PRIMER

By Terry Eye Base Prime to Fix Review – Not just an eyeshadow primer!

March 16, 2017

I have been loving the By Terry Eye Base Prime To Fix (also called Eyelid Base Perfector) a lot lately. Basically, it’s an eye-shadow primer, and it has the most luxurious hydrating formulas I have ever used. I have had the highly popular primers include Nars, Too Faced and Urban Decay, and By Terry stepped up the game by offering a makeup product that can be doubled as an all-in-one eye product for color correction, plumping and smudge proof. I love how lightweight yet hydrating the formula is for my sensitive eyes while it delivers a great job of holding eye makeup for the whole day.

If you find that your eye primer feels too heavy, drying and can look a little cakey, then this product is worth a try. It has a fluid milky consistency that applies like a luxurious eye lotion and provides instant moisturization so you can even skip your eye lotion. It has an ivory tint from the tube but applies translucent, and it makes the skin appear more even-looking and fills up the fine lines for a more youthful look. The formula is closer to skincare, as it applies silky smooth and dries to a semi-matte finish after a few seconds, rather than coating the eyelid with a layer of silicone. It helps the eye shadow to glide on easily, maximizes the intensity of powder and cream shadows, and prevents them from creasing for the whole day for me. Since the formula is much more hydrating than the conventional ones, this product is most suitable for normal to dry, sensitive or aging skin around the eyes.

I bought the By Terry here with free worldwide shipping, and it is also available at NAP and Saks.

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Labels: BY TERRY • PRIMER

Dermalogica Hydrablur Primer Review

May 2, 2016

In achieving a perfect complexion with makeup, apart from an awesome foundation, another essential product would be the makeup primer. I included this product to my makeup routine religiously about a year ago, and nowadays I find that I simply cannot live without it! There are many types of foundation primers in the market, and once you find the right type that suits your skin, it’s very likely you will also be a primer convert. My recent favorite is the Dermalogica Hydrablur Primer. The name says it all – it gives a blurring effect to your complexion and gives it a more smooth, airbrushed appearance.

Why should you include a smoothing primer

It helps to minimize the appearance of pores and fine lines, and extends the wear time of foundation, and even negates the need of powder as the primer already provides a mattifying effect. I find that the combination of a primer and a foundation is sufficient to cover imperfections as well as creating a much more natural finish than having foundation followed by powder.

Thoughts on the Hydrablur

Dermalogica doesn’t make a huge fuss on packaging, but I do like the design of this slim tube (22ml). As with most smoothing primer, it works by filling out your pores, smoothing out the fine lines and giving a more flawless effect to your skin hence less foundation is required. It has a creamy white consistency that has an interesting mildly gritty texture, but on application it applies translucent, and makes the skin feel smooth, velvety and appears more pore-less and even looking. As a makeup primer, this formula works cohesively with all types of foundations (I have tried liquid, cream, powder and cushion!), and it allows the foundation to glide on more smoothly, and keeping it from creasing for the whole day.

closer look at the texture

The Hydrablur feels lightweight and more hydrating than a conventional silicone primer on the skin. Though it’s not as hydrating as a moisturizer, it still works well on my dry skin without flaking up nor enhancing dry patches. On a different note, it is wonderful as a mattifying primer – for my oily t-zone it is able to control the oil for a whole day. In terms of ingredient, this product is formulated without artificial fragrances, colors or parabens.

You can find the Dermalogica primer at ry online in Australia for less than the retail price!

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Labels: DERMALOGICA • PRIMER

A Round-up of the Best base face products for combination and oily skin

November 28, 2015

My previous post on my reader’s requests about how I clean my brushes was very well received, so I though I’d include a post that addresses some of the other most frequently asked questions. Today’s round-up is my picks for the base products for normal, combination to oily skin that have a great staying power in hot and humid weather and still look natural.

This is the list of my favorite products that are great for controlling the oil throughout the day, and most importantly they tick the criteria for not looking too matte, powdery and cakey on the face.

1. MAC Prep and Prime -I bought the full size bottle of this after using a sample as I loved it so much. I am not a big fan of MAC base products but thumbs up for this one. It smoothes out the skin, covers and fills up the pores and creases, and slightly mattifies the skin without feeling silicony and heavy. The foundation sets beautifully on top of this primer, and gives an airbrushed finish of a more even and refined skin texture. It also helps to keep the shine and oil away for a longer time.

2. Make Up For Ever Smoothing Primer – Similar concept to the MAC, but more mattifying and covers the pores better. It has a heavier silicone texture than the MAC, and takes away excess oil and shine completely. Highly recommend it to anyone who has oily skin with large pores.

3. Chanel Mat Lumiere Foundation – My go-to foundation for the hot weather. It has a milky fluidy texture, feels lightweight, and offers a great coverage. It sets slightly more matte and powdery than the other fluid foundations, but it still gives the signature Chanel radiant glow from their Lumiere range. It also photographs beautifully – natural with a soft glow but not shiny.

4. Chanel Perfection Lumiere Foundation (reviewed here) – I wasn’t very impressed with this foundation at first as I was in a ‘dewy foundation’ phase back then, and fell in love with it during the summer time, as it has an amazing stay power and keeps my face looking fresh and clean for the whole day. It gives a velvety finish that is a tad more matte than the Mat Lumiere upon application, and it becomes more natural and luminous over time. Would only recommend this to normal to oily skin types.

5. Chanel Natural Finish Loose Powder – A very mattifying powder, and a little goes a long way. I only dust a very sheer amount on to my t-zone on a normal day, and it keeps the shine away for the whole day. I brought this along with the Mat Lumiere foundation to my last tropical vacation, and they worked wonders keeping my makeup on without melting for the whole day in very humid weather. It can look slightly powdery if applied too much, and it is not the most finely milled powder (can slightly enhance the pores around the cheeks) compared to the other high end powders I have in my collection.

6. Cle De Peau Translucent Loose Powder – My absolute holy grail for so many years. The most luxurious, silkiest and finely milled loose powder you can find in the stores. It looks natural, non powdery, and gives a brightening and more refined finish as it helps to cover the pores and lift the dullness. It slightly mattifies the skin and guarantees to keep your makeup stay put all day.

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Labels: CHANEL • CLE DE PEAU • foundation • MAC • Makeup Base • MAKEUP FOREVER • My Favorites • POWDER • PRIMER