CLINIQUE Superbalanced foundation in 05 Vanilla Swatch and Review

I’m not a huge fan of Clinique and the main reason is their insane prices in Europe (for that reason I avoid several more brands). I can understand that if something costs $25 will cost 25 Euros. It is a bit expensive, but not too much (1 euro is around $1,22), but when something costs almost double the price, no way. I don’t mind paying much for make-up, but please, don’t make a fool of me. I can count the exchange rate.

This is another Clinique foundation I’ve been wearing for the past month. I also got 1,5ml sample which lasted for 8 days. The full size foundation comes in a 30ml bottle and cost $23 or 31 euros (or $38) in Europe.

Superbalanced is also very runny, but less than Superfit. A little goes a long way. It blends easily and it takes some time to set, so I don’t have to hurry.

The shade 05 Vanilla is a bit too dark for me (NC15-20) with neutral that leans to yellow undertone. It doesn’t oxidize on me. The finish is luminous matte. The coverage is light to medium, but leaning more towards medium.

I have oily but dehydrated skin which often flakes. I don’t even have to mention huge pores. Just like Superfit, Superbalanced doesn’t emphasize flakes at all. However, it does nothing for pores.

Unlike Superfit, Superbalanced is much better at oil control. I need to touch up with blotting paper after 5-6 hours, but otherwise my skin is pretty matte.

I haven’t noticed any breakouts or clogged pores.

Superbalanced wears well – the foundation started disappearing only after 8 hours, which is pretty decent in my book.

This is the foundation I could see myself wearing if I get bored with current HGs (and only if I can get it at US price).

CLINIQUE Superfit Foundation in 05 Neutral Review and Swatch

Clinique Superfit foundation is only the second product I have tried from this brand (other being Mild Clarifying lotion).

I got 1,5ml sample which was enough for 12 days of use. The full size foundation comes in a 30ml bottle. I have to mention that this foundation is discontinued (that’s what I get for keeping the sample in the drawer for so long), but I’ll publish the review for reference.

The shade 05 Neutral is too dark for me (I’m NC15-20) with rosy undertone. The shade adapts to my skin colour to an extent several minutes after application, but even then it is far from a good match. The foundation doesn’t oxidize on me.

The consistency is very runny, the foundation is surprisingly thin and liquid. Because of the consistency a little goes a long way. It blends easily and it takes some time to set, so I don’t have to hurry with application.

I have oily but dehydrated skin which often flakes. I don’t even have to mention huge pores. The foundation doesn’t emphasize flakes at all. While in summer my skin is less flaky, there are still drier areas and that the foundation doesn’t emphasize any is a huge surprise for me.

Unfortunately, the foundation does nothing to minimize appearance of huge pores. The foundation didn’t control oil well. I got greasy after an hour.

I haven’t noticed any breakouts or clogged pores while I was using the foundation.

The coverage is light to medium. The finish is natural.

What is the huge deal-breaker for me is the fact that despite proclaiming the foundation long lasting, it is not long lasting at all. In fact it is probably one of the worse-wearing foundations I have encountered. It has started disappearing after only 5 hours of me sitting in an air-conditioned room. With other foundations I can get at least 8 hours (without a primer). In the evening, there was almost no foundation when I wanted to remove it.

Project 10 Pans Samples Challenge

During spring, I’ve made a plan of finally finishing some products from my stash. I haven’t updated it for a while, but it is only because I haven’t managed to spend anything. Later I have also announced a possibility to include more samples in the challenge.

Last week I have finally managed to find some time so I’ve been rearranging my cosmetics storage and I have figured out that I have tons of samples and testers. As I’m a bit afraid that they don’t go bad, I’ve picked several products I would like to spend. Some of these are already reviewed, as I’ve been using them before, but some I’ll have to test for the first time. I will only write a review if the product was tested for at least a week of daily usage.

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