Nivea Express Hydration Primer

I've not had the best relationship with primers. There have been a few that I've thought were ok but never liked them enough to re purchase them. I haven't used a primer in my foundation routine for a year or maybe more, but a couple of weeks back I picked up Nivea's Express Hydration Primer for half off the usual price and I grabbed it as I had wanted to try it since it was released.

I picked up the normal/combination formula (the blue lidded jar) because my skin is odd - massively oily on my forehead/t-zone and very dry everywhere else!

This primer is supposed to provide long lasting moisture and also act as a primer for your make up. It has a creamy yet gel like texture to it. It's very strongly scented, quite a floral scent, which I happen to really like - which is surprising because usually I prefer face products to have no scent.

I have to say that I have really been enjoying this! Once applied, it absorbs quickly into your skin and leaves it feeling very hydrated, smooth and very soft! I also find that it holds up to it's claims of having long lasting moisture, my skin feels hydrated and comfortable all day even under make up. It keeps my drier areas of skin nicely moisturised while helping to keep my oilier areas more controlled.

As for how well it works as a primer it's pretty good! I usually notice my foundation wearing off on my nose and chin half way through the day and usually have to do something to fix it. With me it is inevitable that this will happen in these areas you put oily skin and the fact that I constantly touch my face together and there will be wear.

 I'm finding that with the primer underneath though that even though my make up starts to wear off in these areas that it isn't nearly as bad as it normally would be - and the one day I was really testing this out where I made myself not touch my face at all (that was seriously difficult by the way!) everything held up a lot longer than usual. 

Overall i'm really liking this and I think i'll be repurchasing it once it's run out. I think that it's a little expensive here in Ireland at between €6 and €8 wherever I've seen it, but now that I have tried it I don't think that the price would put me off getting it again! I also love that it's in pot form so i'll be able to scrape every last bit out of it! 

What primer are you using at the moment? If you've tried this one what are your thoughts on it?

FOTD #5: Under The Weather

I've been taking a break from wearing any make up the last week or two on account of my skin being awful and being ill and just not wanting to put any on - I think we all feel like this when we're ill! 

Today I got up, had a shower got dressed and decided that I was going to make an effort today, even if I wasn't going to leave the house, I thought putting something on my face may lift my spirits a little! Also I've bought a few things lately that I really want to try out and a few more products that haven't been getting enough love!

Eeek! Eyebags!

I saw Nivea's Express Hydration Primer on sale for a little over €4 instead of near €8 so I picked it up! I usually skip primer but my skin is like an oil producing machine lately so I used this before my foundation. I used my Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge to stipple on my foundation, (Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum) I applied my two favourite concealers Maybelline The Eraser for under eye area (though it's helping very little on my really pronounced eye bags these days!) and Collection's lasting Perfection for redness/blemishes in the same way with the RT sponge. I dusted a little of MAC's MSF Natural all over my face with a large powder brush and finished off with Sleek's Blush in Antiqued.

I then moved onto my eyes. I primed my lids with Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer potion, then taking My Naked Basics palette (which I posted about here!) I applied the shade Faint on the outer half of my lid and into my crease, and blended the edges with Naked 2. I then dusted W.O.S from my crease to my brow bone and then placed Venus in my inner corner and on the inner half of my eyelid to brighten things and make me look more awake. I then lined my lower lash line with Faint and then applied L'ancome's Hypnose Doll Eyes mascara, I also used Rimmel's Scandaleyes eyeliner pencil in Nude on my waterline to make my eyes look less red - it works a treat!

Sorry for the not great photos guys, I can't find my camera and took these on my phone. The new design/layout of my blog makes the photos massive so the bad quality is super obvious! It also makes my large eye bags at the moment very obvious - so unflattering! Ha ha!

It's amazing how much more human making an effort when you're not well can make you feel! Not a complicated FOTD by any means, if you've seen any of my previous FOTD's you'll know I favour easy no fuss make up, though my choice in shadows is still on the neutral side of things I'm finding myself picking out the darker shades in palettes over the lighter ones these days - which is a massive change for me!

What kind of look do you go for when you're feeling under the weather?