The world of beauty loves reinventing products and primer mists are one of its latest crazes. But what are primer mists for, and are they worth the money?
Come the warmer months, our skin often appreciates a less is more approach when it comes to makeup. Heavy, full coverage foundation and layers of powder slide, separate or get sweated off. It's so much fun. So, given all that, a lightweight primer mist sounds like it'd be a great option, right? But what are they really for, and how do they differ from a setting spray?
E.L.F Studio Aqua Beauty Primer Mist
Well, interestingly enough a lot of the primer mists that we've looked at say that they can be used to both prime and set your base. Take the E.L.F Studio Aqua Beauty Primer Mist for example (£9 online), which is a multi-tasking mist that can prep and prime skin, but also refresh it throughout the day and set makeup in place.
Similarly, the Photo Finish Primer Water by Smashbox (€25) is designed to prep and prime skin before makeup. But it can also double up as a setting spray.
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Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Water €25
Having tried and tested both of these recently, we decided to pit them against more traditional setting sprays to see what the difference was. The main thing we noticed is that primer sprays tend to be more hydrating and refreshing when worn under makeup. They give foundation a bit more more slip, making it easier to blend for a smoother base too. It's this"slip", which makes us think they're more suited to dehydrated or dry skin types as it stops foundation from sticking to dry patches.
For oily or combination skins, primer mists give refreshment and a smooth base to work with. But they don't hold makeup quite a long as a setting spray does, especially if you double job the setting spray as a primer too (controversial!). Over all though, if you're looking for an alternative for your regular primer (or find setting sprays too drying on skin) these are worth a go.
So, what do we think, gimmick, or gimme?
