Covergirl + Olay Pressed Powder review, swatches & photos

I haven't worn Covergirl face makeup in ages. Nothing against the brand itself (in fact I LOVE their Lash Blast mascara!), it's just that their colours all leaned too pink and thus were unsuited to my olive complexion. The last time I wore a Covergirl foundation I was still in high school and wearing their Clean Liquid makeup because that's what everyone else did. I wore it in Ivory. Yes, it was incredibly pale for me. Yes it did look pretty bad actually. And yes, the 16 year old me did think that I looked pretty good.

So needless to say when this Covergirl + Olay pressed powder* arrived in the mail I was a bit hesitant as I did not think the shade would suit me. But I'm very pleased to say not only was the shade (Light/Medium) right, but the formula is incredible.

Wearing Covergirl + Olay pressed powder in #340 Light/Medium

Covergirl + Olay Pressed Powder

"This one of a kind powder formulation not only absorbs excess facial oil but is infused with powerful Olay skin conditioning ingredients, resulting in a compact full of moisturising and radiance enhancing pigment"

#340 Light/Medium

Colour
I'm going to start off with the negative. Unfortunately in Australia there are only 4 shades available in the range - Fair, Fair/Light, Light, and Light/Medium. I was sent Light/Medium which is a good match for my skin tone (MAC NC25 in foundations, Medium in MSFN). Light/Medium is the darkest shade available in Australia (there are 2 somewhat darker shades in the US), so anyone darker than me will not find a good colour match for them. But that said, Light/Medium is neutral enough to suit my olive skin tone without making it too yellow or too pink. That's definitely a plus.

Coverage & Formula
I absolutely love the formula. It's very silky smooth and non-powdery. Even after reapplying several layers it does not go cakey. Coverage is light to medium. I wear it over foundation, and buff it in using my Nude By Nature foundation brush. The formula reminds me a lot of the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural powders, and here is a comparison of it with my MAC MSFN in Medium.

Longevity
I normally apply this in the morning and I'm still shine-free till at least 6 or 7 pm. My skin is normal to dry, so for those of you with oilier complexions you might need to reapply it more often to keep the shine at bay. But as I mentioned already, this powder does not go cakey so you won't look over powdered. Also the sturdy case and good sized mirror are handy to have in your handbag for touch ups during the day.

Final thoughts
Overall a really good quality pressed powder that is similar in feel and texture to the MAC MSFN powders, minus the price tag! It retails at AUD $16.95 wherever Covergirl is sold.

Do you use Covergirl products? What's your favourite item from them?

*PR sample sent for review