Milani Prime Perfection Hydrating + Pore-Minimizing Face Primer Review & Swatches

Milani Prime Perfection Hydrating + Pore-Minimizing Face Primer ($9.99) is one of two new permanent facial primers that launched with the Milani Spring 2016 Collection.

I have drier skin so I love a good hydrating primer as it makes my foundation apply easily plus it keeps it looking soft and smooth. But I think sometimes hydrating primers have their downfalls as they don’t always keep foundation wearing as strong as a silicone primer. They also don’t give skin the smoothest possible finish. I don’t personally have larger, visible pores, but this is also an area that hydrating primers fail as most don’t blur the appearance of visible pores easily.

That’s where Milani Prime Perfection Hydrating + Pore-Minimizing Face Primer is all kinds of great.

Milani Prime Perfection Hydrating + Pore-Minimizing Face Primer comes in a 0.68 oz tube and although water based it does in fact contain silicons. This has a creamy texture that absorbs very easily into skin upon application which in turn eases the way for foundations. I wouldn’t call it a super hydrating formula but it does lightly hydrate and soften skin for foundation. I find my foundation applies very smoothly over this primer.

What I like about it?

It’s not ALL about hydration and that’s ok with me as this formula offers some light moisture but also offers a solid protective layer over skin that hugs it in a second skin-like layer. This layer is perfect for applying your foundation on top of as it not only gives it a smoother, softer area to adhere to but it also gives it the appearance of perfection. If you do have smaller, visible pores it’ll fill and blur their appearance. I like how smooth, even, and flawless my foundation looks over this formula. I also felt it extended the wear of my foundation by a few hours more.

Now…

It’s Winter so my skin is quite dry. This isn’t a formula I’d likely embrace right now but in the Summer it’ll be a rather perfect pick for me. There isn’t enough moisture here to make it a solid Winter primer but in the Summer it’ll provide just enough without adding shine or oil plus it’ll create a good working canvas for foundation.

If you have oily skin I wouldn’t write it off completely just because they call it a hydrating primer. It’ll work equally well on such a skin type without adding unnecessary shine or oil. One thing that does deserve mention as although it doesn’t have a fragrance it also doesn’t really smell very pleasant to my nose. Once applied I didn’t notice the smell but it was there during application.

All in all Milani Prime Perfection Hydrating + Pore-Minimizing Face Primer isn’t your traditional hydrating primer. This one actually has the ability to not only offer light hydration but also adds the benefit of smoothing visible pores and creating a soft base for foundation to adhere. It also keeps foundation wearing fresher for a longer amount of time! I think in this it is unique as hydrating primers tend to be one trick ponies that offer plenty of moisture but fail at keeping foundation in place and also aren’t very good at visibly reducing the appearance of pores. Milani’s formula almost gets all this tasks down right. I’d deduct a point or two here because it doesn’t offer a ton of moisture benefits but hey, light moisture is fine for warmer weather wearing!

Milani Prime Perfection Hydrating + Pore-Minimizing Face Primer is launching now at drugstores.