Thank you to everyone that reads my reviews. I will always try and return a rate. If you read me but...
Thank you to everyone that reads my reviews. I will always try and return a rate. If you read me but I seem to be missing your reviews then please do drop me a note in my private guestbook xxx
Member since:08.09.2004
Reviews:244
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When I go into Boots I almost always come out with some new makeup that I do not really need. I convince myself that I will just look at the new things but always then end up getting conned by the advertising or pretty packaging.
Going into Boots for some hair care products the other day I ended up perusing the cosmetics shelves. My gaze was drawn to the L'Oreal true matchminerals foundation. I hadn't seen it before and the makeup stand seemed to hype it up (obviously...damn advertising!!..always gets me!) I have since seen the television advertising for the produce featuring Penelope Cruz with amazing flawless looking skin.
When I saw the pot I thought it
looked really cute and picked it up without even looking at the price. There were a range of 9 shades but most were midrange and would look too orange on my skin so I went for the palest shade that wasn't sold out which has honey glow. The product is part of a range which includes eye shadows, blushers and bronzers. All of which are in the same style containers and have the same advertised as being made from 95% minerals and having no perfume or preservatives
The product comes in a small plastic pot which contains the powder with a brush sticking upwards on top of the pot and a clear plastic lid. It looks very attractive in terms of the packaging and claims to have no perfume, no preservatives, has a SPF (sun protection factor) of 15 and is made from 95% minerals. (hence the name!)
After picking up the foundation I caught a glimpse of the price - a whopping £13.99!! The pot is not all that big and I think to be worth that price it would have to be pretty amazing! However, I decided to give it a try and brought it anyway.
I wanted to try the foundation out as soon as I got home and so cleaned off all of the make up I was wearing and read the instructions. The instructions are in the form of a series of diagrams and written instructions. I was a bit put off by this point, as it did seem like rather extensive instructions just to whack some foundation on! None the less I continued. The first time you use the product it is quite a chore. You first need to remove the plastic stickers sealing the pot and then work out how to then screw off the brush and lid section to remove the plastic sticker sealing the holes where the powder comes out. Next you need to replace the screw the brush and lid section back on - then gently tip the pot upside down (without shaking it otherwise too much foundation will come out.). Then turn the pot back up the right way - pull off the clear plastic cover from the brush, then screw off the brush section again to turn it upside down and gently dab it in the powder ready to use it! It really is badly designed and not in any way user friendly!! It is awkward, fiddly and you need a work surface to put the parts down on as you quickly realised that you don't have enough hands!!
If you have managed to get this far - the actual application isn't ideal either. I have never used a brush to apply foundation before and I suppose this is what initially attracted me to the product, but this really just doesn't work! The brush bristles are soft but they are bulked together in a way which makes the brush quite firm. If you are lucky enough to get the right amount of powder on the brush then you have the trauma of trying to apply it without ending up looking like a circus freak! The instructions say to apply in circular motions starting in the middle of the face and moving outwards. Due to the brush - no matter how much foundation you have on it - it seems that wherever the brush first touches your skin, you end up with a big mark of the foundation which ends up looking orangey. With a lot of effort and practise it is possible to blend it to death so that you get a fairly even spread but it still looks very heavy and not terribly natural. It does not even cover spots, marks, scars etc particularly well!
I have worked out that the only way I can make use of this VERY expensive pot of powder is to use a liquid foundation and then gently brush this over the top as when used like this it does actually look quite nice and does give a flawless look, even though you are about three inches deep in make up! On the bright side it doesn't irritate my skin at all and many things do. Unfortunately they are the only two positives I can really draw from this horrendously over priced and badly designed product!
Summary of Positives
Does look nice if gently brushed over the top of my liquid foundation
I am really not at all impressed with this product and from reading the reviews of others - everyone has had the same problems with the container design being so difficult to use and the application being so difficult. In my opinion the product is far to expensive at £13.99 and wouldn't even be worth half that price!! I would certainly not buy it again - even if the price was significantly lower as the application process is so difficult and it just seems to be a total rip-off! It barely deserves the one star that I have awarded it!
Advantages: Gives a light, natural looking finish and is easy to apply. Disadvantages: Packaging could be more user-friendly.
nina_in_the_bedroom 25.09.2007 (25.09.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of L'Oreal True Match Minerals
Advantages: Cheap for mineral foundation. Disadvantages: Poorly designed, bad colour choice, bad coverage and shine control.
shiningplanetss 29.10.2007 (29.10.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of L'Oreal True Match Minerals
Advantages: Gives a light, natural looking finish and is easy to apply. Disadvantages: Packaging could be more user-friendly.
nina_in_the_bedroom 25.09.2007 (25.09.2007)
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Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of L'Oreal True Match Minerals
Advantages: Great functional container, A litte goes a long way Disadvantages: Causes breakouts, Blotchy skin, Irritation, Cakes, Not for sensitive skin
Apr 14th, 2008
exceptional by (6%):
very helpful by (92%):
helpful by (2%):
