Sephora 8H Wear Mattifying Compact Foundation #24 Vanilla review

Sephora 8H Wear Mattifying Compact Foundation #24 Vanilla

I got this Sephora 8H Wear Mattifying Compact Foundation during Sephora 40% off event, which rendered it more than affordable.

I'd read good reviews of the product but I'd been quite hesitant about it as I'm not a fan of compact or loose powder foundations, but since it offered an 8-hour long matte finish I thought I'd give it a try as it could be a good solution for the holiday heat.  

The big advantage of this product line is the amazing variety of shades and the fact that Sephora clearly subdivided the product range into shades like light, medium, dark and undertones by marking them with letters (mine has the letter Y).

Sephora 8H Wear Mattifying Compact Foundation #24 Vanilla

I must say I'm in two minds about the product, so let me start with the things I don't like about it.

First of all I'm quite unsure about the colour match. I rarely allow the assistants to match me with the shades available as I always end up with something horribly yellow. And this is what happened this time. It also seems too dark. Strangely enough, though, there are days when this shade looks fine on me. I can't explain this. All I know for sure is that this is a holiday shade for me, in winter this will be way too dark for my NW20 skin tone.

I'm also not very fond of the smell. This is the type of raw smell of unfragranced cosmetics. 

And most importantly, without a primer looks matte only at first. If I were to film a tutorial everybody would be convinced this is the greatest mattifying powder ever. This stuff would accentuate all dry areas on combination skin, and make dry skin look parched. These aren't my issues so it generally looks good on me. But an hour later it turns into oil slick like I've never seen before, especially on the forehead. I've got oily skin but it's more shiny than greasy, this product somehow managed to extract my oilies and pull them out on the surface of my skin. Yuck. My face never looks like that, even when I use dewy-finish foundations like Nars Sheer Glow or Bourjois Healthy Mix. Very weird.

Sephora 8H Wear Mattifying Compact Foundation #24 Vanilla

On the other hand this compact foundation offers nice light-medium coverage which looks very natural and wouldn't stand out as something over the top on holiday in the countryside.

I can combat the oiliness it causes by using it over a primer and then setting it with Urban Decay De-slick setting spray. Then it looks decent, but certainly doesn't live up to the 8H claim.

The packaging is really nice. It's a sleek compact with a large mirror and a handy sponge. Handbag friendly, travel friendly. Closes securely so there's no risk of accidental opening and messing everything around.

I paid about $12 and this product is worth this price, but if I were to pay the full amount I'd be seriously disappointed. 

Disclaimer: I bought the product myself for my personal use and I am not affiliated with any company. I am not paid to do this review and everything I said here is my genuine opinion.