Of late my skin has become extremely troublesome, which when you’re in your 30’s it’s not a good look. Growing up my skin was always pretty good and clear, but when I hit my late 20’s it all went to pot and I now suffer from breakouts, open pores, and strange blister like spots. Because I am a dedicated picker of anything, I tend to give myself scars which are a pain in the arse to cover – but it’s worth it for the 2 seconds of pleasure picking gives. Due to my skin, I tend to need to use higher coverage foundations, but finding one that doesn’t cake or look like a mask is no easy task. Over the last few years I have always been tempted to try the ultra high coverage foundations meant for skin conditions, but have always stopped myself as I imagined they would look like a mask on me, however as my skin got quite bad at the back end of last year I caved and gave Vichy a try.
Choosing a foundation shade is always a nightmare, especially when you have pale skin that’s neutral with a very slight yellow tone. When I was looking to match myself to the Vichy Dermablend (£20.00)* range I found they all seemed to lean towards a yellow undertone. I opted for Porcelain as I thought it would be better to be too pale then too warm and yellow, and this worked out well for me – if needs be I can always match it with some bronzer.
I am not the biggest fan of the packaging of the foundation, as I tend to waste product when it comes in a tube as I always squeeze too much out – I get all excited thinking it’s Primula and I’m about to get a cheese fix. It’s not. However, the packaging is not really a biggie, as if a product is good I can get over a squeezy tube. So, how is the product? It looks a lot yellower when you dispense is than it does when blended on the skin, so don’t be scared upon first sight of it on the back of your hand. It’s a slightly thicker formula than a standard foundation and dries on the skin a lot quicker, so be quick when blending out an area. It blends seamlessly, leaves a full high coverage finish in one application and has a semi-matte finish. I found that it easily covered my red areas and breakouts, but I needed to spot cover on my worst scars.
I loved the fact I didn’t need to conceal (only under my eyes for brightening) and that even the little bit of extra foundation I had to add to my scars wasn’t too much. My one warning for this product would be to go in light to start as a little foundation goes a long way, but as long as you build up the product there’s no caking. It feels much like a normal medium to high coverage foundation on the skin and not at all heavy, so you can certainly wear it of a daytime without feeling like you have a mask on.
To set this bad boy I find the Vichy DermaBlend Setting Powder (£18.00)* works best with it. I have to avoid it under my eyes though as it can get a little cakey in the lines of my undereye, so there I just use my normal powder. I actually took this powder on holiday with me recently too, and it worked well over my other foundations I took, so it’s certainly a keeper of a face powder. It comes packaged as per most loose powders; in a plastic tub with a powder puff to apply. Personally, I prefer to apply loose powders with a large powder brush, as I find the puffs apply product a little too thickly.
Covermatte
It had been a while since I have used a pressed powder, as I tend to reach for my loose ones more lately, but since the addition of this into my collection, that’s changed. I used to love the Rimmel powder but after years of use I found it starting to gather and cake after a few hours – hence my switch to loose powders. I love Covermatte (£20.00)* and it’s rekindled my love of pressed powders. The finish it gives is flawless as it has a little coverage packed in to it. It lasts all day and it’s compact enough to pop in my handbag for touch ups at work.
It’s dubbed as a coverage powder foundation, however my skin isn’t in good enough shape to wear this alone; so for me it’s used either as a setting powder with a slight bit of coverage, or as a quick dusting powder if I am nipping to the shops and don’t want my bare face on show. It’s the perfect multi-wear powder that feels incredibly lightweight on the skin, it lasts all day without caking and helps to give my base a bit of a coverage boost. What more could you want?

Have you tried any of these products? Id love to know your thoughts on them