• Sheer Cover Studio UK // review & demo •

Something unexpected happened this week that shocked me; I turned into a mineral make up convert. As a self-confessed liquid foundation junkie, I can now say that there's a strong contender for my favourite foundation type. And I'm surprised, to be honest, because I've always favoured liquid foundation over gel, mousse, powder, so I thought mineral make up wouldn't match up to it, ever. I was really, really wrong.

Whilst reading about the Sheer Cover Studio UK* brand online, I realised that the mineral make up was like no other, in that it provides medium to full coverage and is really pigmented. For someone with acne scars and hyper-pigmentation, this was like music to my ears (or artwork for my eyes...is that even an analogy?) as it's so important for me to have these imperfections covered. I love the fact that this make up is better for your skin than liquid foundations, as it doesn't clog up your pores and is very light on the skin - the more natural the better in my eyes. I was really excited to try the products and I was asked to wear them for a week to see how I got on with them. In my box I received 2 base products and a bronzer, a mascara, a tube of lash extending fibers, 3 brushes and a guide showing me how to use the products. I'll begin with the review and the demo will follow.

Psssst! Click here to be taken to the Sheer Cover Studio website - see, I've made it all nice and easy for you :)

Review
Conceal and Brighten Trio-concealer
These three are seriously pigmented and so creamy. The first time I used them, I was surprised at how pigmented they were (surprised, yet again. There's a bit of a theme running in this post!) The brightener is a really sheer white colour which looks really lovely on the inner corner of my eyes to brighten them up a bit. I've also tried it on the tops of my cheekbones and that works well too, but the bronzer (which I'll come onto in a moment) has a bit of shimmer in it which highlights my cheekbones already. The darker shade of concealer is literally the most perfect match for my skin tone and is a dream at covering any blemishing and scarring. The lighter concealer in the trio is gorgeous as an under eye concealer - its highly pigmented, doesn't crease at all, and gives that really glowy, highlighted, Kim K look that everyone seems to be craving at the moment. It also covers my dark under eye circles amazingly, and hides my blue/purple veins that I always seem to have (does anyone else get these?!) I use the concealer brush that came with the set to apply the concealers, and have even used my fingers a few times, and each way works brilliantly. These three are definitely winners and have become a real staple in my routine already.

Perfect Shade Mineral Foundation in 'Light'
This foundation blends seamlessly into my skin; it doesn't look cakey or powdery, it just looks like skin (but better - flawless and poreless with an even skin tone.) The colour match is amazing and you only need the tiniest bit to get great payoff. It's really very pigmented so I usually end up tipping the product back into the pot, which is a good thing, meaning that 1. it'll last longer and 2. I'm not putting so much make up on my face. I have to say that after about 5/6 days of use, my skin felt so much better and I had fewer blemishes and angry patches than I did before I started using this. I honestly forget that I'm wearing this foundation during the day, it feels so lovely and light on the skin. I've even received a few compliments on how good my skin is looking! - I then of course attributed this to the mineral make up, and pointed them in the direction of the Sheer Cover Studio website.
I use this by tipping some of the product into the lid and swirling the brush in it, tapping off the excess and working it into my face in circular motions. When I've covered my whole face, I don't add any more product onto my brush, but I go over it all to ensure it's all blended in - I of course go down my neck a little and make sure I'm going up to my ears. Below are the photos of the foundation on my hand - one is without blending it in with my finger, one is when it's blended in.

Sun Kissed Bronzing Minerals
I absolutely love bronzers and I tend to favour them over blush, especially when I'm in a rush in the mornings, so this product was really exciting for me to try as I'm a sucker for testing out new bronzers. What I love about this product is that it's not orange, it's more of a brown with red undertones which is a unique colour and one that I don't currently have in my make up collection. It has the slightest bit of shimmer which is perfect for adding a glow to the skin and I usually swipe it over my cheekbones and up onto my temples. It blends beautifully and is, like all of the products, very pigmented. It looks so natural on the skin and looks perfect with my pale skintone - not too much, but a slight sunkissed look. It will look so gorgeous in Summer and I've already got lots of use out of it in these not-so-warmer months! Below is again a photo of the product swatched on the back of my hand, and below that is a photo of the product blended in.

Lengthening Mascara and Lash Extending Fibers
I've put these two products together as they work hand in hand and provide really lovely results when you work with both of them. First off, the mascara wand - it's the perfect shape for reaching the tiny lashes at the inner corner of my eye as the wand gets fatter towards the end. See this is already a winner in my eyes as not enough brands provide this with their wands; it just makes application so much easier. Along with the lash extending fibers, which really do give the appearance of added lashes to give you a false lash effect, this mascara is perfect for both day and night. In the photo that you'll see in the demo, I used one coat of the fibers and one coat of the mascara for a natural, day-time look. For an evening look, I'd recommend applying a coat of mascara, then a coat of fibers, then a few more coats of mascara. It's great that you can do this as the mascara doesn't go clumpy at all, like most mascaras do after a few applications. I'm really impressed with this mascara and will definitely be giving it a go for an evening look in the near future, as I've only experienced it for a day-time look.
You might notice that I always mention this in mascara reviews - removal. Something that really niggles me is when mascara takes an age to remove. This product, on the other hand, doesn't take long and is removed easily with coconut oil and a wet cotton pad. It doesn't cling to your lashes, making it difficult to swipe away, and it just kind of melts away with the oil.

Sheer Cover Studio Make Up Brushes

The three brushes included in the set are the Sheer Cover Studio Concealer Brush, the Sheer Cover Studio Foundation Brush and the Sheer Cover Studio Bronzing Brush. They work perfectly with the products in the kit and are some of the softest brushes I own. I've washed them once and they washed perfectly, they didn't shed and they were dry the next day - perfect. There's not much else I can say about these really, apart from I really recommend trying them if you're thinking of buying the products.

Demo

Below is a photo of myself without any make up on. The second photo was taken after applying the concealer under my eyes, the foundation all over my face and the bronzer on my cheekbones and temples. I deliberately did not conceal my acne scars or blemishes with the concealer to give you a true indication of the coverage of the foundation. As you can see, it provides medium/buildable coverage and won't look cakey if you just keep applying - I tested this at the weekend by re-applying the foundation over and over and it really didn't look like I'd packed the product on at all.

I for one am so impressed with the Sheer Cover Studio UK line and I'm really glad that I had the opportunity to test and review the products. I highly recommend them to anyone - for people who are looking for more natural make up, for those who are wanting to cover scars and blemishes, even for people who are skeptical of mineral make up and have never given it a go before. To be honest, I was in the latter category, but I just thought "meh, why not" and it was the best decision I could have made. Improvements to my skin and the feeling that I'm using make up that is good for my skin are just two of the plus points of these products.

Have you tried anything from the Sheer Cover Studio range? What did you think?

PS. Don't forget to enter my MAC Giveaway! 

Daniela