BUY THIS NOW: Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue in Opal

Bare Minerals have come a long way since their original powder foundations made mineral makeup a thing.  Their latest release, Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream, is a lightweight tinted moisturiser which promises serious hydration, light/medium buildable coverage, and a natural finish.

The packaging is a simple bronze squeezy tube, which works just fine when it works.  My first sample repeatedly got clogged up, requiring me to poke the bristles of my foundation brush down the nozzle, and finally use a pin to pierce a small hole in the top of the tube to prevent air bubbles forming.  The second sample tube I've tried has been okay, though, so hopefully my tube was a one off.

One slightly incongruous thing about the packaging is that for all the sleek, expensive looking, luminous bronze plastic tube, the shade name is a sticker plonked on the back.  With the product costing a stonking £26 a tube, I'd expect Bare Minerals to spend enough to print the shade names onto the tubes themselves.

Anyway, the product itself is fantastic.  I was afraid that the hydrating/tinted moisturiser style would mean a dewy (shiny) finish, but I was pleasantly surprised to find it slightly luminous and glowing whilst being semi-matte.  Coverage wise, it's pretty buildable - I'm wearing a fairly heavy application above and it's medium coverage, but still natural with it.  If I use a little less, more of my freckles shine through.

My other concern with tinted moisturiser products is that they won't last the whole day - I put my makeup on at 7am, and expect it to still look good when I leave work at 7pm.  Complexion Rescue fares pretty well throughout the day - my skin is a little bit more shiny in the evening, but overall it's still even and smooth and wearing more or less the same amount of foundation as it was when I started the day.  Hydration wise, I can't say I've noticed a huge difference, but my skin hasn't developed any dry patches when wearing it, which is nice.

Overall, then, I've really fallen for this product - it offers lightweight, natural-finish colour and I love the fact I can wear more or less depending on how skin-confident I'm feeling.  Add to that the lasting power and you've got the perfect summer foundation.  Find it now at Boots, where it costs a spendy, but totally worth it, £26.

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.