Clinique Fit Workout Makeup SPF 40 review (Heatproof/Sweatproof foundation?)

Here’s a little fact about me: I am very anti-makeup for the gym. Probably not what you were expecting to hear as the opening line for a workout foundation review, right? Well here we are.

If you are looking to see whether this holds up on the treadmill, unfortunately you won’t find that here. However, I’ve been using this foundation as my summer foundation lately – if it’s a workout foundation, then it should hold up in the summer heat, right!? Well, let’s see.

The beginning of this story does centre around the gym. My sister asked me if I knew of any foundations that would hold up at the gym. Initially, I had recommended a drugstore foundation for oily skin, because if it is made to deal with oils, it should hold up fairly well with sweat? Well apparently not. She came back to me asking for other suggestions. I had heard of the Clinique Fit foundation, but thought it would be a bit out of budget for my student sister. She bought it, and LOVED it.

Knowing I’m quite a sweaty gal in the summertime, she actually recommended it back to me to wear for summer. I was up for trying it! There was a sale on Clinique recently, so I actually managed to get 2 for like a tenner each. Let the testing begin.

Maybe I’m crazy… but I didn’t test this out until I got on holiday… in Vietnam. I’ve been to Vietnam before – it’s humid as hell and the sweat literally rolls down your face. Now, I am not a daytime makeup wearer on holiday. I have no issue leaving the house with nothing on my face but SPF and I wasn’t looking for a foundation that I could use during the day on holiday. The nighttime is a different matter. Usually, even at night, it’s HOT and my makeup always breaks down between my nose and mouth and makes it look like I have a red moustache. It’s very attractive I promise.

Off the bat, let me just talk about the packaging. The bottle comes not in a box… but in a weird resealable looking plastic bag. WHY!? There is absolutely no need for the unnecessary plastic to be used here and it seemed really weird to be honest. The bottle itself doesn’t have a pump, so you just give it a little shake and pour it out. I think this makes it quite a good product for people who use makeup on the go, which is basically the point of the line!

When I first poured the foundation onto my hand, I was surprised a) by the colour and b) by the consistency. I got the colour 01 Light (the lightest shade) and it looked very orange, which had me instantly nervous. The consistency is very runny, to the point where it could run off your hand if you tip it too much. It is very much a light coverage that you can build up to a comfortable medium. Because it is so runny, it is very light and breathable on the skin. I personally really enjoy a lighter coverage in summer (because it is far less obvious when your makeup breaks down in the skin, plus your skin can breathe more). If you have active acne or some scarring, you might not feel comfortable with such light coverage (I probably wouldn’t have felt comfortable with anything less than full coverage when I had my acne, but each to their own). I can still see most of my freckles when I wear this, which I really like. When you add your concealer, it does add a bit of additional coverage which it needs and just finishes the base for me. It pairs well with cream products and no foundation gets lifted or disrupted when cream products are applied straight out of the stick. It is SPF 40, but SPF in foundations is not enough to count as your daily sunscreen, especially if you’re going for a light coverage. Always apply your SPF before your foundation when going out in the daytime. 

As for how it wears? You will still sweat – this foundation does not promise to stop you sweating or block up your sweat glands. HOWEVER, it holds up very well in the heat. One particular evening in Ha Long Bay, it was really hot in the early evening and the sweat was rolling down my face, and I was really nervous to dab my face and accidentally wipe any away. To my surprise, the foundation on my chin and between my nose and mouth had held up, despite wiping (and seeing the foundation come off on my fingers). Even back in the UK, my makeup holds up so well on the tube and in the heat, even when you think your makeup will be ruined, it never is.

I’ve been wearing this to work (total wear time roughly 14 hours) and it still looks great throughout the day. Of course because it is a lighter coverage, any breakdown is not so painfully obvious as it would be with a full coverage foundation. However, I think it holds up better than quite a number of my other foundations (if not all of them), especially in those areas that I tend to sweat more.

My main gripes with the foundation are how hard it is to find and how few shades there are. You can only get this on the Clinique website (where only a few shades are ever in stock) or at Selfridges (where exactly the same shades are only in stock). As you can see from the image (apologies for the tiny picture, there are no others that show the shade range), there are 7 shades, but 3 are basically all the same. The lightest shade isn’t light enough for the arm it’s on and there should at least be another 2 darker shades than the darkest. Maybe because the line was brand new and they were unsure how many people would show an interest in it, they didn’t create such an extensive, diverse range, but they could at least present an even distribution of shades.

Overall, this IS an absolute winner for me. I already have one backup of this, but I will be buying more. I haven’t found a foundation that lasts so well on my face before when I’m sweating. I struggle so much in the area between my nose and mouth and actually carry concealer and a brush wherever I go to fix it when it wears off. I don’t have to do this now with this foundation, which is just fantastic!

If you want to try this out, you can only get it on the Clinique website, at ASOS or at Selfridges.

Xo

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How to make your summer occasion makeup last in the heat

Whether it’s a wedding, a graduation or just a summer BBQ, you want your occasion makeup to last in the heat. Here are a few tips to make sure that your summer occasion makeup stays in place.

(Also, a little shoutout to anyone on Roaccutane – I was on it in the height of summer and I have one tip that SAVED my makeup)

1. Avoid full coverage 

If you are likely to sweat or you’re worried about your makeup melting off, then apply THIN layers. If you apply a thick layer of foundation and then sweat all your makeup off between your nose and mouth, you’re gonna look crazy. By applying a thin layer of foundation/concealer, it will be much less noticeable if you do sweat any of your makeup off. Alternatively consider using a tinted moisturiser/light coverage foundation/tinted SPF (like the Kiehls one I use) to give you a light coverage.

2. Set under your eyes

If your eye makeup has a tendency to wander off down your face (bottom lash mascara – I’m looking at you!), be sure to set your under eye area with a translucent powder. It will lock it into place and stop you worrying.

3. BUT maybe consider not setting the rest of your face…

…At least not with a heavy powder. If you set your makeup and then your makeup comes off, it will be much harder to retouch those areas to exactly match the rest of your base. It’s like when you put Blutac on a wall and it removes some of the paint. You can paint over it, but there will be a difference in the thickness of layers. That’s certainly not to say that you shouldn’t set it at all – dust a powder that’s your skin tone lightly over your base. This will relieve you of that horrible wet foundation feel. However, if you’re someone that likes to bake your entire face, skip it this time.

4. ALWAYS carry supplies

If you’re likely to sweat your makeup off or need to retouch, make sure you carry a concealer, a brush and a mirror. You’ll be able to make any retouches to your melted base without having to carry your entire makeup bag.

5. Beware of sunglasses

If you’re planning on wearing sunglasses, you will have a mark on either side of your nose where your glasses have rubbed off your make up. The way I would suggest getting around this (other than wearing a light coverage foundation rather than full, or even just rocking your skin without foundation) would be to put your sunglasses on before you leave the house for a little while. Your makeup will come off, and quite significantly. However, by applying just a little concealer and blending it in with a brush, you diffuse the colour and blend in any obvious lines or smudges. This also works on the zone between your nose and mouth – just be sure that you stop sweating before retouching or it won’t have the desired effect.

BONUS: Sweaty girl tip

While I was on Roaccutane, I would get very hot and sweaty very easily, and as a result it was a NIGHTMARE to keep makeup on my face (particularly between my nose and mouth). Makeup would break up and go patchy even as I was applying it. The trick? Apply stick deodorant to your face to create a really smooth and even base. Obviously don’t use the same one that you would apply under your arms. You can get these for a few pounds and they last AGES. This COMPLETELY solved my problem, even if it is a little unconventional.

I hope these tips will be really helpful in keeping your special summer makeup looking glorious!

Xo

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My no-makeup makeup look

It’s basically summer now, and I can’t be bothered with a full face of makeup every day that’s going to melt off as soon as I set foot out the house/on the tube. I’ve started wearing minimal makeup, and I think I have it down. Keep reading to see what products I use to get my no-makeup makeup look.

Face

The night before, I mix two drops of the Isle of Paradise Self-Tanning drops with my Nivea Soft moisturiser and apply as the last step in my night time skincare routine.

When I wake up in the morning, my skin has a nice natural tan and my cheeks look less red. I apply my usual skincare (The Ordinary’s Hyaluronic Acid, Aurelia’s Revitalise and Glow serum and Clinique’s Pep Start SPF moisturiser) before applying the Kiehl’s tinted SPF. This further evens out any redness and gives a very light coverage.

Bronze/Highlight

Once the tinted SPF has dried down, I use the Makeup Geek Love Triangle Contour (used as a bronzer) to lightly bronze my temples and my forehead before taking it onto my cheeks. I then take my favourite Mary Lou-Manizer and apply it to the cheekbones, on the end of my nose and the bridge, under the brows and on my cupids bow.

Brows

I dye my eyebrows anyway, but they still need a bit of help. Using a very light hand, I take the NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe and go around the outline and add in hair like strokes. I brush through them to make sure they don’t look too heavy before applying the NYX Clear Brow Gel.

Eyes

I mix the Glossier Lidstars in Moon and Cub onto my lid and blend them out. They dry down pretty sheer and just give the lid a nice wash of colour and a touch of sparkle. I apply my Roller Lash mascara to the top lashes and my Clinique Bottom Lash mascara to the lower lashes. To make my eyes look more awake, I apply the Charlotte Tilbury Rock and Kohl eyeliner in Eye Cheat.

 

Lips

I usually just wear my Palmers lip balm, or if I fancy a little more colour I’ll take the Glossier the balmdotcom in cherry.

And there’s the end result! It’s super easy and is the perfect everyday summer make up. Let me know what you think! Leave a comment here or on instagram!

Xo

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Bright eye look

I saw the NYX Ultimate shadow palette in Brights and knew I had to have it. My make up is always very tame. I don’t wear a lot of colour and stick entirely to neutrals. BUT, the colours are so vivid, and I was feeling inspired.

 

This is the final look. It’s a transition from yellow, into green and finally into blue along the lash line. I felt so beautiful wearing this and it is the perfect look for summer!

I actually used every colour in the bottom half of the palette.

1. I started off with the true yellow shade and put it on the outer corner and into the outer part of the crease. I tried not to take it too far in to keep the rest of the eye blank for the other colours.
2. I then took the orange-yellow collour and went back into the outer crease to deepen the yellow colour. I started to bring this colour onto the main part of the lid and blend the colour out near the centre of the lid.
3. Taking the light green shade (second from left), I blended this into the yellow shade on the outer lid and started to bring the cover onto the lid.
4. To add more colour, I started to blend the darker green into the deepest part of the crease and blended the colour out to the outer part of the lid.
5. On the outer most part of the crease and lid I added the light turquoise (first on the right, second row). It was quite a subtle colour, but added a nice transition between the upper eye and lower eye.
6. Again, to deepen the outer corner I added the darker turquoise and blended this towards the lower lash line.
7. I had initially wanted to add blue to the lid as well, but thought a bright blue would overload it so I added it along the lower lash line instead. I applied the darker blue (second from left) first before adding the electric blue to make it really pop. I then blended this out with a dome brush do it didn’t look quite so harsh.
8. I added a thick liner and mascara to the upper and lower lashes and voila!

Let me know what you think of this look! I’m in LOVE!

Xo

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