When I tried out a full face of Fenty Beauty I thought I also needed to try their primer. Fenty is a brand that is very hyped up and especially their complexion products tend to get rave reviews. Since this primer states it is hydrating, I figured I could give it a whirl. In terms of primers, I prefer a hydrating primer over any other type of primer to begin with, so I thought this would be perfect for me. Sadly, I felt this wasn’t perfect for what I like in a primer, so let’s get stuck into the review.
Review: Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Hydrating Primer Base
The Fenty Beauty Hydrating primer is a high end product. A full size contains 32 mls and retails for €36. Since I just wanted to try this, I opted for the travel size instead. I love how Fenty is a brand that does of travel sized mini products. Not only a great way to be able to grab your fave makeup and take it traveling, but it’s also great for if you just want to try the product and you don’t want to commit just yet. And this is a travel size that does give you a similar value. With some brands, you often get less product and if you do the math, you’d end up with a cheaper product if you commited to the full size. But this travel size is €17 for 15 mls of product so that works out quite well. I bought mine from French Sephora which is the only place where I can readily have access to Fenty Beauty.
What does this product have to offer?
So the question we first have to ask ourselves is the following: is a primer absolutely necessary? The answer is no. I didn’t wear a primer for years and felt it was a waste of money. Then I found that for a long workday it is helpful if my makeup lasts, so that’s how I ended up getting sucked into the world of primers. That said, when it comes to primers I have never found a high end primer that I felt was truly worth the money save for the Milk Makeup Hydro Grip. All of my favorite primers? By Essence and Catrice. Therefore I am of the belief that a good primer doesn’t have to break the bank and so we can start off this review by stating that I don’t feel this primer is worth the money.
What does this primer swatch like?
This primer promises to hydrate the skin but also give a silky finish and that’s where this product goes wrong for me. The texture just isn’t great for my textured skin that has some fine lines. This is just not nourishing enough even though the brand claims this is good for dry skin. The texture starts of like a lotion, my favorite texture for a primer, but once you blend it in, it feels like an actual layer is on your skin. Therefore I feel this just sits on my skin, doesn’t allow my makeup to blend on top of it and just creates a barrier rather than actually serving as a base for my makeup.
How does this primer apply to the face?
Never mind the readness in the after picture: I get that whenever I rub my face. That’s not the primer’s fault. Then again, this primer just doesn’t do too much for me. It doesn’t add glow, my skin doesn’t look any more hydrating than right after applying my skincare and it is pretty much undetectable. If my skin wasn’t as red in the second picture I am sure you wouldn’t even believe me if I told you I was wearing anything. So yes, this is a very lightweight formula but it just doesn’t do enough for me and I felt the formula made my makeup look worse.
My final thoughts
The Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Hydrating Primer is just not for me. I wanted to love this and make it work but the silky finish is what does it for me. Even though this doesn’t feel silicone-y at all, once it settles down on the skin it’s like a second layer. That means your foundation doesn’t blend into the skin and just sits on top which makes for a very obvious makeup look. In the end I didn’t feel this made my makeup wear any longer and by the end of the day there were obvious creases and I looked about 10 years older. Not the look I am going for.
Would I recommend the Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Hydrating Primer?
Sometimes a product just doesn’t work for someone, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. For me, this just didn’t go with my skin type, which is more of a dry/ dehydrated skin type that has actual texture. If you have more of a normal skin type that is not as textured, I am sure this can still be a good primer. It really depends on your preferences. I prefer my makeup to look as natural as possible and this primer just didn’t give me that.
What is a primer you tried that didn’t work for you?
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