August 08, 2008

Guest Review: SilkyGirl's Silky White Lightening Powder Foundation with SPF 25

Guess what folks? So Loverly has its very first guest reviewer, Eli. Here's her review of a brilliant, cheapie Malaysian find that you'd probably not have the guts to try yourself without some urging *raises hand*:

I love going to cosmetics counters and looking at pretty things but I hate shopping for foundations. My skin tone seems to have fallen in between the cracks of the foundation industry as they are all mostly too pink, too yellow, too light or too dark for me.

I came across Silky Girl’s Silky White Lightening Powder Foundation (what a mouthful) just after Silky Girl changed their name from Wet ‘n Wild. I had given up searching for my perfect foundation when one day, I happened to swipe some of this on my arm and blinked. The shade had disappeared into my skin. I gleefully bought a compact to bring home and have been using it for the past 2 years.

As you can see, Silky White comes in a white rectangular compact which fits cosily in the palm of one’s hand. The clip case closes quite tightly and has never burst open on me – a godsend since I travel and tend to drop things a lot.

Silky White (as with all powder foundations) looks better applied with a brush. If you find sponges more convenient, ditch the sponge provided with the compact and use another cosmetic sponge instead; the one given does an uneven job on the face.

I find this foundation buildable, giving light to medium coverage. It goes on matte at first, settling down after 15 minutes or so. I really like how it evens out my complexion and makes old cystic acne scars and red splotches less noticeable. Most people tell me that my skin looks better when I have this on.

Surprisingly, this product does live up to its “lightening” claim. It seems to make my skin half a tone fairer without any obvious discrepancy between my face and neck, something which would delight those on a quest for fairer skin.

Sadly, it does nothing for oil control – I find myself having to touch up after 2 hours on oilier days while it can last up to lunchtime on others – and it looks terrible on dry skin. I steer far away from this during dry autumn and winter months in Canberra, preferring to use Silk Naturals instead.

Last I checked, this powder foundation was retailing for around RM 16.90 or RM 18.90 in Guardian and Watson’s outlets around Malaysia. I think it is currently on discount at RM 15.80 in Watson’s.

There are four shades to choose from and I use #4 in “Deep”. This is the only Silky Girl foundation to carry “Deep”. Other foundations in the Silky Girl range carry “Tan” as their fourth shade instead. “Tan” is either more yellow or pink (I forget which) than “Deep”. A pity for me as I wanted to try their 2 way foundation after hearing some raves about it.

While I didn’t experience any breakouts, I have heard of some people breaking out so watch out!

I wouldn’t call Silky White Lightening Powder Foundation my HG foundation because of its poor oil control and awful effect on dry skin. I have been ding-donging between this and Silk Naturals for the past few months depending on my weathervane skin. Right now, Silky White wins out on normal-combination days because of its coverage and convenience. This may change though as SN has just released new foundation formulas promising heavier coverage.

* Eli is a dear friend who is currently battling the elements in the Australian outback where the sun is fierce, the air is dry, and the temperature soaring. Until she starts her own beauty-obsessed blog, So Loverly will benefit from her tips on surviving in an arid country.

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