Manicare Flawless Complexion Sponge Review

Comparing this sponge to others I've used, I love it! The main difference is it's nice and firm, I feel like you don't lose as much product in it compared to less dense sponges. Also being super soft is ideal and so nice on the skin.

I'm admittedly not much of an every day foundation-user, but when I do cake it up, I always reach for a blending sponge to evenly distribute my liquid foundation over my face.

To start off, this sponge has a flat top while the rest of its body is round. I actually like how they designed it because the flat top makes it easier to reach inner corners such as the space between the under eye and nose or around the lip area. It's actually firmer than it looks, harder than my beauty blender, but not as solid as the ones I own from aliexpress.

I had high hopes for this flawless complexion sponge. I first used it last Friday for a wedding, making sure I wet the sponge and drained it until it was the right kind of damp (only because this is how I usually use my makeup blenders). Wrong move. As soon as I started applying and dabbing it all over my face, it looked so patchy. I had to keep going over spots so they were properly blended out - it took me twice as long as I usually would with other blenders. I was so disappointed.

Next few times I used it damp again hoping it was just a one off time, that maybe I just wasn't using it correctly, but obviously the same result occurred. Then dumb little ol' me realised that if I wanted more coverage, I needed to use it while dry! I usually try not to because you all know most, if not all, beauty gurus recommend to dampen the sponge. So when I finally tried it dry... whaddya know? It was flawless! Even quicker in blending than the application I do for other blenders. It's amazing how much of a difference it makes.

At the end of the day I think it does a pretty decent job in providing coverage when used dry. However, I would still opt for my beauty blender over this because when using this dry although it did make my face look flawless, up close you can faintly see dry patches on my face, particularly my nose, which is strange for me since I've got normal combo-oily skin. I would not purchase this on my own.

I was super excited to trial this sponge. The main thing I love about this sponge is the shape as it allows you to get into hard to reach areas. The sponge worked best for me when damp by blending make up out perfectly leaving my skin looking flawless and dewy. For the price I think this sponge is great and I will most likely purchase it in the future.

Well; other than using thin, flat, cheap synthetic sponges years ago I am new to trying these foundation/concealer sponges - I know! where have I been hiding? So, I am also a new user to applying foundation with brushes having just been bought a lovely new set from a friend. I did like applying my foundation with a brush but this sponge has taken it to a new level. In short, I love it! It really does do what is says on the packet & then some. I read the tips on how to use it & tried every option. The flat side applies the foundation easily & I had no problem using it for concealer under my eyes. It was soft enough so that it did not tug the skin but firm enough to do the job properly. The blurb says to use a pushing technique to get more coverage & a push & roll technique to blend & these worked too. For a dewy coverage it says to dampen the sponge & use dry for more coverage. I actually prefer a matte finish in addition to looking like I am not wearing makeup & although this is mostly due to the foundation I choose, the sponge helped with this outcome too. As I said, I am new to sponges so cannot compare with other ones on the market other than price, as this seems a very reasonably price compared to the others. If you are new to this tool, then I would definitely recommend trying this one first or if you are unhappy with what you are using - give it a go. Would I use it again - as long as it doesn't disintegrate after a few weeks then definitely; it really has been an improvement to my make-up bag. Pro's - Does what it says on the packet Inexpensive Takes a fraction of the usual time to apply foundation Does not absorb the foundation therefore you use less Cons - Why don't they make them in skin colour so that it doesn't discolour the sponge?

Thanks to BR for this product. I've tried a couple of brands of sponges (blank canvas cosmetics and real techniques) so I'm comparing this one to them.

This sponge is a different shape...not an egg or teardrop...more of an oral ball with a slice taken off its top. It's soft but firm. Nice tiny sponge pores.

Do I like this sponge? Yes but no. When you wet it and dab it to apply foundation, it's a bit violent, by way that it's like you tapping your face with your fingers. It's not soft sponge like the RT sponge (which is definitely my favourite sponge)...it's firm like the BCC sponge. Therefore I haven't been using it with a bouncing motion, I have been using it in swiping/spreading motions. This gives a nice lite coverage like I like, and been enjoying it with my matte mousse foundation. Love it.

I tried really hard to like this sponge and make it work, but I just couldn't. I have the original beauty blender and so it was great to be able to compare the two. Unfortunately the Manicare sponge was a real let down. The shape isn't bad, a flat side with a slim edge which is good for applying products over larger portions of the face and also creating sharp lines under contour/bronzer etc, and a rounded side as well, but because it was so hard and also just quite big in general I found it quite difficult to apply product to all areas of my face well (creases around my nose, under my eyes etc.) I always use my sponges wet and so to give it a fair chance I also used the manicare sponge wet. While it did swell in size, it stayed very hard and was almost uncomfortable to use on the face. It didn't flex or bounce when trying to put on foundation and even when I tried it dry (which they claimed would give a fuller coverage) I found it did not blend any product, cream or liquid, well at all and also seemed to just remove the product from my face more than anything else. I really did try to make this sponge work for me but it was very unsuccessful. Considering it retails for $13.50 on their website I wouldn't purchase it myself, if I was in a squeeze and needed a sponge I feel like I could probably find a sponge of equivilant quality for a couple of dollars at Kmart or elsewhere.

I titled this review as Sponge Cake because the results from using The Manicare Flawless Complexion Sponge was more negative than positive. On the packaging it said "80% noticed their skin was visibly more flawless!", I can say that i stand in the 20% that did not.

Upon using the sponge dry, i found that the pressing method did not give a flawless coverage. My complexion was still uneven and i resolve to buffing with the round side to get my foundation even. After doing so, my face looked caked-up and left me disappointed. The flat side was hopeless at getting my concealer under my eye, especially to the corners. The sponge most definitely held a lot of product, in which i would recommend to not use when apply more costly cosmetics.

When i used the sponge wet my coverage was light as the packaging said it would. I could not help but notice that it still held in a lot of product.

Although i see how useful this tool is to be used to apply different makeup, the results is not 100% what it claims to do. The sponge is dense and I didn't like how my fingers and finger nails get a little covered in makeup. Cleaning the sponge is a breeze though.

The product name says it all 'Flawless complexion sponge.' It really does give me an amazing flawless finish on my foundation. I love the instructions of using a pushing technique to get better coverage, using less foundation. A great way to save time and money (on foundation.) It is also very handy that it is double sided - the flat side for applying foundation and the rounded edge to apply concealer. The flat side works awesome to really get in around the eyes, nose and right up to the hair line. The sponge is silky soft and i will definitely be my new makeup applicator!

I was super excited to trial this sponge out. And I really did put it to the test. I followed the instructions on the packaging. FIRST TRIAL: I prepped my face as normal, this day I chose to use the sponge dry (as it claimed to give a full coverage application). I used a pressing technique to press the product into my skin. I noticed my skin looked cakey and so continued to press the product in but as the foundation started to dry it was removing the foundation from my skin and then became patchy. SECOND TRIAL: Prepped skin as normal, this time I used to sponge damp. The sponge expanded abit with water. Using the pressing technique again I started to press the foundation into my skin, definitely a difference from using it wet to dry. Looked more evenly applied. However my imperfections showed through. Both days I tried to use the flat side of the sponge under my eye area and sides of nose. I found the flat edge to be too large in size for my eye area but it worked well for the sides of my nose. Tried to use the rouded egde to apply extra coverage to pigmentation or spots but didn't make too much of a difference. This sponge is quite dense. Now, I have used Real Techniques Miracle Complextion Sponge, XO Beauty Flawless Finish Sponge and countless BeautyBlenders. The sponge is a go-to tool for applying my foundation, concealer, cream contours and highlights as well as setting areas with translucent powder. So if I was to compare the Manicure Flawless Complextion Sponge to all those other sponges, I would have to say it is my least favourite out of them all. And now I will tell you why, the shape of this sponge, the way it has been designed is a fail for me as the flat edge is too big to fit nicely under me eye area if it was narrowed at the tip into more of a triangle shape I think it would be perfect for under eyes. The rounded bottom part of the sponge is too small, if the circumference of that part was bigger it would apply easier. I don't mind the dense type of sponge it is because the XO Beauty sponge is also dense and I love that sponge for full coverage days. My biggest downfall with this sponge was that after each application I would clean my sponge (exactly the same way I clean all my sponges) I noticed that the sponge was rinsing out a huge amount of foundation, so to me thats telling me that instead of the sponge pressing the foundation into my skin and only absorbing a small amount it actually absorbed a whole lot of product.

OVERALL RATING: 3/10