I decided to pick up the Normal To Combination Skin bottle, mainly because my skin tends to get oily sometimes during the summer time.I also like to have that extra moisture in a bottle as well, especially since I wear a matte finish foundation quite a lot.The other two bottles in this range for other skin types are:
- Normal To Dry Skin
- Dry And Sensitive Skin
The Hydra Genius has a lot of promises when it comes to looking after your skin which you would think are too good to be true, but where I've used and tested L'Oréal products quite a lot, they do live up to the hype.The few benefits of this product are listed below:
- The skin instantly absorbs it
- Water like texture that rehydrates and reinvigorates the skin
- Leaves the skin with a natural looking glow
- Leaves the skin hydrated and moisturised up to 72hours
- Enriched with Aloe Water and Hyaluronic Acid
- Can be used in replacement of a moisturiser
Firstly, I'm glad that L'Oréal decided to stick with a pump with this product, because it makes things so much easier to distribute it and the fact it doesn't take up a lot of space on my dressing table.I thought nothing could replace the ombre pink look the Skin Perfection bottle has, but I prefer the Hydra bottle as its a nice ice blue colour, with a greenish blue top.The textures are very similar, but definitely both leave a very different finish to the skin.I agree with it feeling like a water like texture and it absorbs very quickly into the skin.
This photo shows how similar they are when swiped just the once with one finger, also showing the serum having a beige colour and the Hydra Genius being clear.The skin absorbs the Hydra Genius a lot quicker, leaving the skin with a cooling sensation across the face, instantly leaving it moisturised.The serum takes a little longer, plus you have to massage it into the skin a few times until you feel it working on your skin.So are you ready for a zero makeup mugshot?
I don't have the best skin as you can see from the photo, but this is what my skin 20-25seconds looked like after it had been applied.One pump is just enough for the whole face, as it spreads across pretty well and the skin absorbs it pretty fast.This is my skin in natural lighting, and I wouldn't say that it leaves it "glowing", but it does certainly give the skin a nice finish.This is just by using it for the first time though, so maybe overtime it will leave your skin with a "glow" look, but I'm still pretty happy with the results.The Hydra Genius does have a scent like all of the L'Oréal skincare products, however this one is not highly perfumed.I've found sometimes with there creams (like the Extraordinary Oil day cream), they smell so strong that it gives me a headache sometimes, but this hardly has a scent and it goes away after about 5minutes.
I decided to keep my makeup simple and to test out the hydration first without a foundation, so I just applied one of my favourite lipsticks, which is the L'Oréal Nude Gold(my swatches video here).
So my thoughts on this moisturiser?I think it really is amazing and its great that it doesn't cost a bomb either.The photo above is a few hours later from applying it, with my skin looking a lot more healthy and radiant (and thats in bad lighting).I also want to mention that none of this photos are retouched, which is probably obvious because my skin isn't exactly "clear".You can only currently pick this up from Boots with it being on sale for £6.66, with it soon going up to £9.99 for a 70ml bottle, which I think its really good for the price.
I agree with everything that this product has stated so far and have nothing negative to say about it at this time of this post.I'll update below of course if anything does change like a skin outbreak or if it changes my skin in anyway.I hope this review has helped you if you were thinking about purchasing a bottle.
MAKEUP UPDATE:
So as promised on my instagram, this is how my makeup after applying it and underneath is a photo of it being on a few hours.I used the Kat Von D Lock-It Foundation to put to the test, as its an extremely mattifiying foundation which can sometimes latch onto dry patches on my face.The Hydra Genius pretty much stopped this from happening, and if you zoom into the image, you can't see any dry patches on my skin anywhere.
A few hours later, my skin is still very hydrated and moisturised, leaving me seriously impressed.If you've read my Kat Von D Lock-It Foundation review, you know that this foundation sometimes leaves dry patches around my mouth and forehead, which eventually starts to flake (ew).This does not happen at all, even after a few hours after applying, my skin is still happy.I also didn't need to apply any highlighter, because my skin was given a lovely radiance from it, so I just added some lipstick, eyeshadow and mascara.
If you're someone that wears matte foundations on a daily basis like myself, I highly recommend this to not only moisturise, but also as a makeup base and to stop your skin from drying out.
Makeup Details:
Foundation: Kat Von D Lock It-Foundation
Eyeshadow: Morphe 35T Palette
Mascara: L'Oréal Miss Baby Roll
Lips: L'Oréal Pure Reds, in Blake Livelys Shade (love her!)
