I have to say that I kind of love the “Simply American” tagline that Almay cosmetics uses, it reminds me of beauty trends past, led by my favourite American sweethearts – winged liner and beachy hair from Lauren Conrad and nude pink lips from Kim Kardashian.
I was introduced to the Almay brand by my Aunt who lives stateside and is able to buy the amazing range of U.S make-up that us British gals can’t easily get our mittens on. Almay came highly recommended by her and she introduced me to a full face base for under $10 each (Around the £5 mark in the UK, similar to Collection prices.)
The ‘Smart Shade’ foundation is made up of a skin tone matching formula that applies to your brush white and as it is blended into the skin, matches your natural tone. The coverage is light to medium, blend-able and is creamy in consistency. What I like about this formula is how lightly it sits on the skin, no cake – just silky and moisturising.
The ‘Smart Shade’ concealer is blended to the same formula as the foundation, a light consistency that blends into an even colour upon contact with the skin. I found that the formula isn’t as thick as I like in a concealer (think Collection ‘Lasting perfection’ as an example) and I struggled to get coverage on a few nasty blemishes on my forehead. On lighter imperfections this is certainly a go to concealer but for the big nasties perhaps layer with something a little heavier in coverage.
My favourite product from this line is the ‘Smart Shade – balancing pressed power’ – this stuff is awesome. The mix of bronze, highlight and neutral powder allow for an even layer of setting powder over foundation. I like to stipple the silky powder into the skin using a Mac ‘130’ before going in with an angled brush on the highlighter pads and blending onto the tops of my cheeks. This powder controls oil on the T-zone and keeps foundation looking fresh throughout the day.
I’m really impressed with the Almay range and if you like the look of them too, there will be a review of two primers from their line coming up in the next few days.
