Worth the Hype? Fenty Beauty Pro Fil’tr Foundation and Match Stix Review

I don’t think there’s been as much hype around a product launch as there has been for Rihanna’s Makeup range Fenty Beauty for as long as I can remember. Yeah sure, the celebrity MAC collaborations usually sell out pretty quickly and the Kylie Jenner Lip Kits were all a bit of a hoo-hah but nothing’s quite had the same effect as Fenty Beauty – I’m talking hour long queues outside Harvey Nic’s stores for days after it first launched here, not just a bit of online hush. Rihanna herself causes a bit of a stir when she launches products anyway but when she announced that her Fenty Beauty line would include a foundation with 40 different shades, the beauty world went a little bit bat shit crazy. And rightly so…

For a long time now the shade range in foundations has been a big talking point and with even some of the best brands out there only offering a couple of shades at either end of the spectrum the whole world was a bit shook when Rhianna announced there would be a shade for everyone. I can’t speak for people with darker skin but as a pale girl I can tell you straight up that I’ve always found it difficult to find a foundation that matches my skin perfectly; I’m not the palest girl around but even I usually find the palest shades of foundations from a lot of brands too dark for me. As far as it goes on the other end of the scale I know that there’s a lot of upset about the shade range available for people with darker skin and how it seems nobody is catering for them either. Fenty Beauty has smashed all of the stereotypes though and with 40 different shades for every kind of skin tone the brand has brought the makeup industry into the 21st century – finally!

The Pro Filt’r soft matte longwear foundation from Fenty Beauty was something I was extremely excited to try. However, not having a Harvey Nichols near me to be able to pop in and test out the shades, I was a little worried about choosing my shade online. The Fenty Beauty page was beyond prepared though and not only had swatches but also images of 40 different women wearing the shades which really helped as until now, I can honestly say I have never been able to correctly choose my shade online. With the Fenty Beauty shade picker it was the easiest thing to guess which colour would match my skin perfectly and being able to compare myself to the skin of another woman made it far easier to visualise than a swatch photo ever has. After mere seconds of deliberation I opted for shade 120 which it turns out, is 100% the perfect shade for me.

A lot thinner than I expected it to be, the Pro Filt’r foundation blends really nicely into the skin for an even medium coverage which is buildable to that of a fuller one. I’ve been applying mine with a damp BeautyBlender for the past couple of uses and have absolutely loved the finish and the velvety smooth touch it gives to my skin. The matte finish it has is beautiful and even though I’m normally more of a dewy finish kinda gal it’s definitely a product that’s won me over. With my skin being a bit dry recently (due to over doing it with my spot clearing cleansers) I did have a couple of issues with the Pro Filt’r foundation clinging to some of my dry patches once applied and looking really patchy; It didn’t look great at all (especially around my nose) and after two uses I was about to write this off completely. I then started treating my skin a bit better and ensuring I went back to my usual nightly moisturising routine and even remembered to apply a little extra moisturiser around my nose before applying the foundation for the next couple of uses and I must say it performed a hell of a lot better. With no dry patches to speak of the foundation sat flawlessly on my skin and quickly became one of my favourite foundations for daily wear. I think if you do have dry skin regularly then this foundation probably isn’t for you because of the separation it gives, but for oily to normal skin I’d definitely give this a go! Moisturising a couple of minutes before application made all of the difference for me and due to the foundation being matte, really didn’t show any excess oily areas which I can often get on my forehead and chin!

Priced at £26 I genuinely think that this foundation is worth the money, of course there is probably a little extra inflation due to it being Rihanna’s makeup line, but I don’t think it’s as overpriced as it could be. As I mentioned recently in my drugstore foundation post, I have been known to spend up to £34 on a foundation and so for this highly anticipated release to only be £26, I’m quite impressed. Of course I say ‘only’ £26 light heartedly as I am very much aware that this isn’t within everybody’s budget, but as far as high end products go I’d say this is well priced.

The Match Stix Trio includes a cream concealer, contour and highlight stick all in shades designed to work with certain skin tones. I’ve been trying the lightest shades which for me seem to be absolutely perfect and for once I actually think I’ve found a contour that is the correct colour for what I need. I’ll start with the concealer though as sadly it’s been the one product I’ve not actually been that fussed on; the colour is a great match for brightening my under eye area which is always a plus, however it does seem to remove a little of my foundation when applied directly from the stick. I’m never a massive fan of stick concealers for this exact reason but I did expect a little better from Fenty Beauty having heard such great things about the products. Swiping it across my BeautyBlender first does make a bit of a difference when applying it to my face but it is a bit of a faff to try and do this every time as you don’t get that much product all at once. As much as I want to love this concealer, it’s just a bit too much effort for me and doesn’t quite give the finish I would like; it’s quite drying on my skin and compared to my £4 Collection concealer it’s not really worth the price to me. It is a great colour match though and with it coming in the Match Stix Trio, I will still make use of it!

The Cream stick highlighter has to be one of the prettiest highlighters I’ve ever had. Again, as with the stick concealer, stick highlighters are not my product of choice when it comes to it but I’ve actually been pleasantly surprised with how much I like this one. Just like with the concealer the highlight does slightly drag the foundation underneath when applied but when lightly dabbed onto my cheekbones straight from the stick or applied with a Beauty Blender it gives such a gorgeous glow. For a pale girl the shade Starstruck gives the perfect amount shimmer and highlight without it being too in your face and so is great for an everyday look. With the addition of a powder highlight on top though this really does ‘pop’ for a more intense shine. I’ve loved applying my Becca Champagne Pop on top for evenings out (or yanno just when I want to make a little more effort).

My favourite by far has to be the cream contour match stix which has to be one of the best cream contours I’ve ever tried. Yep, I went there. Compared to others around this shade (‘amber’) is beautiful and ashy and spot on for my paler skin. The cooler undertone makes for a great contour shade to chisel out my cheek bones and apply to my temples and doesn’t look overly bronzing like I find many other contour sticks do. Rihanna has got her contour Match Stix made to perfection and with the formula being beautiful and creamy they apply really well to the skin and most importantly: don’t drag the foundation like the highlighter and concealer. I apply this easily straight to my face and then use either my BeautyBlender or Blend Up! vibrating brush from Magnitone to perfectly blend this out. The finish is one that I’ve always really strived for in a contour and with a brush of bronzer afterwards to finish my face, it’s become my everyday staple. Regardless of the £21 price tag for this product individually, it’s something that I’d definitely repurchase in a heartbeat once I’m all out. You can pick up the Match Stix Trio for £46 or the Match Stix individually for £21.

I’d love to know your thoughts on the range if you’ve tried it!

Like this post?

PIN ME!