The Foundation Saga, it ends at last! + REVIEWS!!!!

Today was the first "official" day of Summer. Whoop-de-friggin-do. Well, at least from here on out it will slowly get better. What do I mean by that? I mean that after today the days will start getting shorter. In other words, the count down to Autumn has begun! Of course down in the South that doesn't really mean much. Our weather tends to be on the schizophrenic side.


Weather and solstice mini rant aside, I bring you my first review!


Wow. This is kind of exciting. It's like I'm becoming a big girl or something. Who'd have thunk it?


First off, here's the disclaimer: The following products were purchased with my own money, and were not sent to me by any company. The opinions expressed are my own.




Now then, let's get started.


M.A.C. Studio Fix Fluid

This is the first M.A.C. foundation that I have ever purchased, and I can say with full confidence that it is my favorite. I was definitely one of those women who viewed hunting for the perfect foundation like I was searching for the Holy Grail. Foundation shopping was always a saga for me. It always seemed to include staring at mega mart makeup aisles for what seemed like forever trying to decide which was the right shade/formula/you name it for me. Now, I'm not hating on drugstore brands, not at all, but one of my main complaints about them is that you can't swatch them. Swatching is what makes going to makeup counters fun- you can essentially try it before you buy it. Another advantage to hitting up makeup counters is that you can talk to the makeup artists on hand and really find out what is the best fit for your needs.

That is exactly what I did. I bit the big one, put on my big girl panties, and headed to the mall. My original intentions were to visit both M.A.C. and Clinique, because I figured that they would have not only slightly more budget friendly options, but what I needed skin wise. First stop: M.A.C. I told the girl at the counter exactly what I wanted: Light to Medium coverage, matte finish, and a SPF. And she definitely delivered, and it was love at first swipe. Needless to say, I didn't make it to the Clinique counter.

Here are my Pros and Cons:

Pros:

• I don't have to use a lot of product at all to get the light coverage that I need, but it is still very buildable for those days when I need a bit more coverage.
• SPF 15- Gotta protect my fair skin
• Silicone based*, so it applies very smoothly
• Long lasting, even more so with a base**

Cons:

• Price. A bottle runs for $26.50, but compared to other high end brands it's not too bad. And it's only expensive to me because I'm used to just buying drugstore brands.
• The pump costs extra. It's $6 for the pump, which bummed me out, but I much prefer to have a pump- you can control the amount of product you use, plus it cuts down on germs

* If you are allergic to silicone, you may want to avoid this product. Just a heads up.

** As far as bases go, I'm about to fill you in with the next review.

L'Oreal Paris Studio Secrets Professional- Magic Perfecting Base

Geeze Louise that's a stupid long name.

While shopping for foundation I was introduced to the concept of bases. Now, it wasn't like I had never heard of using a base, I had just never tried one before. As I was being swatched for foundations at the M.A.C. counter the makeup artist applied a base to one side of my face so that I could see the difference. Yes. There was a difference. While the side without the base looked great, the side WITH the base looked incredible. Unfortunately, I couldn't afford M.A.C.'s Prep + Prime Skin base that day- it costs the same as the foundation ($26.50). But, I remembered that L'Oreal made one. 

So, what exactly is a base? Quite simply, all it does is help to smooth out your skin, and essentially create a good canvas for your makeup.

I picked up the L'Oreal base at my local Ulta store (as I did have a coupon with me at the time). The L'Oreal base runs at about $12.99- a steal compared to M.A.C. 

One of my first thoughts about it after taking it out of the packaging was: Gee, this is small. And compared to the M.A.C. base, it is. The L'Oreal base contains only .05 fl.oz. of product, whereas the M.A.C. base contains 1.0 fl. oz. So, now that I'm thinking about it, it really wasn't that much of a steal.

Over all, I'm pleased with it. It does its job, so I can't complain too much.

Pros:

• Affordable
• Available in most mega marts and Pharmacies
• Does indeed help my foundation stay on longer

Cons:

• Not a lot of product
• Feels a bit heavy on the skin at first

*This product is also silicone based.

I do want to make a quick note of this: L'Oreal is not a completely cruelty free company. They have stated that they do not test there finished products on animals, but they do test their ingredients on animals. To be honest, it's hard not to buy L'Oreal products as there are several companies that fall under their umbrella such as Garnier and Maybelline, just to name a few. Just wanted to give a quick F.Y.I.

There you have it. My first ever product review. I hope that I was helpful to someone. If you have any other questions, leave them in the comments!

See you later, My Freaky Darlings.