Hello Lovelies,
If you've been reading my blog a while, you'll have heard me use and rave about the Smashbox Hydrating Photo Finish Primer (review post here) I love it and it is the best primer I have ever used and makes a huge difference in the way my foundation applies and looks. A few months ago I saw the Smashbox photo finish primer water was due for release and I was intrigued by it, it also claimed to be hydrating and I wondered if it could be a contender for a replacement for my usual hydrating photo finish primer, I didn't give it much more thought because at the time I had plenty of my primer left and it wasn't due to be released for a couple of weeks (mid February) but I was pleased to find it was one of my Mothers day gifts from my girls in March and couldn't wait to try it. I've seen several blog posts on it recently so I thought I'd give you my take on it too.
What Smashbox Says About The Primer Water
WHAT IT IS: Think priming benefits, hydration and sheer radiance—all in just 1 spritz! Primer water is free of silicone, alcohol and oil, but it’s packed with revitalizing electrolytes to wake up skin and restore moisture. Passed through positive energy fields during the production process, our enriched water instantly absorbs into skin for lasting hydration (and when skin is hydrated, makeup looks better).
JUST THE FACTS:
Silicone-free. Alcohol-free. Oil-free, creates the sheerest canvas for makeup application, wakes up skin, leaving it vibrant and radiant for hours, restores moisture and hydrates skin for hours—shine free, refreshes throughout the day, perfect for all skin types.
JUST THE FACTS:
Silicone-free. Alcohol-free. Oil-free, creates the sheerest canvas for makeup application, wakes up skin, leaving it vibrant and radiant for hours, restores moisture and hydrates skin for hours—shine free, refreshes throughout the day, perfect for all skin types.
Mist on this multitasking water in 3 ways:
Prime to create our sheerest canvas for makeup application, set your makeup to lock on your look or refresh throughout the day to wake up skin.
Prime to create our sheerest canvas for makeup application, set your makeup to lock on your look or refresh throughout the day to wake up skin.
Hold bottle 8”-10” away from face and mist evenly. Keep it cool! For an extra refreshing, ultra-cooling mist, store in the fridge.
I'm quite sure you know by now that I have extremely dry skin so I was keen to see if the primer water would give me the same amount of hydration as the hydrating photo finish primer. The first thing I noticed when using the primer water for the first time was the scent of it, it has a lovely rose scent to it, not an old lady rose scent but a nice fresh scent and it is lovely. When I used the primer water for the first time I spritzed it all over my face before applying my foundation, I could tell immediately that I wasn't going to get the same level of hydration by the way my foundation applied but I finished my makeup and spritzed my face again to set my makeup, my make up did stay on all day but this isn't something I have a problem with anyway.
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Water £20
I liked that the primer water was alcohol free as I do try to steer away from products containing alcohol as they dry my skin out even more. I have used the primer water over the last couple of months now and in different ways, I have used it before make up to prime and hydrate, after make up as a setting spray and throughout the day to refresh my make up, refreshing my make up isn't something I would usually do but I wanted to try the primer water out thoroughly and use it in the 3 ways Smashbox advise. I have also used the primer water to dampen my make up sponge before using it as I thought this would be a good way of using it also.
Overall Thoughts & Would I Re Purchase?
I wanted to love this product I really did, mainly because it is so easy to use and smells divine and a little goes a long way, I have used my primer water a lot and there isn't much gone out of the bottle at all. Unfortunately though I really didn't love it, it doesn't hydrate my skin, my make up doesn't look flawless like it does when I use the hydrating photo finish primer, I couldn't say if it keeps my make up in place as I don't have a problem with that and I also wouldn't buy a product to refresh my make up either so for me it is a pretty pointless product and I could get the same effect if I sprayed my La Roche Posay Serozinc on my face before I applied my make up or if I put my hydrating toner into a spray bottle and spritzed that onto my face. I did find that when I used the primer water with a foundation I was trying out that can make me look a little cakey as a setting spray, the foundation didn't look as cakey, and looked better but that is the only benefit I have seen from using the primer water and it didn't make that much of a difference to be honest.
I wouldn't re purchase the primer water, it really didn't do enough for me to make me want to buy it again when my current bottle runs out, I imagine it would be nice kept in the fridge on a hot day to spritz on your face and it could be nice as a setting spray but there are cheaper options out there and as I said I feel you could obtain the same result from putting your toner in a spray bottle and spritzing that onto your face instead. In my opinion it is a mediocre setting spray that did nothing to hydrate my skin at all.
This product is currently sold out on line and I've been told is one of Smashbox's biggest sellers, the girl on my local counter told me that as soon as they re stock they sell out, so blogger hype is clearly doing the rounds, but I honestly can't see why and I was hugely disappointed in it. I will use it up by using it to dampen my make up sponge but I certainly won't be re purchasing when it runs out it is a massively over hyped product that doesn't do what it claims and there are much cheaper products on the market. I will definitely be sticking with my hydrating photo finish primer from now on!
If you would like to try the Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Water you can find it online at Boots or the Smashbox website for £20.00.
Have you tried the Smashbox Primer Water? What did you think?
Thank you for reading, much love as always,
Zoe x
