The Base-Off ♡

Hey you!
It's a rainy Easter Sunday, and I should do some college work, but instead I'm eating chocolate and reviewing foundations.
I'm hoping the title makes sense... it's meant to be a play on 'face-off'.  It's probably been done before, I'm just trying to keep my titles a bit interesting.  Anyway, I've recently been trying a lot of new bases.  I kind of had a base crisis.  I didn't have a huge amount of bases to choose from in my collection, and I used to always opt for Rimmel Match Perfection - a cheap and cheerful foundation choice (buy here).  I was content with this for quite a while, but in the past few months, my skin got truly terrible - not acne or spots, but patches of redness everywhere, and my skin tone was horrendously uneven.  My trusty Rimmel go-to product just wasn't up to the job anymore!  It also couldn't handle a long day of college, then a shift at work.  I have no time to touch up my make up during the day, so I need a base that's going to keep my skin looking good all day, and will fight the oil to some extent.  I've been testing six bases over the past few weeks, and now I'm going to share my thoughts on them for you!  I'd be interested to her what you thought of these products if you've tried them!

The first one I want to talk about is the Rimmel Stay Matte foundation (buy here).  I have this in the shade 010 Light Porcelain.  This costs about six pounds, which is fairly cheap for a foundation.  I didn't expect this to be the best foundation ever, but the it was the advertising that drew me to it.  It is advertised as a non-cakey foundation, that will stay matte (as the title suggests) all day.  I am a fan of a matte finish for the colder months, and I do get quite shiny in the day, so this seemed like a good one to try.  I was super disappointed though!  I don't understand how this can be advertised as not cakey, when it is probably the cakiest foundation I've ever tried!  It's so thick - kind of like a mousse, but it just didn't blend well on my skin at all.  It really highlights and clings to any dry patches you might have, and overall is just such a let down.  I like my foundations to blend into my skin, so it looks like I'm not wearing make up, but with this, it was obvious there was a layer of make up on the top.  I think the idea of this foundation is really great - a light weight matte foundation, that keeps the shine at bay - but in reality, it just did not do any of what I wanted it to, and I really wouldn't recommend this foundation at all!  I suppose for six pounds I shouldn't complain too much though!

Another foundation I've been trialing is the No 7 Beautifully Matte Foundation (buy here).  I went a bit mad for matte foundations at one stage, as you may be able to tell.  This is a slightly pricier option at £13.50, but I felt like it was worth a try.  The bottle says "for an all day shine free look with a soft, even finish", which I would agree with, and I do like this foundation.  It is definitely a better option for a matte finish than the Rimmel product.  This goes on like a liquid foundation, and sets quickly to a matte finish - but not too matte.  I think with some matte-ifying products, like foundations and powders, they can go to an extreme, and make your skin look a bit too made-up.  This product covered my flaws up nicely and evened out my skin tone.  It didn't keep the oily patches at bay all day, but kept me looking presentable through most of my day.  The shade I got is a little dark for me at the moment, but once the summer rolls in and I get a little bit more tanned, it'll be just right!

Next up is the Rimmel Lasting Finish foundation (buy here).  This product claims to last for twenty-five hours.  Now I have long days, but never quite twenty-five hours.  I think this foundation is a pretty good all-rounder.  Fairly similar to my ex-favourite, the Rimmel Match Perfetcion, but with better staying power.  It isn't the greatest for coverage, and I do need a fair amount more concealer than I would with most of the other foundation I reach for.  A benefit to this foundation though, is that it's very moiusterising, and I suffer from dry skin, but this doesn't dry me out at all.  This doesn't highlight my dry patches, and blends really well - it feels very light on the skin.  My main criticism though, is that it isn't brilliant at fending off oily, shiny patches during the day.  When I wear this, I feel like I'm going to need to carry a powder with me, which I don't normally do.

Now it is the turn of a CC cream - the Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream (buy here) in fact.  I've mentioned this on my blog before, and it's definitely made a splash in the beauty blogging world!  Wonderful coverage, whilst being incredibly light at the same time.  The different colour correcting pigments work a treat for me, and this gives me a very natural yet even looking complexion.  I think this is going to be the perfect summer base for me, as it's quick to apply and blend, and keep my skin looks fresh and awake all day.  It's not the best product for combating shine, but with a small amount of powder on problem areas, this base is a definite treat for the skin with wonder lasting power.

Next is another Bourjois base, this time it's the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum foundation (buy here).  I'd seen  Estée of essiebutton talk about how good this foundation was on her YouTube channel, and I had been desperate to try it ever since!  This definitely does not disappoint, and it smells so fruity!  It glides on, and it so easy to blend.  My go-to brush for applying foundation is my Real Techniques buffing brush, and it really works a treat with this!  This product contains radiance-boosting ingredients and keeps me looking lively all day.  Even when I'm super tired after a day of college and work, my skin is showing no sign of this.  It stays on really well, and keeps any wild shiny patches at bay.  Out of all the products I've tried recently, this one has to be my favourite, as it's such a wearable everyday foundation.  It looks very natural and I've had a lot of compliments about my skin when I've been wearing it.  The first time I tested it out, I asked my boyfriend how my skin looked and he described it as a "radiant beacon of skin", which is the most ridiculous way to describe skin ever, but normally he claims my skin always looks the same to him (I don't understand males), so this one must be doing something right!

Last but not least is the most expensive product I tried.  A product I was completely unfamiliar with, a bit of a curve ball in my make up collection, but something I'm glad I've invested in.  It's the L'oréal The Minerals True Match foundation (buy here).  At about fifteen pounds, it's fairly pricey for a drugstore foundation, but I wanted to take the risk and try it.  I'd never tried mineral make before either, but I love how light it feels on the skin.  It starts out as a powder, but quickly blends nicely into the skin as a liquid would.  It does come with a brush, but I prefer to apply it with a powder brush, as otherwise I feel like I get took much build up of product, resulting in weird orange patches on my face.  When I use this I don't need a powder, as this keeps shine at bay, and also stays on my face all day.  The coverage is brilliant, and evens out my skin tone an absolute treat!  My main criticism of this product has to be the fact that it is fairly messy to apply!  Like any loose powder, you have to be careful not to cover your clothes in make up - this doesn't brush off that easily.  This is very quick to apply, and I always reach for it when I'm running late for college or work in the mornings!

I hope you enjoyed this post, and found it helpful.  Finding a new base is always tricky, but I suppose now I have a fair few to swap around for my day to day life!  I love testing out new make up products, so this post was a pleasure to write.

What's your go-to base at the moment?

See you soon!