Review: essence all about matt! oil control make-up base

I've been trying this product on and off for about a month now and weirdly I'm still undecided about it. In between, I've also been trying The Body Shop Skin Primer Matte It (bought 50% off of course) and my feelings for both products are about the same.

For now.

Anyway, this will just be short and sweet (hopefully!)

This is the essence 'all about matt! oil control make-up base'.

essence all about matt! oil control make-up base

PRODUCT INFORMATION

This product is a long-lasting, pore refining base that will keep your face matt with a smooth finish, and is lightweight. You can wear it alone or under makeup and you are advised to apply it thinly. It contains 20ml of product and has no SPF. This product is made in Italy and should be used up within 12 months. The price in Brunei is BND4.90.

Back of the tube (you can zoom in)

Under the all about matt! range, there are other products as well, like a foundation, an oil control paper, a loose and a compact powder. I have the loose and compact powder which I use interchangeably. I didn't buy the foundation because I have a lot of foundations opened :x

I had high hopes for this primer. I've read a lot of good things so when I saw it at Paloma, I just went for it.

How do I feel about it?

It keeps my forehead matte BUT my nose is still shiny somehow. I would say it also depends on what you put over it. 

Has a small tip, which is good

I've tried applying it thinly, applying it liberally and the results are about the same. What's good about it is that it doesn't ball up that much if you put too much accidentally. On its own without makeup on top, it doesn't keep my face from being shiny at all.

Pore refining is so-so, doesn't really blur much.

Comes out white-ish

It spreads easily, it feels a bit tacky (but you can barely notice it). It does keep my makeup on a tiny bit longer but the oil control was just not that impressive.

On its own.

On my hand, it made it smoother and a bit matte.

If I use the white powder over it, it lasts a lot better. So maybe if I try it with the foundation from the same range, it'll work a lot better.

But that's for future testing.

What's good about it compared to the TBS one is that it immediately makes my nose matte. But that's it.

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PROS:

- Affordable.

- Locally available.

- Makes foundation stay on longer.

- Very lightweight.

- Doesn't clog my pores.

- Smoothens face.

CONS:

- Oil control isn't very good.

- Contains only 20ml of product.

- It needs a powder to make it stay matte longer.

- Doesn't blur the pores much.

Rating: 3/5 (Would probably just use this on my forehead)

Will I buy this again?

Probably not. But I wanna buy the all about matt! foundation and try it with this.

Do I recommend this?

Um, I don't feel like recommending it, but you can try it out I guess since it has rave reviews.

Where can you find this? 

Locally from Paloma :)

Other countries might have drugstores that carry essence as well.

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I had high hopes, really.

But no worries, I'll give this a go again once I buy the foundation and see if it'll work better with it.

'til then, take care!

-Nisah-