A Review Of The Lavera Natural Liquid Foundation - 02 Ivory Nude*

Some things in life are just difficult , no I don't mean brain surgery I mean normal everyday things like finding the perfect pair of jeans or finding the perfect foundation. Why is it so hard to find a foundation that you love? My foundation drawer is just about full to bursting point with a lot of foundations that don't really cut the mustard and I know I'm not alone. There are so many factors to consider when you're buying a foundation, including colour, texture and finish, it's not surprising that so many of us get it wrong.

I guess I'm one of the lucky ones, I've found a couple of foundations that I love and I know I'll repurchase but I'm not one to rest on my laurels, Manufacturers discontinue products and change shades and formulations all the time, so you can never be sure that your foundation of choice is in it for the long haul. So what do you do? well in my case you keep buying, and trying new products hoping upon hope to find something else that you love just in case. For that reason for one of March's My Pure reviews I decided to try out a foundation from one of the their newer brands, Lavera.

If you know anything about natural beauty then you'll definitely have heard of German brand Lavera. Founded in 1987, they are one of most well known and trusted natural and organic cosmetic brands. Widely used and endorsed by celebrity make up artists, and skincare specialists, they produce a wide range of skincare, body care and make up products, using only plant extracts, and natural minerals. All of there products are certified 100% natural and are made using organic ingredients whenever possible. They contain no synthetic colours, fragrances or preservatives, they're dermatologically tested and they don't test on animals.

There are a few different foundation and base products in the line but the product that I chose to try was the Lavera Natural Liquid Foundation, which comes in 6 shades. Lavera firmly believe that your make up should be as good for your face as skincare, so this foundation is crammed full of moisturising, and nourishing ingredients including olive, coconut, argan and jojoba oils, and Shea and cocoa butters. It's also enriched with vitamins A, C and E, and full of protecting minerals and natural flower and plant extracts including linden blossom, marshmallow, Rosa centifolia and licorice root.

The foundation comes packaged in an air tight pump action bottle, to protect the product from both the air and the light. I did panic a little bit when I saw the bottle as it looks quite yellow but it's just a generic colour and it doesn't coincide with the colour of the product inside

As I say there are 6 shades to choose from but after a lot of deliberation I eventually went for 02 Ivory Nude, which is their second palest shade with just a hint of warmth to it. I have to be honest and say the colour is probably a little bit off for me and on reflection I probably should have gone for 01 Ivory Light but you win some, you lose some.

This foundation looks quite yellow / orange in this swatch but it is pretty accurate. When I first swatched it I really didn't think that it would work on my skin but I gave it a go never the less.  As you can hopefully see it has a lot more warmth in than my natural skin tone but bizarrely enough I think I might just be able to get away with it.

It has a very, very creamy feel and it applies more like a moisturiser than a moderate coverage foundation, In fact it's so full of herbal and flower extracts, and aromatherapy oils that it even smells like an expensive moisturiser.  I had to blend it in really well, especially around my jawline and hairline but I think I just about managed to make it work - see for yourself...

Before

After

In real life it looks touch warmer, and a touch more yellow but I don't think it looks too bad. It almost seems to have colour corrected my complexion - it's certainly toned down the redness in my cheeks, and it seems to have evened out my skin tone.

Wear time was an interesting one, Lavera claim that this is a long wear foundation, and that it should last for up to 10 hours, I have to be honest though and say that wasn't my experience. As I said it has a very, very creamy texture, and it gives an almost dewy finish, perfect if you have a drier skin, not so much if your skin is oily like mine. For me this foundation really needs either a primer or a dusting of face powder every now and then to keep it in place. My mum said the colour and the dewy texture made me look healthy but I just couldn't make it last, after about 6 hours, yes I still managed to remove some foundation, but you just couldn't tell that I was wearing any make up, the shine and the oil had come through, and I just didn't look as polished any more.

Buying foundations even in a bricks and mortar store is hard but buying it online is even harder so take some advice from me and do your research, read reviews, and try and find some swatches before you take the plunge. You still might make a mistake but at least you'll have a better idea about what your buying.

I think it's a shame, despite the the fact that the colour I picked was a bit off,this Lavera product had real potential but on it's own it just doesn't work for me. I'm going to try it with a face powder and a primer to see if it makes a difference and I really hope that it does. For me though this foundation just doesn't work on oily skin, if your skin is drier though and you need that moisture boost then this could be something to try.

The Lavera Natural Liquid Foundation is available in 6 shades, and retails at £12.90 for a 30ml bottle from My Pure x Have you found the one when it comes to foundation? or do you have a drawful of maybes and fails like me? Leave me a comment and let me know x

P.S. I tried this foundation with the Lavera Natural Loose Mineral Powder and it made a big difference - find out how here x

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