Primed to Perfection

Before becoming a makeup artist I never really realized the importance or priming your skin before foundation. I have found that a lot of people miss out this step when applying their makeup.

If you use a decent primer it will keep your foundation on a lot longer, it gives a smoother base to put your fondation on to and can reduce how much foundation you actually need to use.

My all time favorite primer is Prep + Prime skin base by MAC. It is the one I have used for the past few years and it does the job for me. I find this primer really soothes my skin and reduces any red blotchy patches. My skin can get a little oily sometimes and this product really helps to blot away any excess oil, without drying my skin out. One or two pumps of this normally is enough to cover my whole face which means one bottle lasts for a good few months! Well worth its £19.50 price tag.

I have been hearing a lot of hype about the Smashbox Photo Finish Primer. It has won awards and got some great reviews so I thought I'd give it a try! It's good to try other products and brands as you never know, there might be something better out there for you!

I tried out this primer for a week under my foundation. My first thoughts were that when it goes on it has a slightly oily texture but once rubbed in it makes your skin feel silky soft. It did make the application of my foundation a little easier and for the first couple of days I was really happy with it.

But after the couple of days I found my skin was becoming increasing dry and flaky. I have combination skin but have never experienced this from previous primers! I hadn't changed anything in my skincare or makeup routine except for the switch of primers. So I knew it must have been this product drying my skin out. After this I converted back my old primer and my skin went back to normal. 

This smashbox primer is £25 which I think is a little pricey for a little tube.

I won't be re-buying this particular primer but would be interested to try the more hydrating version by Smashbox and see if that's any better.

I would love to hear if any of you have used this Smashbox primer and had the same outcome? I wonder if this primer would work better on a really oily skin tone? I'd love to hear your views!