foundation friday: urban decay naked skin foundation

Hey guys!

Welcome to this weeks Foundation Friday! A bit late, as per the norm at the moment, but here nevertheless. I was pretty certain that this foundation would be reviewed - ever since I've included it in Foundation Friday Instagram posts, it's usually only just missed out. I love Urban Decay products, amd ever since I saw this being used on Youtube, I knew I had to get my hands on it.

The idea behind this foundation is that it is a weightless, easy going formula - almost like skin! It goes along perfectly with their ever expanding Naked line (which some people are starting to get over, but really I'll always love it), because it's meant to be your skin, but better (duh, #getnaked). The Naked line is all about neutrals and easy to wear colours - which, if I'm honest, is basically me represented by a makeup line.

For all the details on this baby, keep reading!

The foundation is housed in a tall, sleek plastic bottle with a pump (yay). I love that the pump also doesn't dispense too much at once - it actually pumps very small amounts each time, so I could always tell that this was going to last me forever. I do need a good 3-4 pumps to cover my face and achieve the coverage I desire, but considering they are quite small, I don't feel like I'm caking my face up at any point.

In terms of formula, this is a really light formula with decent coverage. I would say that, on me, it is a definitely medium coverage, and really easy to build up should I want more. The colour range is also fantastic, which is another reason I love Urban Decay - the shades ending in .0 have strong yellow undertones, and the those ending in .5, have strong pink undertones. The only qualm I have with this particular foundation is that it seems to just sit on my skin, rather than really buffing in and blending in with my skin. Don't get me wrong, it still looks like skin but it is a bit mask like.

Here are some swatches for you - I have shade 3.0, which is actually my shade for when my fake tan is wearing off, so it does look too light in the photos (I had just fake tanned the night before):

As you can see, it does even out my skin tone and cover any imperfections I have - you can also tell what I mean when I say it doesn't quite become one with my skin. Overall, I do really love this foundation, it is really easy to wear on days where I need just that easy coverage when my fake tan is wearing off. As I said, I do really like it, but I don't reach for it as much as my other foundations.

You can buy this foundation, and other Urban Decay products, from Beauty Bay for $54.40AU

Hope you enjoyed this review - keep an eye out for next Monday when I reveal next weeks contenders!

Have you tried this foundation? What are your thoughts - love or hate? In the meantime, if you have a foundation you'd like me to review let me know down below!

Until next time...

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner

foundation friday: laura mercier silk creme foundation

Hey guys!

It's that time of the week again - and this weeks Foundation Friday will be all about the Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation. One of my favourite foundations ever, and probably as close to holy grail status as I've been able to get so far in terms of foundation.

Never was there a foundation that I wanted to try more than a Laura Mercier one. Seriously, when I went to the States last year, this was the first foundation on my list. I didn't even care about the price! I had heard so much, and seen so many reviews and swatches, and see how gorgeous it looks on the skin that I knew I would love it from the moment I locked eyes on it in Sephora.

You guys voted this in this week - so read on to see a full review on one of the best foundations available (in my opinion - or everyones, whatever)!

First of all, packaging - its a burgundy, slightly shimmery tube, with white lettering. It's a squeeze tube, so it doesn't have a pump, which means it is a little hard to determine how much will come out. Especially since this is a foundation where a little goes a long way, it would be handy to have a pump. But beggars can't be choosers.

This is a mousse formula, really thick, but easy to blend out. As for the coverage - this is super duper high coverage. It is not what I would personally call an everyday foundation, purely because of how much coverage it gives. You really only need the smallest amount to cover your entire face and achieve that full coverage, bur you do need to be careful as if you overstep that line between just enough product and too much product, you are possibly going to be a cakeface.

In saying that, despite the fact that it is high coverage, it has this gorgeous luminous finish to it. Its not matte or completely dewy, but my skin always looks healthy and fresh when I wear this. I love how easy it is to make my skin look absolutely amazing, and in photos too! I always wear this when I go out clubbing with friends or to an event that I know I will be photographed because it looks that great on.

Here are some swatches to give you an idea how much this covers (including my sore, which is apparently still here three weeks later:)

As you can see, it covers my sore, my veins and any other imperfections that I may have - but it still looks like skin. I just adore this foundation. It's very high up there in my foundation ranks, and I would highly suggest that if you are after a full coverage foundation (whether it be for everyday, or for special occasions) that gives you a glowly, radiant finish, that you give this one a go. I could go on for days about how beautiful it looks on, but really you just have to try it for yourself. Plus, the fact that you barely need any to cover your face means that it will last forever and ever.

You can find Laura Mercier products at David Jones, with the Silk Crème foundation priced at $59AU

Thanks for reading! Hope you found this interesting, and quite possibly your new foundation purchase ;)

Have you tried this foundation? Let me know in the comments below!

Also, because this was a late post (my bad), there will be FOUR blog posts this week.

Until next time...

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner

foundation friday: nars sheer glow

Hey guys!

First of all, I want to apologise - this post is so late. Unfortunately, last week overwhelmed me and I was only prepared for the first half of the week - now that I do Foundation Friday posts, I wait until Thursday to write it. That way it gives you guys all the time to vote on which you foundation you want to see. Work just completely got in the way this week past, but its a lesson for the next weeks to come.

In any case, if you couldn't tell from the title. NARS Sheer Glow Foundation finally won out of all the foundations! I'm so happy about that - this is a fantastic foundation in my opinion, and its definitely a must try if you have normal to dry skin, and love a healthy radiant finish.

I have mine in the colour Punjab which has strong yellow undertones. I have it to match me when I'm tanned and its definitely a fantastic match. The best thing about this foundation in my opinion is it's shade range - since there is 15 shades, there really is a colour for the palest of pales and darker skintones. We can whinge about the price of high end foundations all we want - but you have to admit, they fulfil one of the biggest foundation dilemmas of all time by having a variety of cool, warm and neutral undertones.. Something drugstores don't always manage to solve.

Let's look at the packaging shall we - true to NARS, its simple and sleek, with the trademark matte packing on the lid. The only issue I have with this is that it doesn't have a pump - but NARS have solved that by making a pump to fit it, but selling it seperately. For me, this cost enough as it is without having to make a seperate purchase for the pump, so I will live without it. However, if you are someone who really cannot do without a pump, it is available to you.

In terms of consistency, this is pretty lightweight and easy to blend. Its a medium coverage on me - although, I have heard from others that the foundation doesn't have much in terms of coverage for them. Each to their own, but for me, this is a definite buildable medium coverage. It has the most gorgeous finish - healthy, radiant and dewy. Everything I want in a foundation really. It lasts forever, looks amazing in photos and my skin always looks gorgeous.

Another great thing about this foundation is that its perfect for everyday use and for night use - because you can sheer it out and add a light layer during the day and then build it up for a night out. So, although you are spending alot more than you may be used to spending, its definitely worth it when you can use the one foundation for a number of occasions.

Here is a swatch of the foundation so that you can see how it covers:

As you can see, my sore is completely covered from the first picture, but my skin still looks like my skin - in fact it looks like my skin but better. I defintely recommend this if you are after a foundation that is perfect for everyday (and the bonus nights out), and that gives you a healthy, radiant glow. However, I would only recommend this for normal to dry skin types - for oilier skin, I would try Sheer Glows sister Sheer Matte. I just don't know how the finish would go with oiler skin.

You can purchase NARS Sheer Glow in Australia from Mecca Cosmetica for $68AU

Thanks for your patience guys! I appreciate it so much. If you have a particular foundation in mind that you would like to see on Foundation Friday, let me know in the comments below! In the meantime, keep an eye out on my Instagram so that you can vote on next weeks contenders :)

Until next time...

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner

top five thursday: high end foundations

Hey guys!

Guess what time it is again? Oh yes.. It's Top Five Thursday - my most favourite blogging day of the week. Loving going through all my collection and finding the top five of everything - I find so many old faithfuls that have just been sitting there waiting for me to show them some love.


If you are a regular viewer here, you may remember that my first ever post for this series was on my top five drugstore foundations - so it seemed only fitting that at some point I would do my top five high end foundations! For those of you who are new to my blog, I'm a serial foundation junkie. Seriously. It's getting ridiculous - I own so many, that I don't see how I'm ever going to finish even one of them.


This post will be a little different to my previous editions. I do own quite a few high end foundations. However, I'm really only impressed by four of the ones that I own. I didn't see the point in adding another foundation just for the sake of the 'top five', as the point of this is to not put them in an order - but rather talk about which ones I use frequently and would recommend to others. So, todays post is really a Top Four. I really do adore each one of these foundations, and all for different reasons.

Read on to see what I think of them individually!


Products pictured (l-r) - Laura Mercier Silk Crème Foundation, Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation, MAC Face and Body Foundation, Nars Sheer Glow Foundation

1. Laura Mercier Silk Crème Foundation

Words cannot describe the love I have for this foundation. I would probably wear it more often if it wasn't so expensive to replace. This foundation is absolutely full coverage, probably the best coverage foundation that I own. It is thick and creamy, and I really only need about a pea sized amount to cover my whole face to achieve full coverage. I usually wear this when I have a special event, not only because of the coverage, but also because of the luminous finish it gives. For such a creamy foundation, it really looks healthy and radiant on my skin when I wear it. Love this foundation so much, and I really would like to try the Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser as well. Let me know if you have tried this in the comments below! I did buy this overseas, and I'm fairly certain it's not available in any major retailers here in Australia. But you can find it at www.adorebeauty.com.au for $59AU with free shipping within Australia.

Wearing Laura Mercier Silk Crème Foundation

2. Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation

So you've heard me talk all about the Urban Decay Naked palettes and how much I love them - now meet the foundation that goes hand in hand with their Naked line! I really really like this as an everyday foundation. It is so lightweight in texture and really easy to blend into your skin. The colour selection is fantastic too - although the colour I picked up is a little light for me, personally, so I usually wear this on the days where I am not as self-tanned. It has a light to medium coverage that is so easy built up, and I find it to cover really well. It's not as long lasting as I would like, but putting a primer underneath and powder on top does help the longevity! Sadly, Urban Decay is not available in Australian stores, online or otherwise (boo, hiss), but www.beautybay.com does stock it for $56.10AU with free shipping.

3. MAC Face and Body Foundation

I have had quite a few go-to foundations in my time. Allow me to introduce another. This is one of my favourite all time foundations - it is super lightweight, has a light coverage that can be built up and it stays put all day. Rain, hail or sunshine, rest assured this will not budge off your face until you are ready to remove it. I used to wear this to work all the time, especially on good skin days. I would always get so many compliments, saying how great my skin looked every single time I wore it. I'm not saying that you need it - but I'm not going to say you don't either. It's not often that I like a light coverage foundation, as I definitely prefer more medium to full foundations, but this the exception to the rule. I have the baby version, which has 50mLs in it, and it has lasted me ages. But there is a bigger version available which contains 120mLs. This foundation is available at any MAC Counter, or from www.maccosmetics.com.au and the 50mL retails for $49AU, and the 120mL for $60AU. 

4. NARS Sheer Glow Foundation

A cult favourite. And for good reason. This makes my skin look like different skin (if that makes sense). I honestly have no real problems with my skin in general, but this literally makes it look so good that I could do promotional work for NARS (seriously, are y'all hiring?). I adore this stuff, it is a lightweight formula with a solid medium coverage. I wouldn't say it can really be built up, but I don't find that I need to. I don't wear this nearly as much as I should, mainly due to its price tag, but if it wasn't so expensive I would be wearing it almost everyday. Everyone who has normal to dry skin should buy into the hype of this foundation - it really is all that. To the girls with more oily combination skin, Sheer Glow has a sister named Sheer Matte. I would recommend you pop into your local Sephora or Mecca (whichever country you're from) and try a sample. I highly doubt it will disappoint! NARS is available in Mecca Cosmetica here in Australia, and this foundation retails for $68AU. You can either go instore, or access their website here www.meccacosmetica.com.au .

Wearing the NARS Sheer Glow Foundation

And that's it :) my Top Five (four) high end foundations! Was there anything on this post that you wouldn't have included? What other high end foundations do I need to try?

If you have any suggestions for next weeks Top Five Thursday, please let me know!

Until next time babes!

xxxx

Click here to read my Top Five drugstore foundations

Click here to read last weeks edition of Top Five Thursday

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner