Review | Bourjois Happy Light Foundation, Concealer & Cream Blush
If I can say one thing about the drugstore brands, I’d say Bourjois in particular has been knocking it out of the park with their new product releases & reformulations last year. That and Kruidvat offering good deals on their range pretty much all year round, made this the brand I ended up buying from the most in 2013 (a haul is in the making). However, I’m always a bit sceptic when it comes to make-up for the complexion since I’m rather pale, so I rather sit out the new releases until I’ve read some reviews. Todays’ products are some of those releases I decided to skip at first, until the PR’s were so kind to send me some samples for review.
First up is the Happy Light Foundation in 51 Rose Vanilla, a much raved about foundation in the beauty world. By the time this came out I was so hooked on the Healthy Mix foundation (and I still am btw) and I was rather curious how the two would compare. The Happy Light foundation comes in 6 shades, of which 51 is the lightest shade (see swatches down below). Make sure you swatch ‘em in the store first and don’t let the numbers/names fool you because they are much darker than those of the Healthy Mix foundation. Result: even the lightest shades was just too orange for my pale complexion. I’m not even sure this will work for me during summertime. Bummer. I’m secretly hoping for them to expand the colour range a bit like they do abroad (there are 3 more shades available, 50 Porcelain being one of them!)
The texture was lighter than that of the Healthy Mix foundation, but don’t expect something too liquidy like the L’Oréal Nude Magique, which is still the lightest one I have found to date. The Happy Light still gives a decent coverage and gives off a similar amount of radiance like the Healthy Mix, thanks to the light-reflecting particles. People with very oily skin might not like this. I can’t say anything about the longevity though (can’t see myself walking around with a carrot head all day), but Bourjois claims it lasts up to 16h.
My favourite out of the bunch is the Ultra-Covering Cream Concealer in 21 Ivory, a super creamy concealer that comes in a compact case with mirror and magnetic locking system. I apply it with my fingers underneath the eyes and on blemishes, which covers them up really well while still looking natural together with my Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation in 51 Light Vanilla. It’s the perfect shade for those with fair skin tones and it’s easy to build & blend. It doesn’t get stuck in between my fine lines for 80% of the time and when it does, it does so only a little.
I wish Bourjois would release this in a compact duo format with a light powder to help set it like the Bobbi Brown concealer kit. That would’ve been absolutely perfect. Due to its compact & lightweight size, it’s easy to bring it with my in my handbag wherever I go. I’m overall very pleased with this product and I’ve been using it every single day. I already hit pan and I’m pretty sure this won’t be my last Bourjois concealer.
A product I absolutely didn’t like when I swatched it in the drugstore but came to love is the Cream Blush in 03 Rose Tender. I don’t know why, but the product samples felt really dry in the store, which made me think the result would be really blotchy and hard to blend. Perhaps it had dried out because it was a promo display with only pans? Either way, the texture resembles that of the concealer a lot. It’s not heavily pigmented unlike my other cream blush favourite from Max Factor, which makes it easier to build and blend. The finish however is more on the powdery side. €11 is already a bit pricey imo, but it does help that you don’t need a lot of the product.
The result is natural looking flushed cheeks. Rose Tender is a soft pink shade that does have a little bit of shimmer in it, but its hardly noticeable. Again, this shade is perfect for those with porcelain skin. I wouldn’t mind if Bourjois chose to add some more shades though.
Conclusion: I’ve got nothing but love for the concealer and cream blush. If you love cream products, do give these a try! Too bad for the foundation, but I really do hope Bourjois will adjust their colour range so I can give it a proper go. So good job, Bourjois! I can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with this year!
