little white truths

You may remember that I bought this setting spray in a Priceline haul a while back. I was low on sprays at the time so I wanted to try a couple of budget alternatives to see if I couldn't find one that I loved as much as my HG budget setting spray, the Banana Boat Soothing Aloe Mist After Sun Spray (reviewed here).

While I've quite enjoyed using this Australis offering, it's definitely not as good as the Banana Boat one so I likely wouldn't buy it again. More on why below.

One thing to note about this product from the outset is that I decanted it into a different bottle after the first use.

Reason being, this is one of those sprays that isn't fine enough so it leaves huge droplets of product all over your face. While this didn't cause little holes to appear in my makeup (which usually happens when mists aren't fine enough), I wasn't going to take any chances so I immediately moved it to another bottle.

Australis claims/product details:

• A light, breathable spray that can be used anywhere, anytime
• The mini hydration-saver-mist provides an invisible shield over the face that sets makeup perfectly and acts as an invisible barrier against temperature and environmental changes throughout the day
• Formulated simply with rose water and aloe vera to maintain moisture and soft and supple skin
• Keeps your makeup in place all day
• Revitalises and hydrates your skin 
• This fine mist is non-irritating and safe for all skin types
• RRP $15.95 AUD for 150ml, but do shop around

Verdict

I've just had a look at some online reviews of this product (see eg beautyheaven.com) and it hasn't had consistently good or bad reviews so I think that how much you like it really comes down to what you're using it for.

What I'm getting at here is, if for example you've bought this because you want it to set and prolong your makeup, you'll likely be disappointed. If however you've bought it because you want something refreshing and hydrating to spritz throughout the day, then you may well really like it.

It's a pink-coloured water that smells like rose and, as mentioned above, the nozzle doesn't dispense a fine-enough mist (or at least mine doesn't) so you may find that you prefer to decant it into another container.

What I like about this product is that it feels refreshing, cooling and soothing when applied, and it also gives my dry skin a drink so it's a good product for parched faces because it definitely makes a difference to how your skin feels.

What I don't believe it does do, however, is properly set your makeup or make it last longer. Yes it will help take away that powdery look and will also refresh the look and feel of your skin, but it's done nothing in terms of making my makeup last longer so I wouldn't buy this if that's what you need.

On the claims, this is one of those situations where reading the product claims has done nothing but annoy me: it seems to me that Australis has overstated these. No this product doesn't keep your makeup in place all day; no it doesn't act as an invisible barrier against temperature and environmental changes; and no it definitely doesn't provide any form of 'shield'. Plus the mist the bottle dispenses isn't 'fine': quite the reverse.

I do however agree that the product revitalises and hydrates your skin, but that's all it really does do and I think that Australis should have pared back the product claims to keep them within that kind of boundary. Otherwise you're just making promises you can't keep. Or at least that's my experience.

Overall I don't think this is a bad product and I've quite enjoyed using it, but it's not a repurchase for me because the Banana Boat spray mentioned above hydrates and refreshes as much as this one does, it's just that it costs less (and contains more product), plus it helps keep my makeup in place too.

Nice but not perfect.