Review: Benefit Hello Flawless!

Shades in order of fairest to deepest are:
“I love me” fair ivory
“never settle” fair petal
“me, vain?” neutral champagne
“I’m cute as a bunny!” natural honey
“all the world’s my stage” sunny beige
“what I crave” warm toasted beige
“it’s about me, me, me!” toasted toffee
“I’m haute for sure” golden amber
“why walk when you can strut?” rich hazelnut
“too fierce to beg” rich nutmeg

product details:

7.0g Net wt. 0.25 oz
Warning: Avoid contact with the eyes. For external use only. Keep out of reach of children. Discontinue use if signs of irritation or rash appear. Contains oxybenzone.

tips:
Apply powder cover-up over bare skin, moisturizer or ”that gal” to look naturally flawless!

Benefit Hello Flawless - "Me Vain" Champagne

My Skin Type:
Currently normal/combo. My t-zone can oil up after 5 hours…but it’s not bad when I use some kind of good oil control product.

Packaging:
Plastic compact with separate compartment to store the sponge and brush. The compact is kinda flimsy in some ways…didn’t feel that way at first but then it fell apart after a few months, even though I’ve never put it into my makeup bag nor did I travel with it.

Color Selection:
From the list above it’s pretty good but make sure you pick up the one that matches you well…or you’ll end up like me (see explanation and pic below).

Coverage:
Custom level of coverage, thinner coverage if you use a brush, medium coverage if you use a sponge.

Texture:
Pretty creamy. Doesn’t feel like an overly ‘dry’ powder.

Blendability:
Great, as long as you prime your skin correctly. Remember it’s a powder so overly moist/sticky/silicone-y base is not recommended. I love this most with RESIST Barrier Repair Moisturizer underneath.

Finish:
Matte, typical of powder. It doesn’t have any shimmer.

Oil Control:
In my book, this powder foundation doesn’t have great oil control. It doesn’t inhibit my oil production at all. Granted, it’s not emollient so it doesn’t make my skin oil up any faster.

My General Review:
Years ago, I was  really, really tempted by Muse’s review on this powder. I ran to my local Sephora and bought the lightest color available, that was “me vain, champagne”.  I don’t know if Benefit later added their color selection (because as far I remember, there “i love me, fair ivory” was not available then). It was much later when I read Beautypedia that I found out that Hello Flawless is more suitable for light to tan skin…not fair skin.

Anyway I seldom wear this powder. For one, my sunscreen typically is too sticky for powder foundation application. If I forsake my sunscreen, I’ll have to rely on the powder alone for SPF coverage. Don’t get me wrong, this powder provides broad spectrum coverage…but it doesn’t feel right to me to rely on powder makeup only for SPF.

Another important point is…it’s kinda yellow and dark for my skin, so I don’t feel bright when I wear this.

BTW you can use this powder to touch up your makeup and SPF…but either use a brush or carefully dab it with the sponge, because the coverage may lead to cakeyness after touch up.

FOTD 20111012 Benefit Hello Flawless

How to apply:
For spot cover-up, dab directly on blemishes or discoloration with sponge. For allover sheer finish, sweep on with brush. Use quick, light strokes to blend from the center of your face outward. To cover it all (& then some!), apply evenly over entire complexion with sponge.

Ingredients:
Active Ingredients:
Cctinoxate 5.94%, Titanium Dioxide 1.70%, Oxybenzone 2%.

Others:
Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Silica, Nylon-12, Phenyl Trimethicone, Polyethylene, Talc, Lauroyl Lysine, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylene/Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Aluminum Dimyrisate, BHT, Disodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Methicone, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Isononyl Isononanoate, Alumina. (+/- Bismuth Oxychloride, Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Carmine, Iron Oxides.

Overall Rating:
4 out of 5.  Good choice if you want medium coverage powder foundation with SPF15. Just make sure it suits your skincare “lifestyle”, and you pick up the right shade for you.