Foundation Forever #2- Soap & Glory Show Good Face 2 in 1 Foundation and Primer

Product: Soap & Glory Show Good Face 2 in 1 Skin Energizing Foundation & Primer
Shade: The Fairest of Them All
Price: £11, from Boots
Finish: Dewy, bright.
Skin Type and Colour: Combination (dry sensitive cheeks, oily T-zone). Very pale (N10 in Mac) neutral toned, but slightly more pink.

 Packaging: Outside, it's the typical Soap & Glory retro cuteness, I'm a little disappointed by the actual bottle though. It's a bit bland and forgettable.

Colour: This is the palest shade- I wish it was a little paler. It doesn't look unnatural (it's quite sheer and you can easily blend it in) but if there were a paler shade I'd get that one instead. I can make do with this though. Not a wide range I believe though, just the 6 shades. Love the name though!

Please ignore how hideous I look in these... eurgh.

 

Application & Coverage: It goes on and blends very easily. The coverage is definitely sheer to low, this will not cover up a lot at all! However it does have a lovely brightening effect, particularly on my cheeks. Even though it is brightening, it's dry within seconds.

Best Way to Apply?: Fingers are fine, I think brushes would be fine too.

Lasting Power: Because it is such a sheer coverage, it's difficult to estimate lasting power. I would say it's ok, I'm not sure there was much left by the end of the day though.

Thoughts: This isn't usually my type of foundation, but actually... I like it. It's lovely for a little coverage for low key days. I'd probably say it was comparable to a tinted moisturiser in that respect. I do wish it had a bit more coverage, low would be fine but this is very low, it's more for evening out than covering blemishes. I do like the primer being in there so you don't have to use a separate one. I like it and will use it, not entirely sure it would be a repurchase though!

Rating: 8/10

Love B xxx

Foundation Forever #1- Illamasqua Skinbase in Shade 2

After doing my Lipstick Forever series for a while, I thought I'd start a foundation series to cover in depth about foundations! First up... the Illamasqua Skinbase.

Product: Illamasqua Skinbase
Shade: 02
Price: £25, online at the Illamasqua website or from their counters.
Finish: Semi matte, more natural.
Skin Type and Colour:  Combination (dry sensitive cheeks, oily T-zone). Very pale (N10 in Mac) neutral toned, but slightly more pink.

Packaging: I really love the packaging of Illamasqua foundations. The colours they use and the curves on the bottle make it really stand out from the plain packaging a lot of brands use. The bottle is plastic and easy to carry, and the small nozzle means it is difficult to squeeze out too much.

Colour: I picked up Shade 2, a very pale pink. If I'm honest, it is a bit too pale (even for my ghostly skin). I couldn't really go down to another shade (the other one they showed me was way too dark), although be aware the shades are by tone rather than straight from light to dark. I love Illamasqua's range, but this colour has too much white for me. You know the white cast effect from sunscreens? That's what this reminds me of when I first put it on. I can work with it, but it isn't great.

You can see it clinging a bit in these two pics.

Ghostly.

Application & Coverage: I would say the coverage is medium-high. I LOVE Illamasqua as a brand, but honest to God I've hated the application of every foundation of theirs I've tried (this is the third). This is an improvement on the others, but I still found it very hard. I found it a little cakey and liable to cling to dry patches (where I didn't think I had any). It did get better after an hour or so, it sort of melts into the skin and looks better? Very odd.

Best Way to Apply?: I didn't particularly like this with fingers or any of my brushes or primers. Fail.

Lasting Power: Admittedly not bad, it held up pretty well. I did find I was quite oily by the end of the day though so I'd take powder or oil absorbing sheets to top it up if you are oily too.

Thoughts: I love Illamasqua. I love their ethos and style. And I really wanted to like this. But I don't. At worst I really wasn't pleased with how I looked. At best, in the middle bit where it melted in... it was ok. There was never a point sadly when it blew me away. Great colour range though, and I'm aware it could be my own picky skin and rubbish skills that are letting me down as much as the foundation, and I have seen loads of good reviews and there are good points. I just can't think of any niche in my make-up bag where it's better than anything else I have.

Overall Mark: 6/10. I really really wish it was more though.

Love B xxx