Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Foundation Primer

Hello Lovelies, 

I have never been a primer kind of girl and over the last couple of years since I've been blogging I have been sent quite a few primers all claiming to do different things, fill in pores, hydrate, smooth etc etc but I have never liked one enough to A- review on my blog or B- continue using or re purchase, the only primer product I have ever liked is the Benefit POREfessional (see post here) but I just haven't ever got along with "foundation primers" and always thought they just weren't for me and would be better suited to someone with an oily skin, mine is super duper dry and dehydrated for reference. 

Last September Smashbox announced on their Facebook page that they were giving away 50 full size foundation primers to the first 50 people who turned up on a certain day (with no purchase necessary). Typically I had a medical appointment that day and couldn't go and get the primer so I took a long shot and rang the Smashbox counter and spoke to a sales assistant telling her of my predicament and she kindly said it would be ok for someone else to collect a primer for me as long as my details were given as they had a follow up procedure where someone was going to ring me 2 weeks later to ask how I'd got on with the product. Luckily for me Nichole's boyfriend had an early appointment on that day and kindly said he would go and try and get a primer for me, and he did! I couldn't believe it, I never ever get anything for free or win anything so I was super happy. 

The foundation primer I got was the one most suited to my skin, the Photo Finish Hydrating Foundation Primer, I have in the past tried the famous Smashbox Photo Finish primer but I hated it, it was far too silicone like for me and it did nothing for me, probably because it wasn't suited to my skin but anyway I didn't like it at all. Like I said I've tried quite a few primers over the years but nothing has wowed me enough for me to use or re purchase but when I saw the free offer I thought it would be a good way of trying a primer especially suited to my skin type and if it didn't work for me I hadn't lost anything because I hadn't paid for it and I would have given it to Nichole or Alicia for them to try or Nichole to use in her kit. 

What Smashbox Say About The Primer

The key to healthier, younger-looking skin? Hydration, as any studio artist will tell you. The latest addition to our legendary primer family immediately quenches skin and seals in moisture for hours after, thanks to Hydraplex, an extract derived from desert plants. 

• Oil-free and lightweight 

• Helps fill in fine lines and pores 

How To Use

Smooth a pea-sized amount over clean skin with fingertips for a visibly softer, smoother complexion.

My Thoughts 

I have extremely dry and dehydrated skin and over last winter my skin was horrendous, it was the worst it's ever been and looked horrific even without makeup but when I applied foundation it looked terrible and I had big patches of flaky foundation covered skin especially on my forehead, hmmm nice eh? I was trying out so many different skin care products trying to get the right routine for what I can only describe as lizard like and super liney skin,  the dehydration makes me have prominent fine lines around and under my eyes and on my forehead, how attractive, NOT! 

The first time I used the primer I have to say I was sceptical because of my past experiences with foundation primers but when I applied the primer for the first time it felt so lovely and it smelled lovely too it has a really nice fresh scent. I used around 3 pea sized amounts and put little blobs of the primer around my face on my forehead, cheeks and chin and then smoothed it over my skin with my fingers, it absorbed really quickly because my skin was so dry and dehydrated and didn't leave any sort of residue and didn't feel sticky at all. 

I waited for the primer to dry which didn't take long at all and applied my foundation in the usual way  and I was so impressed at how nice my make up looked, it looked flawless and there were no signs of any flakey patches, I did still have visible lines on my forehead but they did look a lot better than before. 

I do agree with the claims from Smashbox my skin did feel hydrated and it didn't dry out over the course of the day, my make up looked just the same when it came to taking it off, the only thing I don't agree with is the amount of product needed, I used 3 pea sized amounts and Smashbox claims you need 1 but there is no way I could only use 1 pea sized amount for my whole face, but that's no biggy really. To be honest 3 pea sized amounts is the same amount of moisturiser I would apply which I would say is about right for a primer so it didn't bother me too much that they had claimed 1 pea sized amount. 

The primer made a massive difference to my skin and so much so that even Simon noticed one day when I completely forgot to apply it, I'd only been using the primer for around a week and we were in a rush to leave the house and I forgot to apply the primer and when I looked at my foundation in the mirror it looked terrible and Simon noticed it wasn't looking as nice as it previously had so for Simon to notice too the primer must have been making a difference. 

The photograph above is a thumbnail taken for my you tube channel one week after I'd started using the primer and although it isn't a close up photograph you can see my forehead doesn't look as liney or dry. 

I am super impressed with the primer, it has made a huge difference to my foundation application, my skin looks flawless now when I wear foundation, my skin is still very dry and dehydrated and I do still have some lines on my forehead but that isn't anything to do with the primer, it's my silly skin but they aren't as bad as they previously had been. I can't say whether or not my foundation stays in place any longer as I don't have any problems with my foundation staying in place anyway, I usually apply my foundation at around 9.00am and remove it anytime from 6.00pm to 8.00pm and it doesn't move, I didn't notice any difference when using the primer so it certainly didn't affect my foundation wear time in any negative ways. 

Overall Thoughts & Would I Repurchase?

My overall thoughts on the primer are that it applies well and doesn't leave any residue or sticky feeling to the skin, it is very hydrating and my foundation looks so much nicer when I use it, it has made a massive difference to the look and feel of my foundation and I would most definitely re purchase it, it is expensive but I am writing this post on the 19th April 2015 and I still have 1 or 2 applications of the primer left, I got the primer in September so it has lasted for 7 months, I don't use it daily, I use it around 3-4 times a week but it has lasted really well. If you suffer from dry or dehydrated skin I would highly recommend it. 

You can buy the primer on line from Boots or from the Smashbox website for £28.00. 

Have you tried the Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Foundation Primer? Did you like it? Or do you have any recommendations of primers for dry and dehydrated skin? Please leave your comments in the comments section below and I will get back to you asap. 

Thank you for reading, much love as always, 

Zoe x

A Great Offer On Serozinc 2 For £10

Hello Lovelies, 

This is just a quick post to let you know that Escentual currently have La Roche Posay Serozinc on offer for a great price of £10.00 for 2 150ml sprays, this is a fabulous offer as 1 spray is £8.50 (currently £7.20) I love Serozinc and it is great for many different skin types. This is a fantastic offer and one not to be missed, this is the best price I have ever seen Serozinc for. 

Escentual also sell loads of other brands of skin care, and they also sell hair care, body care, fragrance, sun care and lots of other things, they are one of my favourite beauty websites and I would highly recommend them. 

Anyway I'll stop writing so you can stop reading and go and grab yourself a Serozinc bargain! Click onto this link to be taken straight to the fantastic offer. 

Thank you for reading, much love as always,

Zoe x

NOTD

Hello Lovelies, 

Today I have another NOTD or nail of the day post for you. Today's NOTD is actually the nail polish I wore for Alicia's 18th birthday party, Orly's Beach Cruiser. I wore a plain black outfit (OOTD coming soon) so wore a bright polish on my fingers and toes. 

First of all as always I used the Orly Bonder base coat (available to buy here) and then I applied two coats of Orly nail polish in the shade Beach Cruiser, a beautiful neon pink, it looked lovely against my all black outfit. Lastly I applied a coat of my holy grail top coat the Orly Glosser (available to buy here) I adore this topcoat and it has been my favourite for years now, as you can see from the photograph it gives an amazing and extremely glossy finish to the polish and I find it also extends the wear time of my nail polishes. Beach Cruiser is actually a satin/matte finish polish but the glosser gives it a nice high shine finish. 

I love Orly nail polishes and products, I have used them for years and they are definitely one of my favourite brands for nail products, and they are free from any nasties so in turn much kinder to your nails and help with the condition of the nail too, I find if I'm experiencing any peeling or flaking on my nails and I wear an Orly polish when I want to paint my nails it really helps. They're not the cheapest polishes on the market but they are well worth the money and you can sometimes pick up a bargain from the Fragrance Direct website where they have a good selection of shades for £1.99. 

If you like the look of Beach Cruiser and would like to try it for yourself, and I highly recommend you do, you can find it on line at Look Fantastic or Nail Polish Direct and the great news is it's free delivery from both places. 

Have you tried Orly nail polishes? Whats your favourite shade? 

Thank you for reading, much love as always, 

Zoe x

Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze And Glow - A Review

Hello Lovelies,

Today I have a review of a product which so far has received a lot of hype in the blogging and you tube world, it is the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow.

First of all, can we just take a minute to appreciate that packaging. How beautiful is it? Even the box is nice, it has 2 slide off end pieces that reveal a fold out cardboard casing with gold writing on explaining on each side how to use the product. Then inside the cardboard packaging is the most beautiful rose gold metal casing with a kind of pleating effect and the CT logo on the front. 

Inside the beautiful rose gold casing is the most stunning bronze and highlight duo, the bronzer can be used as contour or just as a bronzer and the highlight is obviously used as a highlight. But they are lovely and it pained me to use this for the first time but since I did I've used nothing else. 

To be honest, I've never really been much of a highlight kind of girl, my 2 favourites were MAC soft and gentle and the Nars multiple in copacabana both lovely, 1 cream and 1 powder but I didn't use them on a daily basis. I've been very lucky over the last couple of years to be sent a lot of products including highlighters and bronzers/contouring products but nothing has thrilled me enough to want to use it all the time, and then Simon bought me the filmstar bronze and glow for my birthday and the rest as they say is history! I am in love, completely and utterly in love with this palette, from the beautiful packaging to the products inside and how they perform (I'm getting to that) I love everything about it. 

My Thoughts

Well I think it's fair to say I love this product, as I said Ive never been one for highlight, and bronzer has never really been my thing at all, I have a couple of the MAC sculpting products for contouring but I don't buy a lot of bronzer/contouring and highlighting products they're just not really my thing and I've never really got excited about them, until now that is. I was lucky to receive some Charlotte Tilbury products for Christmas and had seen the products on line a lot but in early January I was out shopping so I decided to take a look on the Charlotte Tilbury counter and see if any other products in the range caught my eye and there were quite a few but the stand out product was the Filmstar Bronze & Glow, as soon as I saw it in the flesh and swatched it, I loved it so when Simon surprised me with it for my birthday in February I was ecstatic. 

The highlight is a gorgeous golden toned highlight and the bronze or sculpt is great for contouring or bronzer it's not too dark or shimmery, I really don't like bronzers with lots of shimmer in them. Both these products are so extremely pigmented it's unreal, I use a teeny tiny amount of both products and the pay off is amazing, I am going to be uploading a get ready with me of the make up I wore to Alicia's 18th party soon and you will see in that video how little of each product I use and how brilliant the pay off is. Both products apply effortlessly, I use a Real Techniques setting brush for the highlight and a tapered face brush from Hakuhodo for the bronzer/sculpt and both products apply beautifully and look lovely too, I have received so many compliments both in "real life" and in comments on my videos and Instagram saying how well I am looking and glowing recently and it is all down to this palette. 

I am wearing the bronze and glow in the above photographs and I am sure you'll agree the highlight is extremely pigmented, and I honestly used the smallest amount but it's given a lovely glow to my cheekbones and brow bone, I am also wearing the sculpt/bronzer just all over my face, I haven't used it to contour in these photographs (silly me!) but like I said I do have a video coming up of me using both products so you will see in much more detail on that video. But they do give a lovely glowing look to the skin and the overall appearance is lovely and for someone who hardly ever wears highlight and rarely uses bronzer for me to use this product all the time says it all.

Overall Thoughts, Worth The Hype & Would I Re Purchase

I think you know my overall thoughts already but in my opinion there is nothing not to love about this product, the packaging is phenomenal and the products are amazing, I haven't been this excited about a make up product in a long time but this really has blown me away, it's stunning and both products are lovely, they're easy to apply and blend out beautifully, they're insanely pigmented and look lovely and you need to use the smallest amount, I really can't think of a negative but if I had to think of one it would be the price of the palette, £49 is a lot of money but I think as a gift or if you have some birthday or Christmas money left over or if you just like buying high end make up it's a wonderful product to own and I one million percent recommend it, if you've been thinking about buying it I would say go for it, it's beautiful and you won't regret it, and it is in my opinion, most definitely worth the hype and I would without a shadow of a doubt, re purchase it. 

If you would like to purchase the Filmstar Bronze and Glow palette, you can buy it on line at the Charlotte Tilbury website, Selfridges or Net-A-Porter for £49. 

Have you tried the bronze and glow palette? Would you like to? Let me know in the comments. 

For lots of other fabulous Charlotte Tilbury reviews, check out my lovely friend Bunny's blog here. 

Thank you for reading, much love as always, 

Zoe x