When it comes to applying foundation I tend to use a flat disc-shaped sponge as it’s got a big, flat surface area that makes wiping everything on a breeze. I’ll fold it up to get into a corner or reach for mini Beauty Blender but rarely do the latter as picking up another tool is a bit of a las, but things have changed recently now that I’ve got my hands on Real Technique’s Miracle Sculpting sponge (R79, Takealot).

It can be used wet or dry and, being weirdly shaped, it boasts six different surfaces so you can blend, dab and contour to your heart’s content, choosing a tip in a size that suits exactly what you’re doing. While it’s been designed for those wanting to highlight and contour, I’ve been using it mostly for foundation application. (I don’t wet it fully but I spritz it with a bit of Avene thermale water beforehand which helps create a sheer, dewy finish.) I like that the large flat side makes it easy to sweep everything across my face while the smaller tip gets right into the corner of my eyes.

I also like using it dry to illuminate, dipping the smaller tip into powder highlighter before using it to blend it around my cheeks and temples.

Moving on, let’s talk about Payot’s iconic spot blitzer, Pate Gris L’Original Emergency Anti-imperfections Care (R259, Dis-Chem).

Pate Gris has been around for seven decades and has become a bit of a ‘Marmite product’ in that there are those who love it and those who hate it. According to Payot, it brings pimples to their maturation phase fast, drawing them out and drying them up but I had a different experience. I had a big blind pimple coming up on my chin the other day (you know the kind, the one’s where you can feel that painful to push on bump but there’s no head) so I slapped this on it at night and the very next day the spot had visibly shrunk, was less red and less sore. I reapplied the next day (this is the joy of working from home, you can sit around with grey paste on your face) and by the time the sun went down it was like the pimple had never happened.

Sounds good, right? Well, sure! But I could have done without the cons – the fact that it smells like petrol and has a super sticky, thick paste-like texture that doesn’t dry. This means if you can’t wear it to work and, if you sleep in it, it will dirty up your pillow. So, if you’re looking for something ‘invisible’ and are precious about your linen, this isn’t going to float your boat. But, if these are things you can live with then Pate Gris is worth a shot. If it hadn’t done such an impressive ‘fade’ I’d have most definitely tossed its sticky, smelly self, but it’s efficacy (in my case) sees it getting to live another day in my bathroom as I’d like to experiment a bit more with it in future.

For the record, however, my favourite blind pimple blitzer is still Differin gel but as this is an expensive prescription product and Payot’s isn’t it’s not really a fair comparison. If it’s something you’re interested in I suggest you also check out the reviews on Makeupalley to see what I mean about the love/loath thing. For every girl who’s slammed it for the cons or found it simply didn’t work, there’s another who considers it her Holy Grail.

Last but not least, if you’re a fan of Caribbean Tan’s yummy-smelling Milk & Honey body butter but weren’t so keen on the big, bulky pot it came in, you’ll be glad to know it’s now packaged in a much mooier-looking tube.

Yep, it’s still the formula you know and love, but now you can squeeze instead of scoop. Also, the price point remains terrific – just R59,95 per tube.

Love, love

Leigh