Another week, another delve into the sample drawer and another primer review. I'd wanted to try Smashbox Photo Finish Pore Minimizing Primer ever since it was released but at £28 I didn't want to purchase it and not like it (like I did with their Photo Finish Primer) and low and behold with a recent ASOS order there was a sample. So how did it fare?

The texture of this primer is quite like Benefit's Porefessional, in that it's quite like a balm. I was amazed at how well it smoothed pores and mattified my skin, initially it was love at first use. My foundation sat perfectly over the top and the primer managed to keep oil at bay from my t-zone practically all day. My skin looked flawless, that was until I checked my face after around 8 hours of wear, my foundation had gone all patchy and separated on my chin and around my nose. Huge disappointment! I've never used a primer that had actually separated and gone blotchy, I hear others talking about that issue all the time but this is the first primer I have actually experienced that with.

So initial finish is amazing but it just didn't stand the test of time with me, I tried the primer for a further 2 days and unfortunately found the same problem again. I'm just glad I didn't part with my cash for the full-size product.

Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer Review

Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer

If you follow my blog you will know I don't have perfect skin. Having PCOS I am prone to the occasional acne flare-up and I keep to a strict cleansing, toning and moisturising routine (Premae's Immaculate Collection) morning and evening to try and keep the oil build-up at bay and prevent those yucky little white pimples from rearing their ugly heads! So, as I don't have the best skin I am constantly searching for products to give me the effect of perfect skin. 

Before being diagnosed with PCOS I hadn't been so particular about what I put on my face, although I've always had quite wide pores on my cheeks and I had oily skin to battle with, I never sought the aid of a primer to help the finish or longevity of foundation as I never wore it! It's only since the acne flare-up's in the last couple of years and the subsequent scarring that I have been on the look out for that little bit of extra help. 

For the last year or so I have been using Mac Prep+Prime Skin. Its a more of a fluid primer that aids the lay down of your foundation and powder by calming and soothing the skin, thus evening out skin redness. I enjoy using this primer, it's very easy to apply, it really does help my foundation to blend and it causes no irritation to my skin whatsoever. As much as I love it, it does nothing in the way of disguising the large pores on my cheeks. 

A couple of weeks ago, after searching the internet for alternative primers I came across Smashbox Photo Finish Primer. Now I know it's been out there for a while, I had seen it in department stores and online myself but as I said I am new-ish to primers and had never really been on a quest for one as I am now. Reading the reviews I was so excited to order it! Girls were referring to it as "Polyfiller for your face" a "Cult classic for a reason" and that they just couldn't live without it. I've found it, I've found what I've been searching for I thought and quickly added it to my basket and checked-out. The next couple of days were torture waiting for it to arrive in the post! I dreamt me and this "Polyfiller" primer would have a whirlwind affair, pore-less and totally flawless. I imagined sitting at my desk at work on Monday morning looking completely flawless even under the harsh artificial lighting. You can imagine my disappointment when this is not what I achieved....

The primer itself is easy and smooth to apply to the skin, it has a silicone feel like my Mac Prep+Prime. My foundation blended well over the top of it, there really was no trace of the primer being on. I can't say that it aided the longevity of my foundation nor did it keep me oil-free, after 4-5 hours I still needed to blot my face, the same as any other day. Unfortunately it did not give me a flawless look, nor was it Polyfiller to my lines or pores...instead after 2 days of using it I had an awful flare-up of nasty, sore spots over my chin and jawline. So into the drawer this primer goes....

I'm not giving this primer a bad review as you can quite clearly see from the tons of reviews it is a "Cult classic for a reason"...lots of girls love it. So while the dream of a whirlwind affair may have frazzled my quest for perfection continues....

Jodie 

xoxo