Review Update: Smashbox Blend Primer

Okay, a few days ago, I talked about Smashbox's Blend Foundation Primer, and promised to conduct all sorts of unbiased and empirical experiments to see what (if anything) the primer actually did. True to my word, I spent Saturday evening and all day Sunday using my face as a petri dish for this endeavour. (Ew. I really feel the need for a deep cleansing now after having typed that.)



On the first day, after I cleansed and moisturized, I applied the primer to one half of my face, and left the other side as is. I then put on foundation and concealer as usual, and then all the rest. After a few hours of hanging out and some beer and nachos (quick! vote: "Beerchos" or "Nacheer"???), I went back home and examined my face. Honestly? I could not tell the difference. In the 6 or so hours that elapsed between my putting on makeup and coming home, some shine had come through. But, it looked like both sides were pretty much even in that department.

But, since I did have all of 2 beers that night, my judgment was maybe a bit skewed. (I am not a light-weight, despite what my body seems to think.) So I repeated my little experiment on Sunday, a day filled with strenuous.... shopping (groceries and clothes! It was practically a marathon, people). After we got home, I did the blot test: I cut a blotting paper (Clean & Clear, natch) in half and used one half on each side of my face. Verdict? No difference! Maybe (maybe!) the 'primed' side showed slightly less oil. But you could never tell just by looking at my visage.

"Alas!" you say. "Are you spending far too much for a product that does nothing??" Well, not exactly. I did notice that the under-eye concealer and cream eye shadow on the primed side creased less than on the non-primed side. (Creasing was minimal anyway, but the slight difference was there.) The primer also made spots and dark circles a bit less noticeable. Plus, you know how when your skin is a bit dry, it starts to look slightly rough and the tiny hairs on your skin are more visible? The primer seemed to smooth that out. Finally, the primed side just felt smoother to the touch.

So generally, the primer did some good things, but it mostly just made my skin feel nice. Which is, I'd argue, worth $20 every 2 or 3 months. It should also be noted that my skin is largely problem free. So, for those who have problems with their eye-makeup creasing, or would like to fill in fine lines/pores, Blend will probably make more of a difference for you.

Oh, and I'd like to make a retraction: I said that the trial sizes of the Smashbox samplers cost as much per ounce as the full size. I was wrong: they actually cost less. WHY anyone still buys the full size, I do not know. Foolish full-size buyers! Foolish, I say!!