Review: Stila Stay All Day Foundation & Concealer

Stila's Stay All Day foundation promises a flawless finish which lasts (unsurprisingly) all day.  It's a similar proposition to that offered by Estee Lauder's cult favourite, Double Wear foundation, but with this Stila version you get not only a medium-buildable coverage foundation, but also a matching high coverage concealer.

The concealer nestles in a cap which fits over the top of the foundation bottle, making both products portable both separately and together.  The cap also contains a little mirror - not big enough for a full-face foundation application, but certainly big enough to dab concealer under the eyes or onto blemishes.  You also get a foundation brush in the box: it's got a small handle, and the bristles are flexible yet still reasonably firm.  Stila recommend applying foundation using quick, feathery strokes using this brush, but I've found I prefer the finish I get using my fingers - more natural, less heavy.

The absolute strangest thing about the foundation is that the lid contains this oversized scoop thing.  It does help you to get the foundation out of the bottle, but I'm not quite sure why it's so large - it's surely not a measurement device, as the amount of foundation it scoops out of the bottle would be enough to do many, many faces (unless you like the Polyfilla look, that is).

For a long-wearing product, I was surprised at the luminosity in the finish.  It's also pretty natural looking, for something with a thick texture and a medium finish.  As for the longevity, it does indeed last the whole day - I typically apply my makeup at 6.30AM and remove it at 10PM, and my complexion still looks even and fresh.  Impressive stuff.

Find Stila's Stay All Day Foundation & Concealer at BeautyBay, where it costs £29.50 - expensive indeed, but you are getting two products in one, and there's a decent amount of foundation in the bottle.

Disclosure: PR sample