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Lots of things exist on a spectrum. Beauty sponges do not. Beauty sponges are either good or horrid. There is no in between. If you’re a makeup junkie (#guilty), you know this. The two main stand outs are the Beauty Blender and the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge (the one I used to use). However, almost every other brand has released a beauty sponge, and I was excited when Mary Kay announced they were going to be releasing one!
Now, if you read my MK Eye Liner Pen review, then you know that I do this weird thing where I doubt stuff before I even try it. That’s right – I judge the book by its cover. In the interest of remaining more open minded, I ordered this sponge for myself the week that it released.
I was intrigued by the shape and texture. Beauty sponges come in all shapes and sizes, and I had never tried one in this shape before. And while the shape is important, the texture of the sponge is really what matters. Usually, you want a soft and squishy sponge that expands quite a bit once dampened. You want the material to be porous enough that it helps absorb excess product, but not so porous that it just drinks all your product up. It’s a very fine line to walk! Making a good beauty sponge is a tricky business – are you beginning to see why there are so many flops?!
My First Impressions
My first time interacting with this sponge was at a weekly Mary Kay meeting; my wonderful director had brought hers along for me to feel. It was…firm. Much firmer than I was expecting. I dampened it and, to my surprise, it expanded much more than I thought it would. It also felt a bit softer, but still had more resistance to it than what I was used to. I’m gonna be honest – I left that meeting thinking the sponge was going to perform poorly.
My Review
When my sponge finally arrived, I ripped the package open, quickly dampened it, and used it live on Facebook. As I pressed the sponge against my face, it was, like I said, much firmer feeling. But I immediately noticed a couple positives:
- It worked the product into my skin very well.
- It didn’t soak up a lot of product.
- It gave me full coverage.
And as I’ve continued to use the sponge over the last 2-3 weeks, I’ve grown to love it more and more. Firstly, I’ve gotten used to the firmer texture. Secondly, I think the sponge performs so well because of the firmer texture. Because it lacks that super soft and squishy texture, it really pushes the foundation/concealer into my skin. Thusly, my foundation never feels heavy or cakey, even though I’m getting extremely full coverage. Another plus to a firmer texture is that the sponge is much more durable. I’m predicting this one will hold up a lot longer than my other one and I don’t have to be really gentle when I clean it.
One con I’ve noticed is the shape. The pointed tip isn’t quite small enough to fit in the inner corner of my eyes. A little pinch with my fingers solves that though!
Final Thoughts
Overall, I’m thoroughly pleased and impressed with this sponge. At $12, it is fairly priced too! I’ve added one to my freelance kit as well.
Question of the Day:
Are you a makeup sponge user? If so, which is your favorite? Comment below and let me know!
Mascara & Grace 