I've heard so many great things about this foundation. I've seen loads of blogs lauding it and YouTubers raving about it. So, with all the hype about this product, I was keen to try it out for myself... But did it live up to my high expectations?
To answer the above question, 'Yes and no', but mainly no... I bought this quite a few months back, I tried it once. It made me look orange. I put it aside on the 'redundant makeup shelf' and left it well alone; for fear of being mistaken for a satsuma should I leave the house wearing it.
I have obviously used it a handful of times since, but every time I catch a glimpse of that orange mug of mine, I regret not using something more 'deathly-pale'. It looks orange straight away; not like it's oxidising on my skin after application. It's just way too dark, I'm not exaggerating. You only have to look at that picture above for proof.
I tried 'No. 51 Vanille Clair', which is the lightest shade on offer. I'll be honest, being exceptionally pale does not make it easy to buy any foundation or concealer products; but I swear some cosmetics companies take the mickey a bit. 'Ivory' and 'Porcelain' are still normally bright orange...
There are so many foundations out there that I would love to try that are just too dark for me. This, unfortunately, is one of those. I heard such great things about it and it didn't look too orange on my hand under the bright lights of Boots, so I thought I'd take a risk...
...It kind of backfired, because as I'm sat writing this whilst wearing the foundation, I look like I've just waltzed off the set of TOWIE: the irradiant orange hue to my face is quite hard to miss. (I took my dog for a walk like this too. The milkman saw me... Hopefully he didn't think I'm the lovechild of David Dickinson and Gemma Collins).
I do like this foundation. It's feels moisturising on my skin, without looking too oily or shiny. That's a hard balance to find and Bourjois have done it very well with this product. I just wish that they made it in lighter shades. I daren't use this foundation without having fake-tanned myself up to the eyeballs; or else I have the dreaded 'orange-face-white-everything-else' look going on, which really isn't good.
On the plus side, it looks quite natural (in texture) and it feels quite light and airy on my skin, despite it giving quite good coverage. It's easy to blend into skin with just your fingers, although I'm sure it'd work just as well with a brush or sponge. It's quite 'liquid-y', so you've got time to really work it into your skin before it dries, unlike some other thicker foundations.
Bourjois boast that this product has fruit in it and if fruit's good for you dietary needs, it's got to be good plastered all over your face too, right...?
I would recommend this product to anyone who isn't ghostly pale or has really dry or really oily skin. That narrows down the market a little, but I'm sure Bourjois still make shedloads of money from this otherwise great foundation.
Advantages:
- Skin-Loving ingredients,
- Readily available in high-street stores,
- Moisturising without being oily,
- Relatively cheap at £9.99
Disadvantages:
- Way too orange for me (which I'm honestly disappointed about),
- Too small a range of shades to cater for everyone,
- Scented - Which may irritate particularly sensitive skin,
- Potentially clings to dry skin patches.
