40 Days and 40 Nights of Primers

Primer #25 brings us back to the makeup-lovers paradise, Sephora. The store brand racks are filled with reasonably-priced goodies, and you may remember when your own Sephora store opened, with the 365 lipstick colors bearing the Sephora name! It did not take long for Sephora to pare down the number of lipstick shades, but that made way for space for many interesting and fine products. I've already raved about the Perfection Makeup Base, and I can add another Sephora primer to my raves.

This one is called Sephora Skin Smoothing Makeup Base, and it is a silicone-based gel that comes in a half-ounce clear glass pump bottle. Just one word before I continue, regarding the price. The bottle holds a half-ounce of product for $22, which makes a full ounce even more expensive than Smashbox. That struck me as odd, since most of the Sephora brand products are priced way below their name-brand counterparts.

Sephora Skin Smoothing is the closest primer I've found to my favorite Smashbox PhotoFinish. It seems just a bit less thick in texture, though, and it was easy to apply and smooth evenly and quickly on my face. Instantly it felt dry, weightless, and ready for foundation. I have to say I was not that pleased with how my foundation looked. It appeared to be streaky and blotchy, and the Sephora primer did not fill in pores and lines as well as Smashbox. Little dots of my foundation settled into my pores. And my foundation seemed to turn into a matte finish, too, which I did not care for.

I like my La Prairie Concealer Foundation to remain the pretty, moist, dewy finish for which I had purchased it to begin with! My foundation did not last all day with the Sephora Skin Smoothing primer. It did not last half the day. But if readers of this review are looking for a very lightweight silicone primer with the ability to mattify a foundation, this could be a nice choice.
Product rating, 6.

Review by Cavewoman
Picture: Blogdorf Goodman