Laura Mercier Pure Canvas Primer

When I finally understood the use of highlighting primers and bases, and the not so great use of liquid highlighters, I went back for more of the former and skip the latter altogether. Spotting these Laura Mercier Pure Canvas Primer on Nordstrom.com, I picked them up without a second thought: 50mL/1.7fl. oz. full size tubes of the Blurring and Illuminating variety, and 25mL/0.8fl. oz. half size tube of the Hydrating kind as I was iffy what it might do to my dry-combo skin. 

All pictures taken in natural light without flash. 

Burberry Illuminating Drops Glow Concentrate

In contrast with Burberry Fresh Glow Luminous Fluid Base Nude Radiance No.01, this 15mL/0.5fl. oz. deluxe travel-sized Illuminating Drops Glow Concentrate in Metallic Pearl No.01 is a straightforward liquid highlighter. This means it provides the glow and that's that. It's not a base so there's no grabbing onto the layer that goes on top, no added moisture, nothing. 

Still, this Glow Concentrate is a decent highlighter, a translucent and somewhat runny white milk with lots of yellowy gold shimmers. Because of its texture and the fact that it's in a tube, I ended up squeezing the whole thing into the empty pump bottle that used to house Paul & Joe Pearl Foundation Primer 002 Sweet Bon-Bon, just so I can dispense a consistent amount with every pump.  

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Burberry Fresh Glow Luminous Fluid Base

So...sometime during the pandemic lock-down of 2020-2021, my usual sources for Japanese skincare and cosmetics got cut off and, admittedly out of boredom and curiosity, I branched out to European higher-end brands and started posting about them on this blog around 2024-2025--I take a few years to get to my stuff ^.^ 

These Burberry goodies are no exception. Here I am posting about them now, some 3-4 years later, and even then, I got to them sooner than the rest because there are two freebies in this bunch that I particularly appreciate: a glowy base, this travel-sized 12mL/0.4fl. oz. tube of Fresh Glow Luminous Fluid Base in Nude Radiance No.01, and a liquid highlighter, also travel-sized, the Illuminating Drops Glow Concentrate in Metallic Pearl No.01, which I'll post next. 

 All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Paul & Joe Foundation Primer Part IV

Another thing I was excited to try from this Paul & Joe Makeup Collection 2021 was the two 10mL/0.33fl. oz. trial bottles of Sparkling Foundation Primer 001 on Day 2 and Foundation Primer Limited 002 on Day 16. 

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

The Organic Pharmacy Radiant Day Shield SPF10

This is the next installment in my search for a moisturizing base to layer over my moisturizer but under my sunscreen, because my skin gets way too dry in the winter with sunscreen on.

Before this, I'd tried Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm Bare Glow. However, it was so moisturizing that it prevented my sunscreen to set, and it was way too "glowy" and pearly for my taste as well.

And before Bobbi Brown, I'd tried Paul & Joe La Tout Eclat Moisturizing Foundation Primer L SPF18 PA+, but it turned out to be full coverage, a completely opaque and pearly lavender base. Nope.

And before P&J La Tout Eclat, I was using 3 different Paul & Joe Pearl Foundation Primers which were actually working out OK until the weather got too cold and my skin got too dry.

So here I am now, with this 30mL/1fl. oz. dropper bottle of The Organic Pharmacy Radiant Day Shield SPF10 from the Day Plump & Glow Kit I bought over this past holidays season.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm Bare Glow

Here's more to add to my on-going saga with sunscreen versus winter dry skin. 

 

Since the fall, I started layering Paul & Joe Pearl Foundation Primer over my daytime moisturizer and under sunscreen, until the weather got too cold and too dry, and these primers were no longer enough. So I tried Paul & Joe La Tout Eclat Moisturizing Foundation Primer L next, and while it was moisturizing indeed, it was also completely opaque with full coverage, which was not at all what I wanted. 

And recently I've been trying this 30mL/1fl. oz. pump bottle of Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm Bare Glow. This bottle was part of the Bobbi Brown Cleanse & Care Extra Skincare Set I bought over the past holidays.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Paul & Joe Foundation Primer Part III

In addition to Paul & Joe Pearl Foundation Primer, I'm also using this 30mL1fl. oz. pump bottle of Moisturizing Foundation Primer L SPF18 PA+ in 01 Lavender. Note that in Japanese, this primer is simply called La Tout Eclat Foundation Primer and the "Moisturizing" is omitted. Also, unlike both the Pearl and the Sparkling Foundation Primers, the packaging (back of box and back of the bottle itself) only says "化粧下地" (keshou shitaji, makeup base/primer) and "美容液" (biyou eki, beauty essence/serum) is also omitted. 

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Butaiya UV Proof Brilliant Loose Powder SPF50 PA+++

So it's mid-June, a good three months since the country's gone on lock-down thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic. Understandably, folks are eager to get back to the way things were, the "normal" life so to speak. Some are taking things into their own hands and move on with life as if the virus had "gone away" when it merely had "gone around."

My flavor of desperation is to try new sunscreen powders even when I know I'll have even fewer chances than before to actually use them. This 8g jar of Butaiya UV Proof Brilliant Loose Powder is among the few newbies acquired this season. I haven't heard of Butaiya before and this is the first product I've tried from the brand.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.

Country & Stream UV Face Powder SPF50+ PA++++

Along with Kaena UV Powder SPF50+ PA++++, this Country & Stream UV Face Powder SPF50+ PA++++ was another new discovery last spring. 

By new, I meant I haven't seen it before. It wasn't a repackaged or reformulation of a powder I've tried. It also fell in what I considered reasonable price range, less than 3,500yen (I paid 1,320yen after tax). The jar contains 5.5g of product, but again this info wasn't listed anywhere on the package or online, which annoyed me to no end. Good thing the Rakuten JP shop had stated it clearly in their listing. Apparently it was a limited edition but I had no idea at the time of purchase.

All pictures taken in natural light without flash.