QUICK REVIEW: Revlon Colourstay 24 Hour Foundation – Normal/Dry Skin (150 Buff) – SPF 20

Busy busy busy, but thought I'd drop in some swatches of a "drugstore" foundation that I actually like (Shock! Horror!). I included it in my big foundation swatch-a-thon a few weeks ago, but have never actually got round to reviewing it (despite the fact I am now on my third bottle).

According to the blurb, this should afford one a “flawless look, lightweight feel” - not sure I agree with that, necessarily. I can definitely feel it on my face - although it's not uncomfortable, I know it's there. This is not a "no-makeup" foundation.

COLOUR: This one’s a tiny teeny bit too light for me on a daily basis – I would normally get 200 Nude, but I must have been feeling pale that day – but would be fine in winter, or with some bronzing warmth added. Nude is also slightly more pink-peach in undertone (which is brightening to my skin) than Buff, which leans neutral.

COVERAGE: Really good, but slightly sheerer in the normal/dry variant. The combo/oily version is much better for coverage but makes me look mask-like - and if I were to turn around too quickly, my face would probably end up on the back of my head.

STAYING POWER: I think 24 hours would be a bit of a stretch (not that I would ever test it for that long) – but it shows some definite signs of wear and tear around the 6 hour mark, with the nose and chin all but disappearing after eight or nine. Fine if you top up at lunchtime, but AIN’T NOBODY GOT TIME FOR DAT.

AND THE DRY SKIN….?: Even with the normal/dry version, there’s still a little bit of “flaking” on my dry patches after a while, but this doesn't set in for a good few hours and is easily rectified with a little squirt of Mac Fix + spray.

Here are some hand swatches, and before-and-afters for your perusal.......... (bare skin alert!).

Bare skin - just a dash of moisturiser (and a self-inflicted poke in the eye, as you can tell from the bloodshot stare)

Just one layer of Revlon Colourstay - applied with a flat-topped stippling brush

Still only one layer, but a bit more face added - this is my "day" face, i.e. NYX Rouge Cream Blush in CB02 Natural, NARS Loose Powder in Flesh (just on chin and bridge of nose), No7 Exquisite Curl mascara in black, and a slick of Lanolips Lip Ointment in Apples

Left: natural (overcast) daylight      Right: indoors, titanium bulb light

Revlon Colourstay can be bought from Boots for £12.49, but is more often than not on some sort of three-for-two deal (which it is at the moment, so bag yourself a bargain!).

Jen

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My current foundations - this may be a long post.........

Realisation dawned this morning, as I had to wade through a collection of tubes and bottles in varying states of emptiness and move several bottles out of the way to reach the one that I wanted – I have LOTS of foundation.  Quite possibly more than one human could ever possibly need, especially all at the same time.  What the yellow rubbery fuck is wrong with me?

In my defense, they are all slightly different shades, and slightly different formulas, therefore they serve different purposes and fulfill different needs at different times of the year.

Hmmmm……. How many times can one person use the word “different” in one sentence in a forlorn and rather pathetic attempt to persuade yourself that you actually mean it? To be honest, I know I’ve got too many, and that I do occasionally get suckered in to hype as I try to find my Holy Grail. But I love buying new foundations – testing them in the shop, finding some natural light, browsing for other stuff while waiting to see if they oxidize……… it’s a ritual that I adore and will never get bored of. In the meantime, the collection grows.

So, for those of you out there that are relatively fair-skinned, with neutral to cool undertones, here are the foundations that work for me.

From left to right:

Lancome Teint Miracle in 010 Ivory

Nars Sheer Glow in Mont Blanc

Estee Lauder Double Wear in 1C1 Cool Bone

Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation in 15 Opal

MAC Face and Body in N1

Revlon Colourstay (normal/dry skin) in 150 Buff

Estee Lauder Double Wear Light in Intensity 01

Diorskin Nude in 020

 

I may have mentioned this before (!) but I have dry skin. Frequently, this turns into very dry skin. Occasionally, this turns into oh-my-god-my-face-is-so-tight-I-think-it’s-going-to-rip skin. With that in mind, I usually go for hydrating formulations (or at least, ones that don’t suck moisture out of my already parched skin). Therefore I don’t suffer much with oxidizing – in fact, hardly ever, as I don’t have much oil on my face to turn things orange. Foundation also normally lasts a relatively long time on me unless I have been sleeping at my desk that day and it’s ended up on my sleeves……. So bear in mind your mileage may vary.

Here are some arm swatches, taken in different lighting so you can get a feel for the range of tones between the brands:

L-R: Lancome Teint Miracle (010), NARS Sheer Glow (Mont Blanc), EL Double Wear (1C1), Vichy Dermablend (15 Opal), MAC F&B (N1), Revlon Colourstay (150 Buff), EL Double Wear Light (01), Diorskin Nude (020)

 

Both the Lancome Teint Miracle and the Diorskin Nude are very neutral, almost ashy. This is great when I feel as though my skin is a bit pinker than normal, which it does occasionally, seemingly entirely randomly. The are lovely and hydrating with a dewy finish, but consequently they don’t last long – about six hours – unless I powder over the top. Defeats the object really. Love them both, though, and these are both repeat purchases.

The Estee Lauder Double Wear doesn’t see much action, unless I’m having a spectacularly good skin day, or if I know in advance that no one will be getting within fifteen feet of me.  This stuff has a tendency to flake off my face if I don’t meticulously prep first – shame really, because the coverage is awesome and it lasts FOREVER. The Double Wear Light is better for my skin, and is easier to apply (a job for fingers rather than blending with a brush) but doesn’t last quite as long – I normally get eight hours before it starts to disappear. Both of them are a little peachy in tone so they brighten up the skin nicely if I'm having a sallow-and-tired day.

The Vichy Dermablend is one I use as a concealer rather than all over – the pigment is so concentrated it would look like a mask on me if I tried to use it in the normal way. I would imagine this is the stuff for you if you have scars or marks that you want to hide. A few dots under the eyes is all I need to minimize dark circles, but I only tend to use it on days where I think my skin couldn’t cope with the heavier formula of MAC Studio Finish concealer.

I bought the Revlon Colourstay entirely because of the beauty blogging hype (damn you MakeupGeek!). I must say though, for a “drugstore” foundation, this one lives up to its reputation (this is my third bottle, and I will need a new one soon). Great coverage (on a par with Double Wear) but not quite as flake-inducing.

MAC Face and Body tends to be my summer foundation as it is a little darker than my winter skin (bordering on peachy, similar to the Estee Lauders), but I have recently found myself turning to it even in the cooler weather – my skin is going through a rough patch (literally) so needs something a bit kinder to skin, and Mac F&B is it. Although the coverage is initially quite sheer, it can be layered easily - for shits and giggles one day, I tried several layers just to see what would happen – I managed to get to five layers, and the coverage increased with every “coat” but showed genuinely hardly any sign of caking. It contains some kind of film-former which means it miraculously “sets” on the skin (whether you are using it on your face or elsewhere) and I tend to get a good eight hours of wear out of it even without powder.

Lastly, NARS Sheer Glow. Possibly my all-time favourite as it is the best all-rounder – the best colour match to my skin tone as it is so pinky-peach, so it melts invisibly into my skin and gives me a genuine “no make-up” look, but evens everything out beautifully. It can be layered a little bit, but I would stop at two layers because three can start to look mask-like. My only gripe is that the staying power isn’t great – I tend to have to touch it up a little at lunch (five hours of wear).

Next on the list is Bobbi Brown’s Repair Foundation, although I am not overly taken with the concept of dipping my fingers into a jar – I could put up with that if it's as soothing on the skin as the blurb would suggest. For the sake of my poor wallet though, it will have to wait until next payday…………

Jen

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Old faithful – Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Make-up

Don’t you hate it when everything runs out, all at once? Well, no, actually. I love a good Boots splurge, me. My wallet isn’t so keen, but I find there’s no greater feeling than wandering into Boots with a product list and a determined look on your face.

Part of the point and purpose of the trip was to also try out a new foundation, which I’ve had my eye on for a while – Chanel Vitalumiere Satin Smoothing Fluid makeup – unfortunately, although the texture felt divine and coverage was fabulous, it was far, far too yellow for my skintone (I tried it in the palest colour, Limpide). Shame really, I was a little bit gutted.

Sigh. Back to the old faithful, then. Back to the only foundation I have ever repurchased, and several times at that. I’m talking about Dior’s Diorskin Nude Fluid foundation.

Boots had got a fab offer on, where a £50 purchase of premium beauty products entitled you to an instant tenner off. Not sure how long it will last, but my sister and I loaded up on stuff and managed to qualify twice for this promo (by putting the purchases through in two separate transactions).

Anyway, back to the foundation. Diorskin Nude is the only foundation I’ve tried which fulfils the Holy Trinity of Foundation Purchasing – right coverage, right colour and right for my skin type. Coverage is medium-sheer, the colour has is a lovely neutral beige undertone and although it doesn’t seem to actively moisturise my skin that much, it certainly doesn’t dry it out or go flaky at all, which is a mini miracle.

If you haven’t tried Dior foundations before, their numbering system is actually quite good. They use three digits, which is a bit superfluous really. The second number indicates the intensity (how light/dark it is) where 1 is the lightest. The third number indicates the undertone, where 0 is neutral, 1 is warm (yellow/olive), 2 is cool (pink) and 3 is peachy (warm, but not olive). As a word of warning though, not all intensities are the same in the different Dior formulas – in the Diorskin Sculpt, for example, the 010 Ivory is almost white, whereas in Diorskin Nude it is a tad darker. The undertones do seem to run true, though.

My perfect colour in Diorskin Nude is 020 – Light Beige. Please bear in mind, that this foundation does oxidise ever so slightly – not so bad for me, with super-dry skin, but if you’re slightly oilier this may cause you an issue (having said that, if you’re oily-skinned, I wouldn’t recommend this foundation anyway).

From the Boots website:

“Containing nearly 40% water, this fluid foundation offers an instant sensation of well-being and complete skin hydration. A very natural looking foundation that illuminates your face for a healthy glow. With daily use, the skin becomes more beautiful for an ever more natural and radiant result day after day.”

Let’s have a look at it in 020 - Light Beige:

 

I prefer to apply this with either my fingers or a stippling brush to blend out the edges seamlessly; having said that, this foundation doesn’t take that much effort on the blending front. I can apply a second coat without too much caking, but generally I tend not to bother – the medium-sheer coverage of this foundation is its major selling point, so putting on an extra layer would probably defeat the object.

It definitely gives a glow to the skin, without being overly dewy (which usually means “shiny”). I can get away without powder, but do usually put a little bit on round the nose and mouth in order to up the staying power, which is actually not bad even without the powder (about eight hours-ish on me). A little touch up of powder mid-afternoon and job’s a good ‘un.

Using this every day, I will get a good few months of wear out of this – a little goes a long way. One good, solid pump is usually enough for my whole face.

Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Make-up is available from Boots.com for £31.00.

Jen

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Estee Lauder Double Wear Light - my summer best friend

Well, we have officially reached the summer dilemma – foundation or tinted moisturiser?

It’s the age-old problem, isn’t it. The British summer comes around (albeit for two weeks), the thermometers rise to the giddy heights of *gulp* 23 degrees, and even the most relaxed and cool amongst us will have the dreaded………….. sweat patches. Now, thankfully I don’t suffer that badly – forehead and under the bottom lip, mostly – but on certain days when it is hot AND you’ve got no deodorant left because you forgot to go to Boots AND the cat has been sick on the carpet AND you didn’t do any ironing over the weekend so have only got winter shirts you can wear AND you’re running late for work AND the fan is in the loft AND the stupid next door neighbours have decided to have a barbecue just as you've put your washing out……… before you know it, you are…….. glowing, somewhat.

Fret ye not, fellow perspirers!!!!!! I HAVE A SOLUTION.

Firstly, calm the fudge down. There’s no point rushing round like a Tazmanian devil when it’s so hot even Lawrence of Arabia would need a bit of a sit down.

Secondly, try some of this. Estee Lauder Double Wear Light.

Is it a tinted moisturiser? Is it a foundation? Well, actually it’s a foundation – a lighter, less heavy-coverage version of their critically acclaimed Double Wear (which for me might as well be called Can’t Wear, because it clogs up pores I didn’t even know I had and takes about two years to get rid off at the end of the day. But I suppose that’s its selling point, really).

From the Estee Lauder website:

“15-hour wear, light as air—long-wear makeup is now lightweight makeup.

Makeup That Keeps Up

·       Fresh, natural, comfortable.

·       Goes on sheer, leaves skin free to breathe all day.

·       Controls oil.

·       Resists smudging and won't "melt" off through heat and humidity.

For a look that stays vibrant and fresh whether it's a workday, a workout or a weekend. Smooth it on once and don't think twice about it.”

Now, normally I don’t mind putting on foundation. I know some ladies find it a chore that they would rather avoid, but I actually really like the ritual of applying and blending. It’s therapeutic, yano. But sometimes, usually at the weekend, I just can’t muster up the enthusiasm to wash all of my brushes and put it on properly, and on those days this Double Wear Light really comes into its own. You can apply this stuff with your fingers as slap-dash as you like, and it still manages to make your skin look more even, plump and gorgeous.

So, what do you get?

Well, the coverage ain’t up to “normal” Double Wear standards. But, it definitely evens out skin-tone and manages to cover up most of my old spot scars, with just a touch of concealer needed on a few little tiny places here and there. Nothing, but nothing, will cover up the dark circles underneath my eyes – but I’ve become resigned to this over a period of several years so wasn’t too surprised to find that this stuff doesn’t, either.

BUT, it gives better coverage (and staying power) than a tinted moisturiser, without being any more difficult to apply.  And, more importantly, it comes from the Double Wear family so also manages to last the distance on an average British summer’s day.

For those of you of a sensitive disposition, look away now – thar be some pics of bare skin acomin’.

NB: I wear Intensity 1.0, which is nowhere near as light as it looks on the Estee Lauder website. My skin is currently hovering around the NW15-20 mark.

I love squeezy tubes - hygienic, and easy to dispense just the right amount. Although you can't really see from this pic, it also contains SPF 10. Not enough to skip your normal sunscreen, but a nice addition nonetheless.

 

 

It isn't QUITE as orange as these swatches may lead you to believe - but you definitely have to limit yourself to a maximum of two layers before your inner Oompa Loompa starts to shine through

Left - bare skin (just a thin layer of Clarins Beauty Flash Balm); Right -  one (generous) layer of Double Wear Light, with a light dusting of NARS loose powder in Flesh

Conclusion: a lighter make-up base that doesn’t aquaplane round your face on top of the layer of sweat, while still giving slightly better coverage than your average tinted moisturiser. WIN WIN.

Estee Lauder Double Wear Light can be bought from their website (amongst other places) for the princely sum of £26.50.

What do you think? Will you be loving it or leaving it this summer?

Jen

Me and my skin

I am a dry-skinned gal. No two ways about it. Although I have always suffered a little bit (tight face after washing, the occasional flaky patch in winter), since hitting a certain age it has got exponentially worse. It means my face routine has had to change dramatically over the past few years (I’ll post about that one day) but thankfully, I seem to have hit on the right combination to cease and desist the whole Sahara-desert skin thing. But I still have to be relatively choosy about which primers and foundations I use. I tend to favour a dewy-satin look for the daytime, but do also occasionally dig out the more flawless and matte look for the evenings (if I’m having a good skin day!).

Just in case you were wondering, here are my current foundations. Unfortunately, now I’m getting on a bit, my colouring changes daily – but generally, this is the stuff I buy and wear regularly. I am neutral to cool, but do occasionally have “warmer” days.

Foundation matches:

Diorskin Nude – 020

MAC Face and Body – N1

Nars Sheer Glow – Mont Blanc (I usually use this one more in winter)

MAC Studio Fix Fluid – NW20 (I don’t usually wear this one – it oxidises like a bi-yatch)

NARS Loose/Pressed Powder – Flesh

Guerlain Lingerie de Peau – 02 Beige Clair (not a completely perfect match – might try 12 Rose Clair next time)

I’m always on the hunt for my “holy grail” foundation – the one that gives perfect coverage while looking natural, lasts all day but doesn’t clog pores, is buildable but not cakey-looking etc. I’m not entirely convinced that it exists, but so far it’s been fun trying to find it! Not sure my wallet would agree though……..

Anyone got any suggestions of good foundations to try for dry skin?

Jen

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