I'm going to try to write this review without revealing what foundation I'm talking about, by the end of it, you'll be DYING to know which one it is! I swatched 3 shades on my face to shade-match (the first swatch was ultra-light; for someone with a MUCH lighter skintone than me) and by the time I was applying the third swatch, the first looked like it started matching me! I first credited this to oxidization of the formula and thought this was a little banal, but then I read up on the shade-matching pigments in the foundation and realised that it had adjusted for me!

Formula: The foundation is a medium to full coverage foundation, leaning more on the full side. What's incredibly shocking is how lightweight the formula feels, despite offering full coverage. It's a very comfortable wear (I've been using it every day for about a week now). It has more of a luminous, radiant finish than the uber-matte that I'm used to but it's nothing that some setting powder doesn't counter. Most formulas have an SPF 15; I find it a little odd that 5 of the shades for deeper skin-tones don't have any SPF. The product itself is a liquid foundation that isn't too runny.

My favorite factor about this foundation (other than the SPF hehehe) is the natural finish it leaves me with. The dried-down version is extremely skin-like and natural looking (something that I usually reach for a foundation that costs R270 for). It has enough pigmentation to cover my acne scars. The shade range comprises of 19 shades which is pretty so-so, but it also contains skin-matching pigments which means it adjusts to suit more than 19 shades. It has an oil-free, dermatologically-tested formula which are both brownie points in my books.

Performance: The most I've worn this for is 14 hours and this foundation was here for it! It did fade slightly around my honker of a nose area, but that happens to me all the time. I do set this foundation with a setting powder which I hope doesn't skew the results, but this formula has a consistent longevity that I'm a fan of. The SPF does, of course, cause a slight flashback in flash photography but that was to be expected. In normal photography, my skin looks even, smooth and airbrushed.

Packaging: The outer black cardboard box screams "luxury"! Upon arrival, it already looked like a "fancy" product. The foundation is housed in a glass bottle (also a plus! I did have my reservations about the glass being travel-friendly but I haven't had any issues thus far). The design of the bottle is simple, straight-forward and to-the-point. It's a rectangular component. The foundation is distributed via a removable pump, which I'm slightly ambivalent about because:
- The pump keeps the product airtight, sanitary and just basically means it's generally less messy than other components.
- I find it difficult to control the pump for, say, half a squirt. This is also a problem I face with one of my concealers; but I've since perfected a controlled technique to distribute the product out of the bottle. I struggle using that technique here for if I just want a smidge more foundation - it's a full pump or nothing, baby! I find this a bit of a waste of product.
The lid does pop on quite tightly, which is important when you're traveling with a pump. Any impact on a pump whose lid comes lose could cause a squirt of precious product to be squandered on the insides of your makeup bag (as opposed to your eye bags).

Price: All of the above for under R200? It's a steal!
Final Verdict: I was incredibly surprised by how well this foundation performed. I had underestimated the brand for foundations specifically; this is definitely one that I'll be repurchasing. I hope you're all as excited to discover what foundation as I am to reveal it!
To see more about the product, check out my Instagram @Shmithi_Beauty where I'll be posting pics and videos about this product!