Sunday, March 18, 2012

Illamasqua Skin Base - Review, Photos & Swatches

uk beauty blog illamasqua skin base

uk beauty blog illamasqua skin base

uk beauty blog illamasqua skin base

uk beauty blog illamasqua skin base

uk beauty blog illamasqua skin base

Anyone who knows me or follows me on Twitter will have heard of my battle to find a good Western BB cream. Most western versions are nothing more than tinted moisturiser with primer added and this is in stark contrast to the Korean version which provides full coverage while letting your skin breathe and leaves me with flawless looking skin.

I recently tried out Estee Lauder's version but like the rest it was disappointing. So when someone on Twitter suggested to me that Illamasqua's skin base was the nearest you'll get to a proper BB cream I rushed to the Carnaby Street store to pick one up. I love the staff at the Illamasqua store, they are all super friendly and immensely helpful. I wasn't sure which shade I'd need so the lovely girl there swatched it on my skin to find a good match.

Skin Base isn't actually a BB Cream but it is pretty damn close to one. It is inspired by BB Cream's but those lovely folk at Illamasqua tell me they made some changes to accomodate the huge spectrum of shades they offer. Most western BB creams come in 3 shades only which isn't ideal for those of us whose skin is a different shade to any of the colours offered. The Illamasqua offering comes in a whopping 19 shades! Wow that is quite a selection. It also smoothes, softens and conditions the skin just like their Korean counterpart.

So what did I think of it?

I LOVED IT! I seriously can't convey quite how much I love this product. It is exactly the product I've spent 6 months looking for. Being mixed race I have areas of my face that are lighter than other areas. This product evened out my skin tone brilliantly. I also have acne on my right cheek and it did a brilliant job of disguising them. The colour match was perfect - no tide lines here!

It lasted all day long without fading and I couldn't be happier. It is superior in so many ways to my MAC foundation and provided much better coverage. I could gush all day about how much of a miracle product Skin Base is but I don't want to bore you to death. The only negative is the price. At £25 it isn't cheap but I'd say it is well worth the price tag. A little goes a long way with this product so it will last for ages.

Have any of you tried Skin Base? What are your thoughts?

Available from Illamasqua Online or Instore.

2 comments:

  1. Oh I really have to go and get it now Faye! I have had my eye on it for a while, but have never seen any ladies with similar skin to me use it, you are the first (mixed race- uneven skintone & acne on the ol' cheeks!!). Right I'm going to have to go to get some. I noticed it was made in Thailand, so wonder if the factory where it's made pays the staff a decent wage, it's something that means a lot to me.

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  2. Been uhm and aah-ing over this and still considering whether to purchase or not... to give it a try... perhaps.. perhaps... I might just cave in... LOL but yeah... made in thailand... interesting...

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