Laura Mercier Mineral Powder SPF15 in Natural Beige and Tender Rose

I first mentioned Laura Mercier's Mineral Foundation in my high coverage post here, but I also stated that I wanted to give it a full test drive before writing a full review, and now I think I've used tested it thoroughly enough to share my thoughts.

Laura Mercier is a brand I've developed quite a thing for lately, and the sales really didn't do much to stop my deepening infatuation as you can see in my sales post here! I was sent this foundation in Natural Beige* which I applied straight away, and immediately realised it was the wrong shade for me.  However, I was so impressed with its coverage that I decided to order the right shade for me, which turns out to be Tender Rose.

Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation: top Tender Rose, bottom Natural Beige

Natural Beige is still a fairly pale shade but it leans too yellow for me and I'd say it's around a shade and a half to two shades too dark for me as well, whereas Tender Rose is a fraction too pale, but it balances out any redness in my skin and I'll always go for a shade that is too pale rather than too dark as it's easier to correct with blusher and bronzer etc.

Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation: Top Tender Rose, bottom Natural Beige

This is a typical mineral powder in the sense that it needs to be buffed into the skin well to perform at its best and needs to be built-up slowly.  It comes in a good, solid container which contains a fairly generous 9.6g of product.  Inside the container is a sliding lid that allows you to close in the powder to reduce mess, although I keep forgetting to close it after I've finished!

Left before, right after...just in case you can't tell...

Interestingly, when I first got this and swatched it on my hand I was horrified by how shimmery it was.  It's safe to say that if I wasn't sent this then I wouldn't have gone anywhere near it based on a hand swatch alone as it's soooo shimmery in a swatch, but for some reason the shimmer doesn't show up much when the powder is applied to the face.  Instead the finish is very dewy, glowy and incredibly flattering.

With the rest of my make-up. 

All I have on in the after picture is a touch of Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer under my eyes and this powder, so as you can see it covers acne scars really well.  I did have a spot when I took these pictures and it did reduce the redness, but obviously it didn't completely cover the spot itself.  This doesn't work well as a setting powder as the few times I've used it over other make-up, I've found it to cake, smear and not settle properly so I think this is something that needs to be used alone, especially if you're prone to oiliness.

Since my skin has started showing signs of improvement I've been enjoying wearing (or getting away with) less make-up as I now don't feel the need to use lots of products for day-to-day make-up.  Instead I use under eye concealer and this powder before applying my usual products.  This is a brilliant, high-coverage foundation with a beautiful finish that I highly recommend if you want a one-stop product that'll bring your skin to life whilst covering it well.

Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation is available now from Harrods and the usual stockists for £31.