Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation - Review

Hi Everyone!

As regular readers of my blog may know, I am a huge fan of L'Oreal's True Match Foundation and it has been my drugstore foundation of choice for quite some time now. However, I ran out of True Match last week and decided to give Rimmel's Wake Me Up foundation a try instead as I have read some pretty good things about it online. I am a MAC NW20 and chose the colour 'Soft Beige'.

Rimmel claim that this foundation will 'reawaken the skin with a healthy, radiant glow and minimises premature skin aging'. It also provides the skin with SPF 15.

Firstly I have to say that I really like the consistency of the product, it's not too thick or too thin. I have been applying it over my Smashbox Primer using a Sigma F84 brush and it applies really well. It blends into the skin smoothly and doesn't sit or gather in places such as around your nose and eyes which some foundations can. I chose to set the foundation with my MAC Blot Powder as my skin is quite oily in places. The product gives you a lovely, natural looking highlight without looking shiny which is great.

Overall this is a great foundation, especially for the price! I can't really say a bad thing about it other than the colour range currently available isn't all that varied or extensive. I would say that if you can find a colour to match your skin then you will love this foundation!

You can purchase this foundation from Boots for £8.99

Maz x

MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation Review

Hi Everyone!

I am a massive fan of MAC and have far too many of their products but for some reason I have never purchased one of their foundations. I have heard good and bad things about their foundations and as I had a gift voucher to spend I thought I'd give one a go and see for myself! I have several foundations in my collection including L'Oreal True Match, Revlon Photo Ready, Smashbox HD and Make-up Forever HD, all of which I like, so how would the MAC one compare?

I had a chat with the MAC consultant and she suggested that I try the Studio Fix Fluid as I have combination skin and this foundation is said to absorb and distribute oil. It also has a matte finish which is great as I hate shine, is oil free and contains SPF 15.

Application:

I applied 2 pumps of the foundation which was enough to cover my face and neck. I used my Sigma F84 brush to apply. The consistency is quite thick compared to L'Oreal's True Match for example, but applies easily and evenly. It blends into the skin well and doesn't sit in any lines or imperfections. I have quite large pores on my cheeks and it covers those well. The foundation is said to be medium coverage which I think is pretty accurate as the finish is fairly natural looking.

Conclusion:

I wore the foundation for around 9 hours over my Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Light and set it with my MAC Blotting Powder and it held up pretty well. I have to say that I like this foundation. I didn't break me out at all which some foundations do and I like the finish, the biggest negative point for me has to be the smell! It has quite a strong, distinctive smell which does last a while, it isn't a particularly horrible smell but it's not pleasant!

You can purchase this foundation from MAC for £19.50

Maz x

My Top 5 Foundations

Hi Everyone!
One of my friends recently asked me for my advice on which foundation she should try as she wasn't happy with her current one which prompted me to think about writing this post. There are so many foundations on the market, greatly varying in price, which claim to do amazing things for your skin. If, like me, you are willing to pay a slightly higher price if you are guaranteed quality then it's tough to know which ones to spend your money on. I have tried a lot of foundations over the years and had both good and bad experiences, here is my pick of the best.
NB: For a rough guide on the colours options - I am a MAC NW20.

Makeup Forever HD: (My shade: 118)
This foundation, as I am sure that many of you will know, has a massive online following and has a lot of hype surrounding it. As I mentioned on my full review of the foundation, this is such a light-weight foundation and doesn't feel in any way cakey which is great. It applies and blends so well and looks so natural. I am hoping to try out the MUFE Mat Velvet + Foundation soon to see how that performs on my oily skin so stay tuned for that review!
Please click here for my full review of this foundation. I purchased my bottle for £28.95 from Guru Makeup Emporium

L'Oreal True Match: (My shade: C3 Rose Beige)
I am a big fan of L'Oreal products and especially their foundations and mascaras. I have tried most of their foundations and have found this one to be the best. The consistency is a little runny but isn't too bad, I tend to wear this as my every day foundation and apply it quickly just using my fingers. This foundation blends into your skin really well and gives you quite a natural look, my mum really loves it too!
You can purchase it from Boots for £9.99 but look out for special offers!

Revlon Photo Ready: (My shade: 004 Nude)
This is my second favourite drugstore foundation after the L'Oreal True Match. It has a slighter fuller coverage and the consistency is slightly thicker. I do not think that this blends out quite as well as True Match but it is a great alternative to it. I prefer to use a foundation brush to apply this one.
This foundation costs £12.99 and can be purchased from Boots.

Smashbox High Definition: (My shade: Light L3)
I really like Smashbox face products and especially their primer's and Halo powder so I was easily talked into trying out their HD foundation. If I was to compare it to the MUFE foundation above I would say that this has a fuller coverage but takes a little longer to blend into the skin than the MUFE does. If I was asked which of the 2 I would choose for use in photographs I would probably say this one as it covers your skin much better. This is a great foundation for those of you with blemish prone skin in my opinion.
N.B The bottle shown in the picture is  travel sized.
The full price for this foundation is £28.50 and you can get it at Debenhams

Benefit You Rebel Tinted Moisuriser:
This final foundation is a tinted moisturiser which is great for summer days or for when you only want a little bit of coverage, I have a friend with a skin condition who swears by tinted moistusturiser as she can not wear foundations. This product is quite dark in colour but is OK for a fair skin, it also contains SPF 15 to protect your skin. The only thing that I do not like about it is the smell which does die down after a few minutes.

I purchased this for £23.50 from Debenhams

I hope that you have enjoyed this post and have found it useful. Please feel free to comment below with any foundation recommendations that you may have!
Maz x

Make Up Forever HD Foundation

Hi Everyone!

I have heard so much hype surrounding the Make Up Forever HD Invisible Cover Foundation and I have been wondering whether to try it or not for ages now! I live in the UK and Make Up Forever is not that well known or readily available over here but there a 2 stores in London which both provide a mail order service. I don't live anywhere near to London (don't get me started on the cost of train tickets to London!) and I am always reluctant to order things like foundation over the internet, as you obviously are unable to check out the colours accurately. So even though I have been desperate to try out this foundation I have been putting it off for that reason. I recently tried the Smashbox HD Foundation which I though was good but not that much better than my favourite Loreal True Match Foundation! So I did a little bit of research via Google and YouTube and found that most people who use MAC NW20 foundation's go for MUFE shade 118 (Flesh - Light skin, beige tone) so that's what I went for!

Firstly I have to say that the bottle itself was slightly bigger than I expected! It has a pump top and I have been using around 2 pumps per application. The liquid has a really nice consistency, not too runny or thick which I really like. I have tried applying the product with my fingers and the Sigma F60 brush and I have found that it applies amazingly well using either method. It blends into your skin effortlessly and leaves no horrible line around the edges of your face, it also blends down your neck really well too.

MUFE claim that the foundation gives you an 'invisible coverage' and I wasn't really sure what that meant but after just one day of wearing this foundation I totally understand what they mean! You feel that you have no product on your skin, it feels weightless. I have also found that when you scratch your face you don't get any of that globby build up under your nails as you do with regular foundations! I am very lucky not to have any wrinkles on my face (yet!) but I do have some under eye lines which the foundation has greatly reduced. My skin looks much clearer, smoother and more even when wearing it which is fantastic.

There seems to be a big attraction to HD foundations at the moment and more and more are coming onto the market all of the time and I think they are great as they make your skin look so much better in photographs. A few years ago we were only really photographed at weddings and other special occasions but now we all have decent, high pixel cameras on our mobile phones we seem to have our pictures taken all of the time! I have seen so many photos of myself on a night out added to Facebook by my friends where my skin looks so shiny which I hate! This is because average foundations are made up of flat pigments which bounce the light straight off your face and back towards the camera resulting in a shiny face but the MUFE HD foundation is made up of round pigments which disperse the light giving you a much more flattering, matter look on camera! Big thumbs up for this!

Overall, this foundation is quite expensive and the biggest negative for those of us who live in the UK is it's lack of availability. However Guru Makeup Emporium do offer a colour sample service for a small charge so contact them via the link below for more information. I think that this is the best foundation I have ever tried by far and I will definitely be repurchasing. I will also try out the MUFE Matte Velvet + soon too so check back for that.

I purchased my foundation from Guru Makeup Emporium for £28.95 and you can also buy it from Amazon here: MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Invisible Cover Foundation 115 Ivory

Maz x