Review: Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection foundation

Today I will be reviewing one of my favourite lower end drugstore foundations. I have tried this foundation first time about two or three years ago when it first came out and since the first application I was in love. Since then I have probably repurchased this foundation about 10 times which makes it the most repurchased products ever for me. I admit, I haven't used this foundation continuously for past few years as I have tried out a bunch of different foundations, but I always go back to it every now and then or when my skin looks crap but I need to fake flawless skin and it has never failed me.

Consistency

I would describe consistency of this foundation as creamy. It somewhere between Mac Studio Fix Fluid and Revlon Color Stay. It's not too runny and not to thick and easy to apply also its easy to mix with other foundations.

Shade range

The shade range it's not that great, it only comes in 5 or 6 shades. The two lighter shades, 1 and 2  are somewhere in between NC10 and NC15, so it's actually perfect for me because NC10 it's too light for me and NC15 can sometimes look too yellow. Shade 1 is pink based and shade 2 is yellow based. Unfortunately there are no shades for deeper skin tones. 

Staying power/finish

The staying power of this foundation it's outstanding. It promises to last 16 hours and I have to say that it definitely lasts good 14-16 hours. I find that this is the only foundation which I can wear all day and night long without having to even look in the mirror to check if it's still there, because I just know it looks flawless. It gives a semi matt finish on its own, however I always powder it to a matt finish, just because I have oily skin and I prefer a matt finish.

Application

My two favourite ways of applying this foundation are by buffing it into the skin using a buffing brush like the Real Techniques Buffing Brush if I want a really flawless "made up" look  or by stippling it on with a damp make up sponge if I'm going for a natural finish.

Price/quality/avalibleity

This foundation retails for  £5.99 and it's available from Boots and Superdrug and supermarkets. I think that you get a great quality foundation for a very low price. If you get a chance then definitely give it a go. As far as I'm aware Collection 2000 is only available in UK. However you can always check eBay.

Summer favourites.

SPF

I think that a good SPF is crucial during summer months. Two of my favourite SPF's are La Roche Posay Anthelios XL 50+ Tinted Fluid and Vichy Capital Solei 50+. La Roche Posay Anthelios XL 50+ Tinted Fluid is perfect for those with oily and acne prone skin, it has a very light milky consistency and it doesn't leave my skin looking shiny also it doesn't cause breakouts and it has a bit of a tint to it, which is perfect for me because I rarely tan my face, so thanks to this my face matches my body. Second favourite is Vichy Capital Soleil 50+. This one is more of a cream, its perfect if you have normal to dry skin. If you have oily skin you still can get away with using it just don't use a moisturiser under it. As you can see both of them are very high SPF's, thats because I think that the more protection you get when you young the less wrinkles and sunspots you have when you get older. Another great products are daily moisturizers with SPF. nspa Brightening Day Cream SPF 15 is really good for those that don't need a very high SPF on daily basis, its very lightweight and gives a skin nice glow.

Self tan.

I absolutely hate hate laying out in the sun for hours and tanning, thats why self tanners are just perfect for me in the summer months. They quick and easy and give you a lovely brown tan almost instantly, no burns and no need to fry your skin. Two of my favorite ones are St Moriz Instant Tanning Mist and Dove Summer Glow for darker skin. The St Moriz Instant Tanning Mist as the name suggest is a bronzing tanning mist that gives you a lovely brown colour as soon as you apply it and lasts for days. Out of the all St Moriz products this is my favourite one. The St Moriz Tanning Mist is a kind of product that you only use once or twice a week, however on daily basis I use the Dove Summer Glow gradual tanner. This makes my tan lasts longer and gives my skin lovely golden glow.

Refreshing Mists

Refreshing mists are a must for me during the hot weather. They are really great way to keep your make up looking fresh and also to cool down. Some of my favourites are The Body Shop Vitamin E Face Mist, Mac Fix+ and nspa Revivalist Vitamin Toning Mist. 

Make up

When its hot I always try to keep my make up to absolute minimum, bit of BB Cream, some bronzer finished off with setting powder and I'm good to go. For daytime make up my favourite is the No 7 BB Cream, its very lightweight, gives medium coverage and nice glow to the skin, also I find that its long lasting. Another favoutrite is the Kiko BB Cream, I usually go for it when my skin is more oily than usual because it doesn't add much moisture to the skin. Clinique Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturiser is my go to product when I want a bit more coverage. Its very lightweight, easy to apply and smells really nice and fresh. Bronzer is a must for me whenever I'm tanned, simply because I rarely tan my face. Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel is the best bronzer for me. I have done a review on it here.  If I want a bit more coverage for the evening or during the day I usually go for foundation that offer medium build able coverage, are oil free and light weight. My favourites are Bourjois Healthy Mix and Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum. Rimmel Wake Me Up offers bit more coverage than the Bourjois foundations, but its still lightweight and doesn't feel or look heavy when worn during hot weather.

Hair

I hate hate using wax or putty hair products when its hot, I find that they just melt on my hair in hot condtions leaving my hair looking like a greasy mess so thats why I switch to hair mousse in summer season, it keeps my hair in place and it dosen't make them greasy. My favourite is Wella Shockwaves Shine and Body. Also something that I try to use on regular basis is a sun protection for the hair. My absoulute favourite was Revlon Professional Sun Care Hydra Screen, however it looks like Revlon has stopped selling it because I can't find it anywhere, but if you can get your hands on it then definitely try it. At the moment I use Vo5 Ultimate Hold 5 Vital Benefits hairspray which also offers UV protection.

Fragrance.

I avoid wearing heavy fragrances when its hot for the obvious reasons, instead I go for light and fresh scents. My favourites are CK One, Prada Infusion D'Hommes and Marc Jacobs Bang.

Worst show ever: Dolce&Gabbana Summer 2013 Mens Fashion Show

I just watched about 4 minutes of the Dolce&Gabbana Summer 2013 Mens Fashion Show. Why only 4 minutes? Because the show and the clothes are just awful. The music was driving me insane, the clothes didn't seem to fit the models (thats what you get when you want to save money by using children as models) The collection overall wasn't anything exciting at all, the only thing I liked were the printed blazers and shirts, but I they were very Versace so again nothing exciting. Also I totally don't get why they used children as models to sell clothes that are marketed to grown ups WTF?! I guess they wanted to save some money. Overall the whole show just felt and looked really cheap and tacky. Another thing that I don't get, why would you have such a long catwalk if the models are gonna use only half of it, if I would be sitting at the end of that catwalk I would be pissed off. Below is a video from the show, let me know what you think about it.

Current skincare routine.

It has been a while since I have done a post on my skincare routine. My routine changes depending on the season and the state of my skin. Since its been fairly warm in London and my skin looks pretty good my skincare routine is quite simple and its all about cleanings and moisturising. Some of the products I have been using for a while and some are new and I'm just trying them out.

Morning


I usually don't wash my face in the morning, unless I have to shave, if I do then I wash my face with the nspa Brightening Detox Scrub or nspa Melting Cleansing Gel and then shave. If I'm not shaving then I refresh my face with nspa Revitalizing Toning Mist. After that I use The Body Shop For Men Maca Root Eye Serum and follow with nspa Brightening Day Cream with SPF15. If its really sunny outside then I use La Roche Posay Anthelios XL 50+ to protect my skin from sun. I normally don't use foundation primers, however for past few days I have been testing out The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Reviver which is a primer and vitamin c serum in one, I feel like it adds bit more radiance to my skin and hopefully it will help with my post acne hyper pigmentation.

Mid-day/Afternoon


Sometimes around mid day my skin can feel bit dry and my make up starts to look "heavy". If that happens then I spritz my face with the nspa Revitalizing Toning Mist to refresh my skin.

Evening


So when the time comes to take my make up off I have been loving the nspa Hot Cloth Polish and I use it with a muslin cloth. If my skin feels oily I follow with Witch Foaming Face Wash. Sometimes when I'm bit lazy or I'm not wearing much make up I use Kiko Cleansing Water, but most of the time I properly cleanse my face with the hot cloth cleanser. After that I follow with nspa Deep Hydrating Facial Oil and thats the reason why I don't like to wash my face in the morning because I like how my skin feels in the morning.

nspa Haul

Few days ago I popped into my local Asda because I wanted to see if they had any offers on fake tan, but I ended up picking up few skincare products from nspa which is a skin care brand created by people at Nirvana spa. The range includes skin care and body care products. Its available from Asda (instore and online) and also from the Nirvana spa website, links below. So heres what I bought.

Revitalising Vitamin Tonning Mist

Melting Cleansing Gel

Hot Cloth Polish

Brightening Detox Scrub

    Deep Hydrating Oil

Brightening Day Cream with SPF15

Jojoba and White Musk Hand & Nail Cream

Available from:

Asda In Store

Asda Online

Nirvana Spa

Can u mix mac studio fix and revlon colorstay ?

Today I had a look at what keywords have lead my readers to my blog. One of them was can you mix Mac Studio Fix and Revlon Colorstay? My answer to this is yes. If you have read my post comparing Mac Studio Fix Fluid and Revlon ColorStay then you know that both of the foundations are different from each other, but there is no reason why they can't be mixed together. Both of the foundations are silicon based so it should be really easy to mix them to create a perfect shade/finish. The only time when you should't mix foundations is when one is oil based and the other is water based because water and oil wouldn't mix well.

Zara Lookbook - June 2012