Sonia Kashuk Mattifying Primer | Product Review

Let me start this review out by saying that I can always find a positive in any product, no matter what it is..generally products don't just work for my skin because I am oily and acne prone - choosing the wrong product, or a product that won't compliment my skin is nothing against the product.

Having said that, this mattifying primer that I purchased about a month ago by Sonia Kashuk is probably the absolute worst product that I have tried to date - this is even worse than the umpteen brands of dry shampoo's that I have tried..and didn't work for me.

I had been on a search for a mattifying primer, and the one I had been using previously has mysteriously disappeared from stores - with no SA having any idea why. I stumbled on this online one day and the reviews were okay, so I figured I'd give it a try - I figured, even if I didn't like it, I would still probably use it up and just not repurchase.

My first gripe with this product was the consistency which is that of Smashbox's Photo Finish Original primer. The only (physical) difference between the both was the texture. Sonia Kashuk's seemed to be a little heavier and I have used both. Putting the Sonia Kashuk on, I could immediately tell the difference as this one doesn't settle properly on your skin and it quickly becomes greasy. The Sonia Kashuk Mattifying primer did anything but mattify my skin, the exact opposite actually. After a few hours, my face looked like an oil-slick - a dirty, nasty, greasy oil-slick - with foundation sliding down my skin. Boy, was it attractive!

I have used this product exactly once and I will probably never be using it again, the packaging won't allow it. This leads me into gripe #2:

The PACKAGING!

Regardless of whether or not I would use it...It would have been nice to be able to show the consistency of the product for you.

There are 3 things wrong with the packaging of this product:

1. The pump is cheap and does not work.
2. There's NO other way to get the product out.
3. It's a hard plastic bottle - you can't even cut it to get at the product.

Essentially, short of breaking the bottle - I'm screwed. 

If you want to use a pump - that's great, give me another way to get the product out on the off chance something breaks - after 2 uses.

Even if I had actually LIKED the product, I wouldn't repurchase solely due to the packaging.

I only paid $15 and that's not what upsets me, it's the logic - I'm supporting your brand by purchasing and this is how you deliver.

I can't even give the product the benefit of the doubt due to their own horrible packaging - that's a loss.

Like I said, I can generally find a positive about any product but with this one I have exactly zero positive things to say.

I did not like the product and I did not like the packaging and the combination of that - total miss for me.

Worst product of 2013, by far and I am quite disappointed by it - I really wanted to like it.

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Foundation for Oily Skin | Pur Minerals Review

I recently posted a blog about the reformulation of Revlon Colorstay Oily/Combination Foundation which you can read here. This led to my search for a new foundation that would work well with my oily skin. I have a very hard time treating my oily skin, and have yet to find a successful way to do so, so I make deal. Unfortunately, most liquid foundations are too moisturizing for me and either made it too greasy or they sit on the few dry patches of skin I have from all my acne treatment.  So I had to find a product that would sit nice with both oily/dry skin. This led me to..

PUR MINERALS 4 in 1 Pressed Mineral Makeup

Photo from the Pur Minerals Official Website

I have been very curious about liquid-to-powder, cream-to-powder and just plain powder foundations lately and this mineral pressed foundation works great at reducing oil during my busy days.

I chose to go with this product, because it's pressed and I can't be bothered with a loose powder, as it causes too much of a mess. I chose Pur Mineral products as my first mineral foundation because the brand does not use nanoparticles in their products.

This product is $21 here in Canada for 8 grams of product. This is said to be a 4 in 1 product, which includes your foundation, powder, concealer and sun protector all in one product. I love this product. The matte finish of this product makes my skin look so flawless and I fell in love with the way that it looked the minute I used it. When you use enough product, it does cover fairly well, granted...I do still need to use concealer underneath.

The staying power is perfect for my oily skin, and after a few hours the foundation still remained with very little oil coming through. I didn't find it to fade or disappear nearly as quickly as my good ol' Colorstay!

This product did not irritate my skin or break me out at all, my skin is a little less sensitive than most...all my acne issues are actually hormonal and I generally don't break out from MOST products.

This product comes in 10 different shades:

Porcelain
Light
Blush Medium
Golden Medium
Light Tan
Tan
Medium Dark
Golden Dark
Deep
Deeper

The shade that I had purchased was Light, and it matches my skintone perfectly! This is very rare, it almost never happens!

I did not find this product to transfer at all, on to my clothes or when I touch my face (as I tend to do quite often, oops!). AWESOME!

Now, the downside that I found to this product and it may be the reason that I choose not to repurchase is how fast I go through it. I have found that I can't use this alone as a foundation, because in order to get enough coverage to hide most of my hyper-pigmentation and even out my complexion, it requires me to use more product and I found that I go through this much too quickly because of this.

So, as beautiful as this product makes my skin look...I will probably try out a few more options before I repurchase this one again.

However, for those of you who do not have much to hide and already have an even complexion, this is a highly controllable foundation and it's completely up to you how much coverage you would like. I definitely recommend this product to all those girls with oily/combination skin. It goes on smooth, evenly and doesn't highlight and cling to dry patches. It's wonderful!

Have a BEAUTIFUL day!