Saturday, February 9, 2013

PR: Revlon PhotoReady Foundation SPF 20



I am finally getting around to reviewing this.  It's probably late, since it's been around for so long, but I feel that it's never to late to review something until it's gone (oh, wait, didn't I do that with the Color Burst lipsticks? Whoops).  Even if a review is later, it can help someone know if they should try to get ahold of something that is on its way to being discontinued, or if they should be happy a product is leaving so they can focus their attention on other products.  Anyway, here's the review.

I bought this foundation a while ago (like four or five years ago), and that was shortly after it came out and everybody was raving about it. "Oh, it makes your skin look so wonderful!" "Great for pictures!" "Adds a radiance!" I was completely into it.  I was around fourteen.  I really wanted to like, which is I guess why I didn't realize how bad it was for my skin.  I stopped using it at some point because there's about a third left and I haven't used it in a long time.  I can't remember if it was because I saw the flaws, or if I just wanted to try a new foundation.

I decided that since I was going to review it, I should use it again to look at it through analytical eyes.  So I put it on yesterday to see what it can do.  I didn't moisturize before putting it on, so that might've affected the staying power a little.  I have a skin type that is somewhere between combination and oily, so staying power is an issue.

As soon as I applied the foundation, I realized that it really likes to cling to dry patches of skin.  Anything that might be slightly raised or depressed, like acne bumps or pores, are exaggerated by the foundation as well.  I hate to admit it, but the glitter is obvious in sunlight.  It's funny because in the first commercial I saw for this, Hale Berry was out in the sun and the narration went something like this: "Contains micro particles that reflect light to make skin look perfect at every angle." Hm... I feel like glitter just sparkles.  It doesn't blend in to make a flaw disappear, but just sparkles.  You do not know how long I told myself that there wasn't noticeable glitter.  I have to wonder how long I let myself look awful in this stuff.

Besides all that, there's also an SPF.  That maybe sound good to some people, but I would rather just use a sunscreen and then put a non-SPF foundation over it.  Since the SPF is in the foundation, there is a risk of a white face in photos.  Although, this isn't quite the issue it used to be.  People are using their phones now to take most if not all of their pictures, and phones don't often have flashes (at least mine doesn't, but it's a cheapie).  So if the other problems aren't there for you, and you don't think your picture will be taken with flash, then maybe this foundation is for you.

On a good note, I don't notice that this oxidizing.  I know that's an issue for people (I've heard that it's mostly due to oily skin, but I haven't really had a problem with it), but it didn't cause an issue for me.  While it didn't oxidize, it did start to break down after about 5 1/2 hours.  I powdered my skin after first applying the foundation, but after awhile it started to get shiny in the T-zone.  It wasn't necessarily like an oil slick, but there was a definite sheen.  Since I didn't moisturize before applying, I can't help but wonder if my face would've been a bit shinier after the same time.

The skin type I can see having the easiest time with this would be normal, non acne-prone skin.  So, basically perfect skin.  If you have perfect skin, why would you even bother slapping a foundation on top of it?  I know that sometimes I feel that I want to wear foundation even on my good skin days because it helps thinks like blush stick and show up better.  If that's what you're aiming for, there are better foundations that are much more sheer and probably on the whole better for your skin.  A tinted moisturizer would probably be best.  As an afterthought, I also want to mention that it doesn't cover up redness all that well.

I hope this was helpful!  There sure is a lot to digest.  I'm sorry it was such a long post.

I hope you have a wonderful day!
~Stace

Pic credit: http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/large_lightbox/hash/4a/67/4a6752d7c9462699cf2525920f1b4ccd.jpg

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