Max Factor Miracle Touch Liquid Illusion Foundation Review

Recently I won a mixed makeup lot on e-bay and got this foundation for a fraction of the original price and lucky me it came in a tone very similar to my natural skin colour.  

Max Factor advertises this foundation as the following; 

"Max Factor’s newest and most innovative foundation will revolutionise the way you apply your base. With a unique lightweight solid to liquid formula it removes the need for the traditional concealer, foundation and powder combination and instead creates the perfect base in just one easy application. The result is a flawless, fresh and incredibly smooth complexion that glows with radiance."

About the Product in General. 

The product comes in a plastic circular container.  It has two separate compartments, the black compartment contains a sponge which is to be used to apply the foundation and the transparent compartment contains the foundation which comes in a solid but creamy form.  According to the British Max Factor site, it comes in 6 colours and from the colours available I don't think this foundation comes in colours for those with a darker complexion. 

So does this live up to Max Factor's claims?

Max Factor claims that this new foundation offers a revolutionary way how to apply foundation.  To be honest it is nothing out of this world, it is a normal foundation in solid form which is applied with a normal sponge.  However, what I consider as 'revolutionary' is the packaging itself as it keeps the foundation separate from the sponge, which not many products out there offer this.  Also unlike many sponges and applicators which come with makeup products, the sponge that comes with this foundation is really good, but it is a pity that it is quiet small and that it doesn't seem possible to just buy the sponge.

The formula is very creamy, but I wouldn't consider it 'lightweight' compared to my previous Maybelline foundation I find this foundation to be thicker.  It is of medium coverage, as due to it's thick consistency if you applied more one would look too made up and unnatural and so it doesn't cover everything and I still needed to use my concealer to cover a few red spots and my under-eye area.  However, it did help in applying less concealer but didn't remove the need completely to apply concealer as Max Factor claims.  

To get the best result it requires some blending, which the sponge helps a lot in achieving this.  The sponge helped in making application easier and less messy, however it does seem that the sponge absorbs a lot of the product which results in some of the product being wasted.  This is a real big disadvantage, since the foundation is quiet pricey and there is little product!

My complexion did look more glowy and radiant.  However, this didn't last long!  In fact, after an hour of applying and I needed to blow my nose and a huge amount of the product ended up on my tissue!  Also the formula is very drying.  I have combination skin (i.e. both dry and oily skin). and after 3 consecutive days of using the foundation my oily parts dried up and ended up with small dried flakey patches on my skin, which obviously this is not my desired result when using such product.  I started using moisturiser before I applied this foundation but it still had a drying effect on my skin and so I went back to my old Maybelline foundation.  

Would I buy this again?

It costs I think around 12 Euros, which for just 11.5 grams of product it is very expensive.  Also considering that a lot of the product gets absorbed by the sponge and also it dried up my skin - I will not ever buy it again.

The product had a lot of potential; the packaging is great  and is ideal to carry around with you when you are on the go and the foundation blends nicely.  However, there are way too many cons.  I would only reconsider to buy this product if the price was cheaper and the foundation was moisturising but not too greasy and too drying and had better lasting power.

Max Factor Miracle Touch Liquid Illusion Foundation in Natural 70

Max Factor Miracle Touch Liquid Illusion Foundation in Natural 70 blended

I hope you have enjoyed this review, feel free to share your opinions on this foundation or other foundations ;D

ASOS CURVE Exclusive Knitted Kimono Review

About a month ago I have bought this Kimono top which I have forgot to review to all you lovely ladies out there.   You can buy it by clicking on this link: Asos Curve Exclusive Knitted Kimono

So from the picture it is clear that it is not your average Japanese Kimono, but more of a long shrug.

Colour: It comes only in black.  However, it is important to point out that the kimono has some metallic threads which makes it more of a glittery black.  If you zoom on the pictures provided on the Asos site you will see this detail. 

Material: It is quiet difficult to describe, but it is a bit see-throughish and it is not your normal knitwear material either, it is more of an acrylic material which kind of makes it a bit uncomfortable to the skin until you get used to it. Also as it comes to material I don't suggest this to be worn as a jacket during wintery months, this should be worn under a jacket during these colds months.  For Spring the material is perfect and for Summer in my case due to the unbearable heat we have in Malta in the Summer months I don't think I would wear it as it is a little thick for Summer. 

Style:  It looks more like a long shrug.  It doesn't have any buttons so it stays open and doesn't have any ties to tie it around.  The sleeves are baggy more bat-wing styled sleeves and are three-quarters in length.

Fit: Since this is a shrug, one can afford and play around with sizing depending on the look they are going for.  If you girls out there have big arms, don't worry about going a size smaller as the sleeves will still fit comfortably since they are baggy and will still hide those back-bumps nicely.  I personally went for a size smaller than usual and was almost a perfect fit as it was still slightly big.  Length-wise it is normal in length, it is not as short a normal shrug and not too long.   

Conclusion:  This top due to having the glittery material, is ideal for night outs.  I don't recommend it for casual wear and due to it's laid-back look I also don't recommend it for formal occasions.  Still this depends on how one wears it; if you wear it over an LBD I think it would look lovely for a wedding or such other occasion and if it is worn  over a tank-top one would look effortlessly chic for a girls' night out and even for office-wear it would look nice depending on what you pair it with.  I paired it with a three-quarter sleeved knitted top and it looked great.    

I hope you enjoyed this review, feel free to ask me more questions about this product that I haven't answered or share some styling tips on how to wear this Kimono.