Ooh, I suppose you could call this Foundation Friday, couldn't you? If you like alliteration as much as me...
You lucky lot. Two foundation reviews in as many days! I bought this a few months ago from Superdrug, but felt that even the Normal/Dry skin one was quite drying on my skin, so it was retired to the 'redundant makeup shelf'. I rescued it the other week and decided to trial it especially for you lovely readers.
For starters the formula is quite gloopy. You really have to work it into your skin to get good coverage and you have to be quick while applying it, or else it gets streaky... I applied this with my lifesaver AKA. the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush.
The foundation comes with a screw lid, without a pump dispenser, so you literally have to pour it out onto the back of your hand. Which is, of course, potentially messy and you run the risk of suffering from spillages and wasting the product if too much comes out at once. It's not ideal, is it?
However, it is REALLY long-lasting. Revlon claims that it lasts for 24 hours, but I don't wear my foundation for that long so can't confirm this. Who does?!
The product comes in two types: Normal/Dry and Normal/Oily. I'm using the former rather than the latter. Revlon are catering for essentially what are two different markets with the same product. Aren't they clever?
There are a great range of shades! You know what I'm like, constantly moaning about how cosmetics companies fail to deliver adequate products for super-pale people... So it's great that Revlon, like Rimmel, are leading the way of drugstore brands catering for really pale skin. I've been using 110 Ivory; the lightest shade, of course...
You definitely don't need a primer to give this foundation extra staying power, but may need one to mask the appearance of fine lines - which it can sink into a little. So, if you suffer from the odd wrinkle here and there, it's maybe better to pop some primer on underneath to stop it sinking in to those fine lines.
I've found that the product offers medium to heavy coverage. It can sometimes feel a bit too heavy on my skin. I like my skin to be able to breathe properly under foundation and this is sometimes a bit too much for me. Which aptly brings me to my next point...
I'm not sure if this causes spots... Or if it's just coincidence that I've had breakouts the last two times that I've used this. I really don't know, but if you do suffer from quite bad acne, it might be better to look for something a bit 'lighter'.
The only definite problem that I've experienced with this foundation is unfortunately a big one. It seems to have aggravated my eczema. If you've never read my blog before, I'm a bit weird and suffer from eczema on my eyelids... This basically means that I have to be careful with regards to beauty products. I have noticed tightness around that area and after wearing it I had to crack out the hydrocortisone cream for the first time in months.*
*Dear Reader, do not put hydrocortisone cream on your face... You're not supposed to! The only reason I do is because the doctor told me to... And doctors scare me... So I do what they say.
The finish, with a light dusting of ELF HD Powder on top, is a matte one. I've even had compliments on how good my skin looks when wearing this foundation! In addition to this, it doesn't really oxidise or get ridiculously oily on my skin (in certain oilier areas) after a few hours... A huge bonus and saves me from dragging blotting papers around with me everywhere, just in case the dreaded shininess occurs!
You can pick this up for £12.99. So it's quite good value, but is hitting the top end of the high street foundation price range.
Advantages:
The finish, with a light dusting of ELF HD Powder on top, is a matte one. I've even had compliments on how good my skin looks when wearing this foundation! In addition to this, it doesn't really oxidise or get ridiculously oily on my skin (in certain oilier areas) after a few hours... A huge bonus and saves me from dragging blotting papers around with me everywhere, just in case the dreaded shininess occurs!
You can pick this up for £12.99. So it's quite good value, but is hitting the top end of the high street foundation price range.
I would honestly recommend this to anyone, as long as you don't have problem skin. It's a really fantastic, but very overlooked, foundation.
So, to recap...
- Shades for those with deathly pallors!
- SPF 20,
- Long-lasting,
- Leaves a lovely matte finish.
Disadvantages:
- Potentially drying,
- Quite heavy on skin,
- Lid could equate to spillages and messiness,
- Potentially spot-causing.
