When I did my big haul in Wellington one of the few things that I actually needed to replace was my foundation. I had been meaning to pick up the new MAC Water-weight foundation that I had a tester of. But when the line at Kirks for MAC was far too long I turned around and found Bobbi Brown. I haven't tried anything by Bobbi Brown before so I was excited to see what they had to offer. I explained to the assistant what I wanted (medium coverage, dry skin, and buildable) and she suggested this one. Once I got to the counter and realised it is $105!!!! I realise why she might have suggested this one. I got matched to the shade 0 Porcelain which is a fantastic match for me.
The packaging is a bit different from any other foundation I have owned. The bottle is black and glass. So I have read a few complaints about the bottle being black as you can't see how much you have left, but that doesn't bother me. Apparently it is black so the skincare ingredients inside don't degrade. This also has a dropper which is quite cool. It means you can control really easily how much you dispense out. Unfortunately I have recently travelled with this at it is pretty useless as it leaks around the lid. I find this a bit of a pain, especially as you don't want to risk losing any of this precious expensive product.
I have been using this mainly with a brush or sponge. I put a wee bit on the back of my hand and pick it up from there. I have found it applies fine with a brush and it is easy to build it up where you need it by stippling it on. However with a sponge it is amazing and really natural, but I'm not sure if that is because of the foundation or my new found love for the BeautyBlender. When you first apply this it is really glowy looking which I feel like the oily skinned ladies would hate, but I just pop on a bit of powder and that goes away. The foundation itself is really thin and has a weird scent, kind of like eucalyptus. Luckily the scent goes away quite quickly once applied to the skin. This gives a really natural look on the skin which I love. But is also easily built up where you need it (for me on the redness on my cheeks). I love that this is also a SPF25 which is great for layering my SPF on my pale pale skin. What I love even more about this is that my skin feels and looks great once it is removed. I really feel like my skin has improved once I started using this. I do use a primer and powder with this but it lasts all day! Sometimes I find my skin just eats foundation but with this it still looks great.
I hate that I love this. The price is ridiculous, but honestly I feel like I have found my holy grail foundation and will have to bite the bullet and repurchase when I run out.
Ah serums my ultimate weakness! I needed a new foundation and I have a hard time finding my shade. That's what prompted me to check out the higher end brands. What attracted me to the Bobbi Brown counter was that Bobbi Brown foundations come in a wide range of shades there's not just a light, medium and darker shade but there's cool toned light, neutral toned light and warm toned light. Plus my skin has a yellow undertone and Bobbi Brown's line of foundations has more of a yellow undertone than some other brands. I gazed at the all the different options and then my eyes landed on this black elegant glass dropped bottle with white writing, the gold logo and the words serum. I am such a skincare fanatic that I don't just want makeup that looks pretty I want it to be good for my skin but especially my foundation that would form the basis of any full faced makeup look. I got matched up and took home a sample two weeks later I found myself exchanging all my Farmers gift cards, rewards, etc. for the most expensive foundation I have owned to date. Here's what I love about this luxury serum foundation it's enriched with natural extracts that are good for your skin - watermelon, laminaria saccharina, litchi seed, lentil, artemia, cordyceps mushroom, apple and sasa veitchii extracts. There's also lavender oil in it which gives the foundation a lavender scent. I'm not a fan of lavender scents so I'm glad it doesn't stay and once the foundation is applied it doesn't last. I also like that this foundation has an spf of 25. Bobbi Brown in general aims for her foundations to look like skin and my skin definitely shows through this foundation. This foundation is very hydrating and gives my skin a very dewy finish. I haven't broken out from this foundation despite it being a bit to oily for my skin during the summer, late spring and early autumn. I have used this foundation without a primer, because it is a serum and foundation combined so to let my skin feel the good extracts I have used this sans primer at times, if I sit around and if I don't do much then it stays looking pretty okay through out the day. It starts slipping around my nose and forehead and cheeks after six hours. If I use a primer underneath it stays mostly put even if I workout and starts slipping around my nose, chin and forehead bit after I workout or eight hours of wear whichever comes first. I do have a few fine lines on my face and this foundation doesn't settle into them or draw attention to them which was a big selling point for me for this foundation. The black bottle is opaque which I like as the good ingredients are protected. This foundation also photographs decently, no white white or grey overcast with a flash. If I had to think of a few things that I didn't like about this it would be that the foundation doesn't easily come out of the dropper.
Tips: Now maybe that's handy so you don't use too much but at the same time I think that when I reach the bottom I won't be able to get the last bit out and considering the price I want to use every last drop. The other con is the price, if I thought seventy dollars or eighty dollars for a foundation was a splurge, this foundation at over a hundred is second most expensive item in my makeup bag, the most expensive item that I own being a limited edition palette from another prestigious and costly brand. Another con for me personally is that this foundation is too dewy to look it's best on me year round. This is really hydrating during winter and good when I don't have breakouts. But during summer and just about any time when the weather isn't really cold that I would need to run a heater or fire that would be drying for my skin, this is not the best finish for me. Now, I love a dewy finish but I've recently discovered that a satin or for natural finish is also great and is more suited to combination skin which is unfortunately my skin during most the year. This foundation also doesn't give a lot of coverage so pretty much unless I have good skin with hardly any pimples, I'd look better if I chose a foundation with a different finish. That being stated, the error is more with me getting carried away wanting a serum and foundation. This product is formulated for normal to dry skin and I definitely feel that when I wear it. Will I repurchase this black bottle of luxury again? Maybe. But then maybe since I like a different finish and more coverage I might look at a different foundation. One thing is certain though - when this bottle runs out I'll be back to the Bobbi Brown counter to try another one of their foundations that look like skin.
If your skin has more of a yellow undertone, I definitely recommend checking out the Bobbi Brown counter if you're looking to spend more on a foundation. This is a fantastic foundation for those with really dry skin. It is buildable but it doesn't have a lot of coverage. Shake the bottle before you open the top to squeeze out a few precious drops. I like to start at my nose and cheeks where I need the most coverage work my way out. Then apply a bit more on my nose and cheek area. I also find that using a flat foundation brush means I can get a tad more coverage with this foundation.