Here's a bargain-priced makeup primer that delivers on its promises! Want your foundation to stick around, despite your skin's tendencies to lose it after a few hours? What to maintain a matte, almost air-brushed look? You need this.L'Oreal's Studio Secrets Professional Magic Perfecting Base ($10.99 at Target, $12.99 regular price) promises instant smoothing results for perfect skin texture - instantly and all day. The silky, lightweight formula glides onto the skin and minimizes the look of pores and fine lines. Use it before your foundation, and your skin will have a unified, matte, and flawless finish. You may even find your favorite foundation suddenly has a new soft-focus finish!
Magic Perfecting Base boasts a high elastomer content, which gives the primer its unique, cushiony texture. The unique, creamy formula smoothes on fairly easily to disguise fine lines, wrinkles, and pores, while a combination of soft, light powders gives the skin a matte look and silky finish. A little bit of product from this little pot goes a long way. It's pretty easy to apply with fingers or a foundation brush. I use my fingers.
It works. For me, that's not necessarily good. It works a bit too well, delivering a matte finish that's not my personal best look. It takes the "luminous" out of my luminous foundation (I just need a little glow, please!). It does hold my foundation longer than it would last without a primer. I'm an odd case, though.
There are far too many women whose foundation slides off mid-morning, who break through with shine in their T-zone within a hour of two of leaving the house, and who will adore this primer. It was made for you! If you have combination or oily skin or just like a matte skin finish, you need to check out this primer. The formula is 100% oil- and fragrance-free, non-comedogenic, and non-acnegenic.
You can find Magic Perfecting Base at mass market stores and drugstores - wherever you find L'Oreal Paris products. I bought mine at CVS.
Photo courtesy of L'Oreal