You have to press me for a positive... (Boots 17 Pressed Powder)

Member Name: ld75454

Product:	Boots 17 Pressed Powder
Date:	09/11/09 (114 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The packaging is the only plus

Disadvantages: Poor quality powder and rubbish applicator

*Introduction*

I bought 17 Pressed Powder along with their trio of eye shadows in an attempt to spend less money on make-up. I had come to the realisation that my make up bag was worth a fortune and I couldn't afford to keep buying make up that cost so much money. So I decided that I could still buy a few luxury items but I had to balance these out with a few cheaper products. I bought 17 Pressed Powder as I always wear foundation but I also like to apply a little powder as I find my face is too shiny without it.

*The Claim*

17 Pressed Powder is a silky smooth powder that keeps you fresh faced all day.

*About the Product*

Use 17 Pressed Powder to fix and finish your make up and create a long wearing flawless finish.

*Application*

The application of this product should be straightforward. Unfortunately, a combination of the poor quality pressed powder and awful sponge applicator make the application a lot more difficult. What you should be able to do is use the sponge applicator in the compact and apply to your face where necessary. If you do happen to like this pressed powder product (I didn't) then my best piece of advice is to use a different applicator as the one provided is completely useless.

*Price and Availability*

17 Pressed Powder is available to buy for £3.42. The low price is what attracted my attention to this product. I tend to use rather expensive products when it comes to foundation and powder as cheap products usually have a negative effect on my skin but I went against my better judgement and opted for this bargain. I wish I hadn't now as not only was it poor in coverage, it also caused my skin to break out in spots. Needless to say, I don't believe the low price was worth it.

This pressed powder can be purchased from Boots. I believe that it is one of their own ranges so I think that this is the only place that you can buy the product from. You can also buy this product online at www.boots.com.

*My Opinion*

The packaging: 17 Pressed Powder is a black plastic, round compact. It is small and would fit nicely into a make up bag. I quite like the packaging as although it looks a little on the cheap side, you have to remember that you haven't actually paid a lot of money so you can't complain. It looks quite cool though and it sturdy.

When you open this compact, you will find the pressed powder fills the whole of the bottom of the compact. Also inside is a mirror in the lid and a round sponge applicator. The sponge applicator and mirror in the compact means that this product perfect to have in your handbag for touching up your make up during the day and it doesn't take up a lot of room in your handbag. That is if you actually like the product. I thought that the sponge applicator was terrible as it was thin and cheap.

Colour and texture: The colour of the pressed powder is different when compact and in the case to the colour when applied to your skin so consider this if you do buy this product. The texture of this pressed powder is quite thick but not in a positive, good quality way. It is thick as heavy and I found that the powder looked so heavy that my face started to get a tango'd look. No very appealing unless you are Michelle Heaton.

Longevity of the product: The durability of my 17 Pressed Powder will be a long time as I have decided not to use it again. But I think that if I had continued to use this low quality pressed powder then it would probably last between 2 and 3 months as you will be forever reapplying it as it has poor staying powder.

Is 17 Pressed Powder a silky smooth powder that keeps you fresh faced all day? No, not at all. For a start, in is not a silky powder. I found it was difficult to apply and made my skin look worse than before I had put the powder on. I won't be bothering with this in the future.

Does this pressed powder create a long wearing flawless finish? This powder disappointed me greatly as it far from created a flawless finish. It made my skin look dry and my make up looked like it had been caked on when in fact I had barely used any.

Staying power: The powder is does not have a great staying power because I tend to rub it off before it comes to me actually setting foot outside my house due to the shame of awful the make up looks when applied. If I spend a very long time applying the powder and take a great deal of care in doing so it can look average but it doesn't have very good staying power at all. In fact in probably lasts a maximum of two hours before my skin starts to shine.

Range of colours: There are only 3 colours available in this colour therefore you have quite a limited choice in colour. They are Neutral, Nicely Natural and Delicate Beige. I have the lightest colour, Neutral and even this is too dark for my skin when applied. When I bought it, it looked light and like it would match my skin tone when applied but this was not the case.

Unfortunately for me, my skin didn't like this product. It seemed to dry out my skin and cause a break out of blemishes. This is disappointing as it was such a low price that I really wanted it to be good and save me a fair amount of money. You get what you pay for I suppose.

*Would I Recommend This Product?*

I would not recommend this pressed powder as one that you should buy. It is low-priced and tacky and I happen to think that you skin would look better without it. I was drawn in to the purchase of this product because the price seemed like a bit of a bargain. Unfortunately, the low price should have warned me that the product would be of low quality.

*Overall*

17 Pressed Powder is a cheap and cheerful product that I didn't find to be effective in the slightest. In fact I would so far as to say that it is absolutely rubbish and delivers on none of its claims! It is safe to say that I will not be using 17 Pressed Powder again and it has gone straight in the bin despite my persistence and desire to like it. At least it had only cost £4 although this was money that could have gone towards a better, more superior product. It is an item in the 17 range that is disappointing.

Summary: An all round poor pressed powder