No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation & Shine Free Makeup Base Review

I was in Boots the other day and had a No7 voucher burning a hole in my pocket, so I wanted to have a look at their foundations, my skin is really awful at the minute and I haven't got a foundation that has the right sort of coverage and shine control I need, so I was interested in No7's Beautifully Matte Foundation which is normally £13.50. The first thing I noticed was that the palest colour they had in this range was porcelain 02 but in other ranges they have a paler shade called Alabaster so I don't why they don't do it in this range... I was asking the Boots lady about this foundation and she very kindly gave me a sample to try out, and I had mentioned my problem oily skin and how I find it difficult to get the right foundation and she got me a sample of their Shine Free Makeup Base too, so I was very pleased.

So I tried out the foundation and I was impressed by the coverage which I would say was a good medium, although it may not be the best if you have dry patches as I think this foundation would highlight this. The shine control was good, and it did control my oily skin longer than a normal foundation but I would say I had a shiny nose and cheeks by lunchtime, but I was still pleased with the results. I had read reviews on the Boots website about it having an odd smell but I didn't notice anything. 

I would rush out and buy this as with my No7 voucher it would only cost £8.50 BUT porcelain is too dark for me, I do have pale skin but I don't think it's extremely pale, so I think if you have really pale skin you would really struggle with this, I have used darker foundation before and spent time blending to make it work but I wanted a foundation I didnt have to do this. I'm really disappointed especially as I know they have a paler colour in other ranges. 

So the hunt for a decent matte foundation goes on, I have heard Revlon Colour stay is good, has anyone tried it?

I was looking forward to trying out this make up base if I'm honest I wasn't expecting much as I am normally disappointed by products like this but I really liked it. It has a really surprising thick consistency so you only need to use a little bit at a time to blend it out, so this wont be for everyone. It did really help my skin so I think combined with a good foundation this would be great, it normally costs £11 but with the voucher it will be £6, so I think I'm going to go out and get the full size.

I will definitely be asking for samples more often, it was really helpful to try out the product first and it saved me £8.50 as I would have bought that foundation then wouldn't have used it as it was too dark.

Elaine