I like make-up. No scrap that, I LOVE make-up, but as a skint student (get the violins out please) I cannot afford to try different brands regularly. Because of this I often order make-up samples online, to try before I buy. A while ago I ordered a sample of L'Oreal's Matte Morphose soufflé foundation. I have been using L'Oreal's True Match foundation for a long time now, so was expecting good things.

My sample was free, obviously, and in a sachet, containing 1ml of the foundation to try. The foundation generally retails at around ten pounds, but a quick search on our friend Google has told me it is currently on offer in Superdrug for £7.99. I believe you get around 20ml of foundation for your money.

Matte Morphose is available is 6 shades; Rosy Ivory, Golden Ivory, Creamy Natural, Rosy Sand, Apricot Beige and Amber. I highly recommend checking the colour before making your purchase. I went for the 'Creamy Natural' and there is nothing 'Cream' or 'Natural' about it. I look like I have been tangoed.

Claims

L'Oreal claim the foundation will give you a 'perfect skin surface'
and 'wrinkles will appear reduced'. Pores will also disappear!
They say the foundation will give you a matte yet luminous finish for up to 12 hours.

My Experience

So, I was very excited about trying this out as I love trying new make-up. I prepped my skin as I usually would, cleanse, tone, moisturise, and I was ready to go. I squeezed a little of the foundation on to my fingers. It's a bit faffy getting it out of the sachet, but I suppose if you were using this product for real you would be getting it out of a glass tub.

As mentioned earlier, I was shocked and quite scared by the colour of the foundation. For 'Creamy Natural' it was very dark. I wasn't really going anywhere this day so decided to go ahead and try it anyway.

The foundation is a mousse, and I have not really used mousse foundations in the past before. I was amazed by how light the foundation felt. I placed a few dots of foundation over my face and gently rubbed them in. It was so incredibly easy to apply. A little goes a long way, spreading easily across the skin. It was still a very orangey colour, but did look much lighter on the skin than it does in the packet.

Once I had finished applying I examined my skin closely, and in all honesty was not impressed. I do not feel it covered my skin effectively. My pores were still visible, as were a couple of scars I have on my face, that have always covered fine with other foundations. My skin felt really soft and smooth with the foundation on, but the coverage was pretty rubbish. I applied my usual powder over the foundation and this did improve coverage a little, but isn't something I expect to have to do. I expect to be able to just wear foundation if I want to, and for this to be enough to cover and imperfections.

I left the foundation on for the rest of the day, and by late afternoon it definitely needed touching up. I was beginning to look a little shiny, which was a worry with this foundation as it does feel very creamy during application.

Overall, not that impressed. It doesn't do what it claims to in my experience.

I'll stick with True Match. Oh and by the way, what the .... does 'Morphose' actually mean??? Answers on a postcard please.