glamour magazine benefit freebies

 

 admittedly a little late, but i thought i would show anyone that hasn't already seen (and bought!) the latest glamour magazine complete with benefit freebies. each issue is £2 and comes with one freebie - either 'porefessional' pro balm, 'bad gal lash' mascara or 'that gal' brightening face primer. 

i bought all three but gave my third copy to a friend hence the lack of the magazine with the eva longoria cover! however, for those of you that don't want to waste money on three copies of the same magazine and a product you may not like, i thought i'd do a mini review of each product.

it should also be noted that, at the time of release, i was in brighton and went into about 20 shops only to find that 'that gal' was nowhere to be seen. not even amongst the 50 or so copies in wh smith or the unopened box that hadn't been put out in sainsburys. however, in london 'that gal' seemed to be everywhere! weird huh?!

'that gal' is a brightening face primer and is probably my favourite product of the three. i love the packaging, particularly the box which may have swayed my opinion a little! the primer has a slightly pink colour to it which i wan't expecting so i'm not sure how well it would work for darker skin tones as it may end up looking a bit ashy. it blends in to my skin well though and does provide a nice illuminating base. i'm not sure if it helps keep my make up on for much longer that usual though but it's become a favourite for early mornings when a bit of brightening is needed!

'porefessional' is described as a pro balm which seems to be similar to a primer but is specifically for minimising the appearance of pores. it's described on the benefit website as translucent which is strange as it definitely has a beige tint to it. once rubbed in though it does turn clear and makes your skin so soft and silky. i can't comment too much on the effect it has on reducing the appearance of my pores as fortunately my pores aren't particularly visible. i do still think i'll get some use out of this though as it makes applying make up easy and may be a bit of a god send on day when my skin feels a bit flared up and bumpy.

everywhere you look 'bad gal lash mascara' appears to be a cult classic however i've read a lot of reviews post-glamour giveaway and can't seem to find many good ones! unfortunately, i have to agree with the bad reviews as this is also my least favourite freebie. the size of the brush (slightly bigger than the average mascara brush in case the picture isn't clear) doesn't bother me as it does to some, but the formula does! 

despite it's 'bad gal' nametag, after using my eyelashes didn't look anywhere near as black and thick as i like them to and by the end of the day i had a clear black shadow and some flaking under my eyes which is something i haven't experienced in a long time. a bit of a shame as i do like the packaging and the mini tube is so cute! however, according to benefit's website their 'they're real! mascara' is actually the number one bestselling mascara in the u.k (!) so i'm not completely put off yet benefit mascaras yet... maybe i just need to try this one instead? any thoughts?