little white truths

I've already been through four sachets of this product (see first impressions post on Nude and Ivory here) and it's been on my list of potential purchases for a while, it's just that when I went into Mecca to buy my shade in Warm Ivory, it was out of stock so I bought something else I wanted instead.

However Mecca did have a tester of Warm Ivory at the time, so I was kindly given this little sample pot and the sales assistant was generous with the amount - meaning I've had a few uses out of this pot already and it's still going strong.

Anyhoo. I'm pleased to report that Warm Ivory is a good shade match for me - a rare thing because my skintone apparently exists in a non-space between light/medium and medium - and it also has a yellow undertone, which is what I need.

Last time I used this product, I was able to get two weeks' use from my four sachets, and I've been testing it again for a good few days so we could almost call this a review proper - but since I'm planning to buy the full size in future, I would prefer to save that review for when I've been using the product for months and have learned as much as I can about it before giving you my final thoughts.

Do note, though, that I've tested this product with different primers and in different weather conditions (and also when my skin has been drier and not so dry), so it's had a good test run and I do have plenty to say about it.

Below I've given you a light and a heavy swatch in different lights. Please note that it's looking a little pale for me in the swatches (which it is because I self-tanned a couple of days ago), but for most of the year, this is the right colour for me.

Verdict

The more I use this product, the more I like it - so I know that it will be my next foundation purchase, once I've finished off another product or two. And note that I'm calling it a 'foundation' for a reason: it's not a tint, it has more coverage than a tint, and indeed it has even more than a tinted moisturiser. It's a foundation that offers a medium coverage unless you really sheer it out (which I normally do).

The product is thicker than other bases I own and it has a mousse-like texture that I don't love - but I can live with it because the product sheers out beautifully with very little effort.

You can see above that the blended patches look more satin/matte, although on my face the product looks more dewy. This will of course depend on the primer I'm using, and indeed I've tried this with a silone-based, pore-plugging primer and didn't like the result as much because those primers make this foundation appear more matte/powdery on me and also more 'lifted' (so it looks like it's sitting on top of my skin, rather than melding with the skin and looking more natural). 

So for me, I've learned to use either an illuminating or a hydrating primer with this - which isn't a huge issue for me because I would normally use one of those on my dry skin anyway - but that's something to be aware of.

The texture and finish remind me of the Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint, but the difference between them is that the Nars one reeks of alcohol and the stench is so bad that I can't tolerate having it on my face. This one has a slight sunscreen/alcohol smell but I'm only aware of it if I hold the product right up to my nose so it's not something I'd have noticed if I wasn't reviewing it and checking for things like that. And of course, Nars is no longer cruelty free but Hourglass still is, so if you like the Nars product but need a cruelty free option, then this might be one to try.

What I love about this product is that it takes very little effort to blend (I use my fingers) and it looks so natural on the skin. Best of all, it doesn't sit in pores around the hairline and it's rare for me to find a foundation that doesn't do that. Tick.

Another thing to note is that I wore this to a wedding in 43 degree heat (plus I wore it on the journey up and back in a hot car) and the product didn't budge. It didn't separate and I also didn't have sweat coming through and breaking it up, so it performs beautifully in tough conditions. More recently I wore it to childcare and back with the double pram in stinking heat, and yes some sweat broke through but it didn't lift the product. I can't say that for the BB cream I wore on Monday in similar conditions, so there you go.

That said, the longevity on the product isn't fantastic and here's where it's more like a tinted moisturiser: I get a good five to six hours (even when set with a powder), so if longevity is something you're after, I would definitely test this before buying it because it mightn't last as long as you would like.

All in all, this is a fantastic product and you'll likely see a full review later on if and when I do pick up the full size. Yes it's expensive at $81 AUD a pop, but I use far less of this product per application than I do any other product I own, so it could well work out cheaper than anything else I have on a price-per-use basis.

Just beautiful.