Beauty Recs

I am admittedly pretty high maintenance when it comes to skincare.  I use a bevy of products - cleansers, toners, masks, etc.  to make sure I keep my skin in the best condition possible.  At the same time, I'm all about putting on a daily look that is natural but put-together.  Recently with the ridiculous humidity and heat, I've found that my usual foundation, Bare Minerals, wasn't quite doing its job, and my skin would look blotchy and obviously make-up-y.  My guess is because it's a powder-based foundation.

Last Saturday I had a wedding to attend, so with a "free makeover" card in hand that I had received from Sephora, I told the makeup artist that I was looking for a new foundation.  Last year Sephora and Pantone teamed up to create this gadget that takes 3 photos of your skin, and matches you exactly to one of the foundations the store carries tone-wise, and then by skin-type.  She analyzed my skin and voila, I was matched up with Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup.  It looked great after she put it on me, and kept well in the hot weather.  Later when I tried the bottle I had purchased, I was really able to see how light the foundation is, almost like water, but definitely can be built up in terms of coverage.  I did half my face in the foundation to compare to an unmade face, and the color match was uncanny.  It was my exact skin tone, but just perfected without redness, etc.  This one's a keeper.    

She also used Korres Quercetin & Oak Age-reversing primer, which she said lacks the chemical in the primer I had been using that was making my t-zone shiny.  This primer felt smooth and more like a moisturizer, and had a nice natural scent to it too.  And hey, why not the bonus of the age-reversing?

Finally, I noticed on the foundation's packaging that it recommends application with UD's foundation brush, priced at $25.  I did try my initial application with my fingers, but you don't quite get that "buffing" effect.   Fortunately I have a go-to cosmetics brush brand that is not only inexpensive, but also eco-friendly - EcoTools.  I already own the bronzer and blush brushes - super soft and great quality, so I figured their buffing foundation brush would be just as good.  Amazing!  I've never had foundation apply so easily and feel so great.   

 

I'm so impressed with the combination of this primer, foundation, and brush, that I definitely recommend all three.