The Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Water was a product I saw about 95% of the US beauty gals I follow on the ‘Tube rave on about. Then I spotted a tester for it in my local Boots in front of an empty shelf. These two occurrences made me want the stuff BAD. I enquired to the sales assistant as to its whereabouts and she informed that they were only getting about one in each delivery and every time they put it out on display, it was sold in a matter of minutes. By then my ‘need‘ levels were reaching an all time high. So when I did find it in stock (Boots Piccadilly FYI), it was one of those slow-mo, ‘ray of light shone down on it’ moments. My mission was complete, but was it worth all the hunting…

It’s silicone/alcohol/oil-free and comes with a longlist of claims, including the use of ‘revitalising electrolytes’ in the formula and the instructions say to use it before makeup, after to set things or post-application a few hours later to liven everything up. Personally, I say forget all the bumf and enjoy the product for what it is. For me, it works best as a pre-makeup step. My complexion has been a little lacking on the hydration front recently, so this gives me an extra boost and makes whatever I put on after it über dewy (it’s actually the perfect partner for the new Laura Mercier Foundation that I spoke about here, because it oomphs up its spreading abilities – oh er).

Beware though because the spritz on this can be quite all-encompassing, so one or two pumps and you’re done – anymore and you’ll sit around for 10 minutes waiting for it to soak it and pondering if it’s just best to towel it off and start again. Less is more. A bit of Googling lead me to the discovery that a load of people online reckon this is a knock-off of MAC Fix+ and though the ingredients lists don’t read exactly identical, it’s a fair comment as they do perform similar roles.

Does using the Smashbox Primer Water before applying makeup make things last longer? I’m not sure. It’s a bit of placebo/really fun step that makes you feel all professional, so it’s the routine that I like. But in terms of making things look fresh and giving a bit of extra spread to thicker, fuller coverage formulas? It definitely ticks that box. Just try not to directly spray it in your eye and/or mouth. It’s not as fun then…