Review: Benefit Stay Flawless Primer

(This post was written for The Glosse Posse)

Dear readers,

Last month, I recommended purchasing Benefit’s Stay Flawless 15-hour Primer. Unfortunately, I noticed recently that this product did not work out for me after all. It was hard for me to have to return it to Sephora – though I am very grateful for their 60-day return policy – knowing that the product could very well end up in the bin after only several uses. At the same time, perhaps the primer would be disinfected and used as a tester or perhaps the cashier would get to keep it.

It’s funny how we can’t always tell how well a product works on us until we’ve really had time to test it. When I used Stay Flawless, I was using YSL’s Touche Eclat Illuminating Foundation which was thick enough to cover the primer underneath. However, it wasn’t until Monday (19 August) when I realised that it did not work out with a more sheer foundation, Lancome’s Teint Visionnaire. It could be my fault for not blending in the primer properly. I was not happy to see that my skin looked blotchy. Not only was it very obvious that I had foundation on, it looked like I had done a mediocre job at painting my face. Because Stay Flawless is a fast-drying solid primer, my make-up was set. There would be no blending in anymore – I would have to start all over again.

Now, I’m not saying that Stay Flawless is completely awful. Perhaps it works wonders for you because you’ve done it right or you didn’t apply as much. For those of you who have recently bought it, I am very sorry for leading you astray! Do keep your receipt and see what the return policy is.

In the meantime, I’ve been using my sample-size of Benefit’s That Gal brightening primer, a pink cream primer that smells somewhat of strawberries (actually, maybe raspberries). It’s not the best but it does its job.

Do you have a primer(s) that you would recommend? 🙂

Original post: 31 July 2013

The last post of the month is on a new product I recently bought from Sephora: Benefit’s Stay Flawless 15-hour Primer.

Prior to this purchase, I’d never bothered using a primer as I thought make-up would just stick to one’s face. It wasn’t until this summer when I noticed that my make-up was running that I realised I would need some sort of make-up glue. Initially, I thought of using a cream-based primer (Benefit hadn’t come out with Stay Flawless until recently, I think). I’m sure there are plenty of amazing primers available but I was recommended by the make-up artist to use Benefit’s solid primer, Stay Flawless. It’s easy to use and yes, it works for 15 hours (I know – I was up late on my birthday because the Duchess of Cambridge went into labour just before midnight in my timezone). I used this primer on my birthday – a sunny 25C day – and was glad that I didn’t end up with runny foundation. In fact, from the other Benefit reviews I’ve read, this solid primer is perfect for summer or hot humid places.When my combo skin started to become more oily, I would touch up with an oil-blotter but my make-up would stay in place.

All you have to do is rub the block on your face, then apply any-brand of liquid or powder foundation on afterwards. There’s a cooling effect on the skin (at least that’s how I found it) and I’m told that foundation needs to be applied immediately or else it sets pretty quickly, making blending rather difficult. I didn’t find that was the case but I would agree that it’s best to work on each section of the face one at a time. Take a look at the Benefit video tutorial if you’re confused.

At $32 USD, this little tube has quite a lot of product available (I rolled it up to see how much is available – at least 1”) so there’s no need to worry that it will run out any time soon. If you’re still unsure of the product, head over to your closest beauty store and test the product.