Testing High End Foundations

I went to Debenhams when I was visiting family a couple of months ago and it dawned on me that I haven't really tried any high end foundations. After having a little look around the shop and pestering the sails assistants, I ended up with a nice little handful of samples to try out and I thought it would be nice to share my thoughts of them with you... y'know, just incase you're in the same boat! I told the ladies at the counter that I wanted something full coverage that would counteract redness, lets see how they did..

Let's start of with the middle bottle, which is not a foundation but a step to use before makeup to counteract redness. It's the Forever Light Creator CC Creme by YSL. The assistant told me that she found this worked so well for concealing rosacea. From this, I expected the product to take care of any redness without a problem but it really just did nothing for me. It has a lovely consistency but I found it did absolutely nothing. Bit of a disappointment really.

Next is probably my least favourite foundation of the three I tried. It's the Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation, which was described as 'buildable' (literally, it was said about five million times during the conversation), and natural. I have to disagree. It clinged to dry patches that I didn't even know I had, it was crazy! Even after exfoliating, it still looked awful. The coverage was alright, and the parts of my skin that didn't look weird did have a glow but I just really didn't get on with it.

It seems like I have nothing but hate for all the products but I promise I don't! Next is a foundation that really impressed me! I believe it's the Redness Solutions Makeup Broad Spectrum by Clinique. This was described as a medium-full coverage foundation that was pretty thick in consistency. I'd say that description was pretty accurate! This really helped to conceal any imperfections while gliding over the dry parts that the previous foundation clung to. I don't find this to be very thick at all but if you're used to runny, light foundations then it might take some getting used to. Due to the texture, this does feel quite wet. It takes a while to fully set in place, even after using a powder, but I quite liked the natural finish that it gave. It lasts a good 4 hours before getting overly oily or showing through any imperfections, which quite impressed me!

Lastly, I picked up the Mac Studio Fix Foundation, which I was colourmatched to NW 22/24. They were both a bit orange but NW 22 worked a lot better for me. This gives a good amount of coverage and lasts around 4 hours with a primer. The finish is a lot more matte than the Clinique foundation but it doesn't look flat. It does however, cling to dry patches and has a really weird chemical smell! It's like rubbing toilet cleaner on your face. I can get past it though, the foundation was quite nice. It has a thin texture and it surprisingly wasn't irritating at all.

I have to say that although I did like the MAC Studio Fix, I much prefer the Clinique Redness Solutions. Even though I didn't enjoy everything I tried, it was a nice experience anyway. I'm quite grateful for testers really, there's no point buying something without really knowing if you'll like it!

Sorry if I seem a bit scattery, I may or may not have had friends round for the past couple of days and am paying for it now!

EMPTIES #2

It's strange.  It tends to take me a while to use up products yet when I use up one, I seem to use up them ALL (slight exaggeration). I've had this bag of empties to share for a little while so that's today's plan.

First up is a product that I reviewed a few months ago. The Body Shop Sumptuous Cleansing Butter has lasted me a couple of months. I'm not sure if that's normal but I feel like I expected it to last a little longer. It removes makeup like a dream, and I'm currently trying out the camomile cleansing oil to compare. I'll be sure to keep you posted with that!

This tub of The Righteous Butter is the second one I've been through. You can always tell if someone's been using this, as the scent really transfers onto the clothes you wear. That's okay with me though, the scent is really fresh and lovely! I love the texture of this, and it really leaves my skin super soft.

Keeping with the shower theme, I have an empty that I wasn't very impressed by. It's the Ginger Anti-Dandruff Shampoo by The Body Shop. I read a few reviews which said this helped with itchy, irritated scalps (something I had at the time), so I expected this to somewhat help. It was alright at first, but as I got closer to the end of the bottle, it made my scalp so much worse, and ended up giving me dandruff instead of helping anything. Not impressed.

Finally from this segment, is the Blistex MedPlus lip balm. I was obsessed with this during winter, as it somehow fixed cracked lips and managed to rid of all flakiness. It really worked a treat and I'll probably repurchase come the colder months. 

Let's start of with the Cocoa Brown 1 Hour Tan. I reviewed this very recently, and I'm still not really sold on it. It leaves a nice colour when used overnight but in all honesty I'm just a bit fed up with it! It doesn't last very long and the finish tends to be uneven. I won't be repurchasing.

I finished the Good Things Miracle Mattifier moisturiser first out of this bunch, but it was very well loved. It has the most amazing smell thanks to the blackcurrant, and it left my skin feeling soft and I do feel that it did something in regards to keeping oil at bay. It's a good one for summer.

We then have the Nivea Sensitive 3 in 1 Micellar Water, which was one of my favourite products in my bathroom cupboard. This wasn't at all irritating, and it would leave my skin feeling clean and refreshed without being stripping. I used this when I was in a hurry or if my skin was angry at me. I would repurchase this one.

It pains me that the They're Real! mascara by Benefit has expired. I love this mascara, it really makes my lashes look a million times longer and thicker than they really are, and I used to not feel right without it. I actually tried a new mascara lately and felt totally underwhelmed because I had been used to the extreme results this gives. Weird.

I'm going to finish this post with a foundation that I forgot to picture above. It's the Rimmel Stay Matte Foundation in either Ivory or True Ivory (forgive me, I'm not at home while writing this). You know, the tube with the purple? I loved the coverage this gave me, and this was one of the first foundations I used (not the same tube, ew). To be honest, it's probably why I prefer thicker consistencies. It lasts a long time and it doesn't tend to cling to dry patches unless y'know, you've actually got dry patches. However, the one thing that bugs me about this is the marketing. It's called Stay Matte... it definitely doesn't "stay matte" for any length of time. This would probably cake up if you put on too much, but you really don't need a lot of it. It gives a nice natural but full coverage. I may repurchase again.

aaaand breathe... that was a long one (for me anyway), so I hope you've enjoyed and this has somewhat helped you! -x

July Favourites!

July has flown by and we're now in August, but that doesn't mean I'm too late for a favourites post, right? I haven't been doing very much this month other than working and catching up on tv/youtube - yep, I am a wild one. I do however, have a nice little bundle of products that I have been loving lately so let me tell you about them...

First up is a fairly boring one, but one that I have been reaching for daily. It's the Blistex Intensive Moisturiser Hydrating Lip Cream. I used up my much loved Blistex MedPlus and went on the hunt for a repurchase but to my horror, they were out of stock. So, I picked up this little tube instead. I wouldn't say I loved it quite as much as the little blue pot but it's worked really well to hydrate and fix my insanely dry lips. It also has SPF 10, which is always good.

For my hair, I never usually think too much about what shampoo I use but this has been so wonderful. I bought the Oily Roots and Dry Ends Shampoo by Lee Stafford as it seemed perfect for my type of hair. I've found it's worked wonders at keeping excess oil at bay and my hair doesn't look greasy as quickly. The moringa seed extract has really tamed my sensitive scalp too.

If you read my latest foundation review, it won't surprise you that my next favourite is the Seventeen Stay Time Foundation in Natural. It really hasn't let me down, and you can read my review here.

This favourite has been a favourite of mine for a long time now, and this one is actually all used up. It's the cult classic They're Real mascara by Benefit. It completely changes the look of my lashes, making them appear fuller and longer, not to mention it really holds a curl too. This is a total winner to me and I'm sad to have used it up.

The penultimate item in this post is a little hidden gem I picked up from Topshop. It's their Kohl Eyeliner in Sable. This is super pigmented and soft, there's absolutely no dragging with this and it lasts a long time on my skin considering it's a kohl. I've worn this on my upper lashline throughout an 8 hour shift and it's still been perfect when I've finished. If that doesn't impress you, I don't know what will.

Last but certainly not least is the Supercat Eyeliner Pen by Sap & Glory. I haven't felt 100% right without a cat flick this month so it would feel silly to leave this out. It's long lasting and is definitely black, and it doesn't fade into a weird grey colour during the day. It took me a while to get used to this pen but I really like it now.

Been up to much this month? If there is anything you'd like me to review in full, please let me know! -x