little white truths

I promised myself I'd review my Bodyography products in March, and while I haven't done that, at least I can do a couple!

I'd completely forgotten I own this product. It's only been open for a few months, but after using it a couple of times I decided to put it away until I was paler and the summer was over: it's not dark enough for me in the warmer months, and it has a relatively low SPF.

Now that the weather is cooling, I've decided to get it out and give it another run.


As an aside, I wish I'd remembered I had this before doing my recent Project Pan update. As you may have seen, I included another tinted moisturiser on the list and I should have included this one - mainly because it's a better colour for my skin at the moment and there's much less of it, so I'm going to get through it sooner. Anyhoo.

Before we get started, let me just say that this product is an example of packaging gone wrong - see below. That bloody annoying brush is shite to use (I'm a fingers applier) and, as far as I can tell, you can't remove it so you're stuck with it! It's annoying the bejesus out of me, plus it seems to get clogged a lot: you can't get any product out so you have to squeeze it hard, then it decides to squirt out all at once and you wind up with product all over the bathroom sink. ARGH.


Bodyography claims/product details:

• Benefit your skin with our mineral trace complex
• Includes a brush applicator for even coverage every time 
• Flawless finish
• A natural, and easy way to hydrate and conceal imperfections on the skin, while adding antioxidant and SPF protection all day long
• Easy to blend and lightweight formula creates a dewy complexion
• Available in three shades
• Lightens, brightens and protects your skin with vitamins A,C, E, green tea and echinacea extracts
• Soothes redness and hydrates skin upon application
• Non greasy formula quickly absorbs into skin 
• Offers light to medium coverage
• RRP $59.95 for 30ml, but do shop around - I got mine for less than half price

See unblended swatch above - it's a nice, runny formula that offers a sheer but buildable coverage.

Below I've blended in the swatch. It's definitely lightweight and hydrating, plus it does leave a dewy finish.


Below is my bare face:


Below I'm wearing one layer of product. My skin's certainly looking much better, but still natural - you can't tell I've got anything on.


Verdict

This is a really great tinted moisturiser, and as you may know, I'm a sucker for lighter bases so I've tried a fair few.

It's sheer but buildable and looks totally natural - even if you're wearing a couple of good layers of product. It's hydrating and gives you a nice dewy glow, which is my preferred finish. If you're a matte girl, you can always set it with a powder if you want to.

Its lasting power is better than many other tints I've tried, although you will need to reapply it in the second half of the day - particularly if you're relying on it for your sun protection.

On the sun protection, I reckon SPF 12 isn't enough these days. Normally I won't settle for anything less than SPF 20, but since this is Bodyography and I love the brand's bases, I was willing to make an exception just once. I won't buy it again though - both due to the low SPF and the ridiculous applicator.

On the brush applicator, I've used products that come with built in applicators before (whether brushes, sponges or puffs), but you could remove them all. The fact that you can't remove this one is an oversight on Bodyography's behalf I reckon. That brush will sit there and grow bacteria, so it will need to be washed often - meaning you're automatically losing product and you risk getting water mixed in with product.

I also think this product is too expensive. The reason being, you tend to get through tints much quicker than foundations because you use more of them on each application. So paying $60 for 30ml of tinted moisturiser is too much I reckon - no matter how good it is.

In sum, I really love this product and I do think it lives up to its claims. It's certainly one I'd buy again if it weren't for the price tag, the low SPF and the damn applicator. Unfortunate! Otherwise it's definitely worth at least testing to see what you think - it works wonders on my skin and leaves me looking healthier and better, while still looking like I'm not wearing anything. That's what you want from a base!

Only recently did I discover just how many primers I have sitting there waiting to be used. Two from Bodyography, one from Benefit, an Inika one from Lust Have It, MAC's Strobe Cream and a similar product from Memebox. And I'd thought that primers were something I hadn't become overloaded with! Granted, two of them are travel sizes, but still...

This one from theBalm had been in the queue for almost a year, and while it's only been open for a few months, it was time to move it up the list. I've occasionally been alternating it with the travel sized Bodyography product I've been using for Project Pan, since I really do find it hard to use the same products every day and have needed to reach for something else.


theBalm is quickly becoming one of my favourite brands - I'm yet to use a dud product from them. Plus the products aren't the most expensive on the market and you can often find them in Australia for prices comparable to the US ones. If I didn't have so much stuff, I'd be looking to explore the brand some more. The Instain range of blushes in particular is something I've got my eye on for when I've finished off a couple of blushes from my stash and want to replace them.

My golly, am I still rambling? Let's review this thing!


theBalm claims/product details:

• Contains vitamins A, C & E 
• Designed to be worn alone for visibly softer skin, or under makeup so your look stays put
• Helps even out skintone 
• Minimises the appearance of fine lines and pores
• RRP $34.95 for 30ml, but do shop around - you can often find it cheaper from one of the online retailers

Verdict