting caught in this tiny contraption. Overall, I just wasn't impressed with this product.

2. The Body Shop Tea Tree Cleanser
I've always been a huge fan of tea tree oil to clear blemishes but the cleanser really didn't do it for me or my best friend. I'm not sure whether this was just our skin but I was disappointed by this product. I'm glad I only purchased the

3. Freederm Gel
This is supposed to be the UK equivalent to Proactiv so I was expecting major results but honestly I really didn't find it to work at all.

xoxo

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The Beauty Blogger Tag

I have done a Beauty Blogger Tag before but this one is actually different questions. I tag Harrietjacksonx and beautybyeden to do this tag.

1. Why did you start blogging and how long have you been blogging for?
I started because my best friend who also has a blog (harrietjacksonx) practically forced me into making one and I;m so glad she did because I love it! I started it last November, so thats about 10 months!

2. Whose blog did you fall in love with first? 
Other than my friends blogs, I would have to say Zoellas. I love her blog.

3. What was the first blogsphere hyped about product that you bought? Was it worth the hype?
I think that that was the peach BabyLips. I love it and have bought lots more BabyLips since then and probably will buy lots more in the future!

4. What are your five favourite things about blogging and being a beauty blogger?

•  Writing Posts
•  Your Comments - this is probably my favourite thing. You all leave so many lovely comments! 
• Reading other peoples blogs
• Other bloggers - I love finding out more about other bloggers and when you leave links to your blogs in the comments.
• Having a reason to splurge! - I always feel guilty when buying more makeup because I have a lot and don't really need more but thinking that I can review it makes me feel a little bit less guilty!

5. What have you learnt from being a beauty blogger?

This has helped me search more into products before buying them because I realise that there are so many blog reviews out there, just like my own that I can read before spending my money.

6. Have you changed anything since becoming a beauty blogger?
Other than the re-design of my blog a few weeks ago, I have changed the background for my photos and tried to improve them as best as I can.

7.  Is there any advice that you would give beauty bloggers just starting out?
I have to say to have patience because it takes a while to get pageviews and followers in the beginning and just remember that after first creating your blog, it takes time for people to find it and tell others about it. Once you have some followers, it becomes so much easier to gain more so just have patience with it. I would also say to gain pageviews and followers, it helps if you show interest in other peoples blogs by following them or leaving comments. Thats a good way to get your blog seen.

8. What are your top five makeup brands?
Maybelline, Rimmel, MAC, Soap and Glory and Bourjois probably.

9. Recommend your top five beauty products?
Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer - Obviously this is a hugely talked about product. It is such good quality and super affordable.

Benefit They're Real Mascara - I have mentioned this before on my blog because it is a newly found product but I love it. It makes your lashes look amazing.

Maybelline Master Shape Brow Pencil - This isn't talked about that much but I really love it.

SunBum's Key Lime Lip Balm - I haven't actually talked about this before either but I really love this so much. It is factor 30 and tastes like lime. I can't get enough of it!

MAC Painterly Paint Pot - This is a great base for your eyeshadow or I love to use it on its own to cancel out redness on my lids.

xoxo

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Natural Makeup Look

This is a great makeup look for school or work if you have 5-10 minutes to spare in the morning. I usually end up with just concealer but this is great if I have more time. All items mentioned throughout the post are linked to their website.

1. I use two primers. The Benefit PoreFessional on my nose but really use it where your pores are largest instead of all over to save money. Then I use Rimmels Fix and Perfect on the rest of my face.

 2. I now take my damp blending sponge from Kohls and apply Maybellines 24-hour Superstay Foundation to even out my skin tone. I only use half a pump but it is great when I'm having a bad skin day. If my skin is better then I use a water-based foundation like Chanels Vitalumiere Aqua or MACs Face and Body.

3. Now I take the Maybelline Age Rewind concealer in the corner of my eye and blend it with a Real Techniques Essential foundation brush which is great for concealing. I then mix Collections Lasting Perfection Concealers in Fair and Deep and apply it to any blemishes.

4. I then take MACs LadyBlush on a Stippling Brush and apply it to the apples of my cheeks. Sometimes I'll also apply MACs Cream Colourbase in Shell to my cheekbones and cupids bow.

5. Then I curl my eyelashes with my No7 curlers and apply some clear mascara from Maybelline for a natural look. I then comb them through with the brush on the end of my eyebrow pencil.

6. Using Soap and Glory's Brow Archery, I fill in the sparse parts of my brows lightly with the felt tip side.

7. Finally, I use a tube lipgloss from MAC and set my makeup with MACs Fix Plus.

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