Photo Filter.

Smashbox –

Photo Filter Powder Foundation

‘The special effects of Light Filter Technology and the performance of long-wear Photoset Polymers blend together to make this powder foundation magic. Not only does it act like your favourite photo filter on your phone, but it also stays true all day.

In today’s super social world where everyone’s a photographer, this product couldn’t have come at a better time. 

WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT:

ALL ABOUT THE FORMULA

1)    LIGHT FILTER TECHNOLOGY: Works just like the filters that make your skin look amazing on the photo app you love. Transparent particles diffuse light in various directions, blurring imperfections while still keeping the subject in focus. We’re not using the usual chalky particles to fuse the formula, which creates a muddy effect. Since the particles in this foundation are translucent, the pigment’s true color always comes through.

2)    PHOTOSET POLYMERS: Taken from medical-grade liquid bandage technology, which sticks to skin for hours on end. You can always count on extended wear with this formula. 

JUST THE FACTS:

•    8-hour wear

•    Non-drying. Non-caking. Non-settling. Oil-free

•    Customisable finish – sheer or full – with a double-sided sponge

•    Buildable coverage’

I am really liking the new Smashbox Photo Filter Powder Foundation. I’ve been wearing this foundation for two weeks now, and I have been very impressed with it. My first WOW moment with this foundation was the amazing black square packaging. Similar to Nars packaging, the all black matte square looks extremely chic. It really stands out against most round powder compacts. The powder is extremely soft and creamy. It literally glides on to your skin. The foundation comes in ten different shades. I ended up going with shade 3. The foundation does oxidize (darken) a bit once applied, so if you are in between shades I would go lighter rather than darker.

The compact comes with a double sided sponge to customize your application. One side is slightly more velvety than the other, and is said to provide a more natural finish. I found that I liked to apply the product with a kabuki style brush-kind of buffing it into the skin for an airbrushed finish. The coverage is pretty fantastic. It really does not take a lot of product to get a flawless finish. I felt like the foundation really did “blur” my imperfections, and smoothed out my face. It does not accentuate dry skin or any dry patches on your face like some powder foundations can do.

Smashbox advertises the foundation as having an 8 hour wear, and I would say it definitely lives up to that claim. I can apply the foundation before work in the morning around 7:15, and I don’t find I really need a touch up until about 3 or 4 o’clock. I honestly have no complaints about this foundation, and I think it may be one of the best powder foundations I’ve used to date!

Brightening Cranberry.

Bobbi Brown –

Brightening Brick in Cranberry

“Your go-to product for a lit-from-within glow, Bobbi’s Brightening Brick in Cranberry combines the warmth of a bronzer and the soft flush of a blush to give you skin gorgeous, subtle luminosity.”

Bobbi Brown Brightening Bricks combine the effect of bronzer, blusher and highlighter in one compact, to brighten the complexion with a skin-flattering glow. I’d describe the finish as mid way between their Shimmer Bricks and Brightening Powder, veering closest to the latter.  I have four of the six shades to show you and think these will be a big hit for Spring skin or as a little boost in the dreary in between months.  The powders feel smooth and finely milled, with subtle payoff… designed to be worn as a soft blush (my preference) or all over the face as a luminous veil. They do have a touch more shimmer than the likes of Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders - and of course an added flush of colour - so I like to place them carefully on my skin rather than use all over, focusing mostly on cheeks and temples. Infused with Mulberry and Grape, they illuminate while absorbing excess oil, without drying or settling into lines.

I chose Cranberry because out of them all it gave the most colour, and as I wanted to wear it as a blusher, I wanted something that was brightening but that also gave me a nice flushed and healthy look. This is beautiful and I’ve used it every day since I bought it. The 6 shades swatch the same as they look in the pan, however not as strong (obviously), and the squares are big enough that you can use the shades separately which I have done many a time! Its like your perfect blush, bronze and highlighter in one little easy to use compact!

Oval 8.

ARTIS -

Oval 8

•    The Oval 8 is slightly smaller than the Oval 10 and has 100’s of thousands of fibres in an oval shape to provide applications to a large area of the face

•     The company’s trademarked CosmeFibre® is created by using high-tech machines that produce completely consistent, man-made fibres that make-up the fibre bundle. The structure of the engineered fibre, each with a microscopically tapered end, allows for more consistent application than animal hair used in conventional makeup brushes

•    Each patented brush has on average 3 to 10 times as many individual fibres as conventional animal hair brushes, resulting in superior blending and smooth makeup application 

•    Fibre bundles are shaped to make product pickup and delivery easier and more effective

•    Designed with a special grip surface to provide better control, and tilted brush tip and fibre bundles that give the user the ability to apply, distribute and blend like never before

Oval 8 was launched as the perfect “base brush” and believe me when I say it really is. It distributes and blends liquid products flawlessly and the whole process literally takes seconds. It’s also great to use with powder products to either set the face or apply a sweep of blush or bronzer.

This is THE brush that I’ve had my eye on since I discovered the Artis brand. Used in application of everything base related, this brush is magic! I usually use both a Flat Top Kabuki brush and a Beauty Blender to achieve the flawless airbrushed look when it comes to my base products: Flat top kabuki distributes the product, Beauty Blender buffs it out evenly; this has always been my base tag team.

The Oval 8 brush pretty much combines these two tools to give the most flawless finish I have personally experienced on my own face. It has the distribution qualities of a buffing brush and airbrushed blending of a beauty blender all in one. And as I mentioned earlier, the product did not get lost in the bristles so I ended up using much less foundation than I usually do.

So far I’ve used the Oval 8 brush for my liquid foundation, setting powder, bronzer, blush and highlighter and every single product blended like a dream. I found the trick is: do not press the brush into the skin but rather rest it against it and use soft circular motions until the product fully blends, which literally takes seconds.

This style of brush also comes in Oval 10, which is much larger and could probably be used for body products; the new Oval 7, which is on my must-have list, and also Oval 6 which again is on my list. I feel having this style of brush in slightly different sizes would give me more control of where I concentrate certain products.

Moisture Boosting.

Indeed Labs –

Hydraluron™ Moisture Boosting Facial Serum

“Hydraluron™ moisture boosting facial serum. The ultimate serum that starts where your moisturiser stops. The result: better hydrated, glowing, plumped up looking skin.”

As the name implies, Hydraluron is a Moisture Booster which contains our old friend hyaluronic acid in high quantities. What this also means is that if you have a known allergy or reaction to hyaluronic acid then this is not for you, no matter how much you want to try it. Some people have reported breaking out from products with too much hyaluronic acid which tells you that you can have too much of a good thing.

The product comes in a small little unassuming tube in a large box. The packaging is pretty unassuming and I might even say clinical. It is one of those things that you will likely miss when scanning the shelves, because it just isn’t very impressive to look at. But do look again. I promise you, it’s worth your time.

The product itself is a clear gel-liquid or is it a liquid-gel? Either way, it’s clear and has a slightly runny gel consistency, which makes it very easy to spread.

Hyaluronic acid, if we didn’t already know, is the latest “star ingredient” for trapping moisture in skin and attracting moisture, so it keeps the top layer of your skin plump and hydrated and this translates to better looking, clearer skin. I had realised that keeping my skin well hydrated is a key factor in keeping breakouts and dull skin at bay. It even helps scars and marks heal and fade more quickly as my skin heals more efficiently.

If you have oily skin try this anyway because I’ve found that well hydrated skin can actually balance out your skin oils and help you have less oily skin. Besides, oily skin can also be dehydrated below the surface. If you have dry or dehydrated skin then this is what you need for boosting moisture in your skin. Give it a month of at least once a day use and you WILL notice the difference.

To use, just squeeze out a dollop of product – what you see in my picture above is about right. Spread it over your face. I find that it will feel a little tacky before it dries and settles. I don’t wait for it to dry to continue with my routine and neither should you.

This does retail for £25, and it is rather hard to find, however it has completely transformed my skin and is amazing for this winter/spring transition time.