Camellia Rose Skin Primer

I finally got to own a bottle of one of the makeup world's best recommendations: the Camellia Rose Skin Smoothing Primer.

Jen, the owner of Camellia Rose had to temporarily hold orders of the said primer because the demands were pouring in like mad. Since her products are handcrafted and prepared upon placement of order, she needed extra time to heed the clamor of makeup junkies.

It took me months to wait for them to restock while I continued to read positive reviews of the product with envy. What were all the raves about and why was it causing a virtual stampede on the Camellia Rose store?

I observed for a week before dishing out a fair review on the product and here's my take on it's success story:

A skin primer is something you apply to your skin before the makeup, to create a smooth base and hold the makeup longer. It prevents oiliness from coming out sooner and fills in large pores , craters and fine lines. This is an important step in creating a perfect canvass.

Most primers are silicone-based, like those from Smashbox and Pure Luxe. Silicone does a great job in filling in imperfections. However, I'm wary about using a silicone-based product on my face on a daily basis. I'm conscious about the ingredients of products I use, given my history of cancer.

I'm leaning towards organic products and Camellia Rose offers the solution to a skin primer that is non silicone-based which is safe to use everyday. The ingredients are as follows: dimethicone, cyclopentasiloxane, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, silica, squalene, watermelon seed oil, red raspberry seed oil.

I'll lay down the other reasons why it gets my seal of approval:

• It works. When I head off to the clinic everyday, I hardly use a liquid foundation to avoid parabens and other harmful preservatives. Yet, with Camellia Rose primer, i get the same smooth effect which I benefit from using liquid foundation, minus the health worries. I hardly see a shiny area on my face by the time I come home. My skin craters are still covered, with no touch ups done. Being an oil spill, it should qualify as a miracle.
  

• Pleasant smell. Silicone based primers have this rubbery scent which is tolerable for me but Camellia rose primer reminds me of a yummy watermelon you'd love to feed your skin.

• Easy to apply. It has the same consistency as smashbox primer which is easy to glide on your skin. Let it dry for 2-3 minutes before topping it with your regular makeup. With pure luxe, although the smoothing effect was excellent, I had trouble spreading them out with brushes because of clumping.
  

• No skin irritation or break outs. For 1 straight week of using this, I had no adverse effects noted. In fact, the remnants from latest acne attack has tamed down. Some girls have reported allergic reactions towards squalene and red raspberry which are ingredients found in the original version of the primer but you can always opt for the Camellia Rose V 2.0 in which the said ingredients are replaced by camellia and rice bran oil. By the way, I ordered the 2 versions which I use alternately. I still can't decide which is better because both work fine with me.

• Affordable. A jumbo size is sold for only $18.95. Other primers cost around $30 per bottle. One tiny pump a day is all you need. The bottle should last for a very long time.
  

• Excellent customer service. The shipping was fast, I'm from the Philippines but my order arrived in less than 2 weeks. That's really something. Jen is a very nice, sweet lady who adds personal touch to her transactions. When I told her about this beauty blog, she was beaming with praises for the projects I did as a makeup artist. Despite juggling motherhood and business, she spends time to get to know her clients and make them feel special. She emanates with positive aura which probably rubs off on her handcrafted products.