My face stared back at me in the mirror one very early morning and told me things I wasn't quite sure I was ready to hear. I tried to pretend it was my morning vision, clouded by a night of restless sleep, or that the bulbs in my bathroom were not casting the right light, or that maybe I was coming down with something or...or what? I had run out of excuses with the undeniable beating me over the head. My skin was not so taut, those pesky crows had made their marks around my eyes, the pores had opened and created cavities in my complexion, the smile lines were permanently cast even though I wasn't smiling and the vibrancy of youth was starting to dissipate....all of this could only be pointing to one possible thing: age. And not just any age - old age. Oh the horror! How had this happened? How did I get here? Who was this person???!!! Before I knew it, the walls closed in and the room went black....

When I came to, I was lying on the hard, cold tiles; shaking and shivering. Where was I? Why was I in my bathroom? Then it all came flashing back. Ugh! I put a hand on the sink and carefully lifted myself off the floor. With one eye open and the other shut, I held my breath and took a peak at myself in the mirror again. Yep, un-mistakable, it was still that other face. I went instantly into Neanderthal mode and attempted to activate my flight or fight response. But which was it to be? I felt too tired for either to be perfectly honest, but my ego was screaming at me to make a choice. Then something came to me - a saying I'd heard somewhere that was remarkably appropriate - "if you got it flaunt it, if you don't then fake it!" Whoever said that, was bloody brilliant!

So post-shower, I sat in front of my trusty laptop and navigated my way through the endless resource that is Google and researched my options. However, I had no idea where to start or what to search for. There were over a million sites and blogs dedicated to how to regain your youth and turn back the years. From plastic surgery (not an option), to voodoo magic (again, not an option) and everything in between. There was so much to filter through that my eyes began glazing over 20 pages into my search. And then I found it! Some random keyword search returned the results - OH GOD + HELP + YOUTHFUL APPEARANCE (or something along those lines). Anyway, my answer was this: Face Primer.

I'd found my magic product. No surgery, no needles, just a jar full of elixir for the nominated price. I couldn't believe what I was reading! Claims of "...creating a perfect canvas..." and "...filling in lines and pores to help skin appear visibly smoother..." to "...smooth away lines, pores and imperfections instantly..." and "...innovative line-filling technology to reveal a practically perfect complexion...". Practically? Pftt, close enough! I had to have...no, correction...I needed this product! 

Further searches revealed that so many other women had found the "answer" and were blogging and talking about it all over the net. Where had I been? How had I not known? All I needed to do now was make a brand choice. So I scoured the content and tallied up the votes and came up with the two that were receiving the most reviews and the 4+ star ratings by women users. Armed with my over-sized sunglasses and wallet, I raced to the closest mall and barged my way through every beauty counter I could find until my search was over. Giddy with post-purchase adrenalin, I drove madly back home, dashed back into the bathroom and sat my two new-found friends on the counter.

Let me introduce you to Friend Number 1: Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer.

This product comes in a clear bottle with a black lid (see image left) and is currently rated the number one selling primer on the market. It claims to fill in the lines and pores to give the appearance of smooth skin and leaving it feeling velvety smooth.

Did it deliver on it's claim? Sadly for me, not like I expected to. And I had such high hopes for this product based on it's rave reviews.

What it did do for me: it did make my skin feel velvety smooth (but only if I had exfoliated my skin first), it did allow my makeup to last longer without getting cakey, it was light on my skin, blended in seamlessly and it didn't cause me to break out (which apparently is a big problem with other primers).

What it didn't do for me: did not diminish my pores (not even slightly!), I also had to be careful how much of the product I put on and where as it did tend to peel after drying, did not have much of an effect when my skin was dry and didn't give me that really smooth finish I was after.

I found that this product worked better when my skin was in good condition i.e well hydrated, no pimples and I'd had enough rest not to look "puffy". But, essentially, that defeats the purpose! I wanted it to cover up my imperfections when I wasn't looking so hot and unfortunately it did not.

My overall rating for Smashbox: 

Friend #2: Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch

This product comes in a small jar with it's own applicator (see image left) and is rated high amongst the top selling primers in the market. It has the consistency of putty which makes application easy and also has a pleasant fragrance. It claims to "instantly" smooth imperfections, lines and pores with it's innovative line-filling technology which includes soft focus pigments, acacia micro-pearls and Vitamin E.

What it did do for me: it again gave me smooth feeling skin after application, it "filled" in the finer lines around my eyes to minimise (emphasise "minimise") their appearance, it was easy to control quantity of product with applicator and allowed my make up to last longer.

What it didn't do for me: again, did not minimise the appearance of my pores, in fact sometimes it made them appear larger, I wasn't able to put this product in some places and not in in others on my face as under certain light conditions you could tell where it has been applied, it didn't dry to a matte finish which sometimes left my skin feeling a little greasy, it also does not work well with powder-based make up as it tended to clump the powder together where it was applied.

My overall rating for Clarins Instant Smooth:

Was I impressed with the latest "miracle" product? Bluntly, no. After the initial shock of the price for such a tiny amount of product, I was surprised at the small amount required for each application. But disappointingly the surprises stopped there. Niether product delivered on the "instant" appearance of a perfect complexion nor did they adequately fill in the pores for a youthful appearance. Nice try though, the beauty industry almost had me convinced!

Sigh, I'm back at square one. However, I do have a consolation for those ladies out there who still  search for youth. Sophia Loren was recently interviewed and the journalist asked her what her secret was for looking so fabulous at 70 and she replied "there is no secret - it's all in your genes". Thanks Sophia, I guess that's another thing I can just blame on my mother....

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