From The Vault: Madara Tinting Fluid

This months trip down memory lane takes us to Latvia... Ok, maybe not quite to Latvia itself but as near as many of us will get. Madara's Moonflower Tinting Fluid was once my personal go-to product when it came to a light, easy to wear base, but is it now..?

Madara Tinting Fluid

I am not one for wearing foundation on a day to day basis (to be honest, I generally can't be bothered) however spring is still a long way off and I have been hankering for a little something to add a touch of colour to my dull winter skin and give me a healthier glow, so I reached for my Madara Tinting Fluid.

Madara's Tinting Fluid is essentially a tinted moisturiser and being very light, makes it a great summer (and winter) alternative to foundation. Lightly moisturising it can be worn with or without your regular moisturiser; either mix them together or apply one on top of the other. I wore it daily throughout last summer, mixing it with my usual facial sunblock for a little UV protection.

Available in two (beautifully named) shades; the paler, slightly pink-toned Moonflower (pictured) and the warmer, yellow-toned Sunflower. Straight from the bottle the colours (especially Moonflower) may look a little odd at first glance but once they are on the skin they seem to transform.

Personally I am a Moonflower girl, however I have used both shades on a variety of different skin tones. Sunflower looks amazing on mixed and Mediterranean complexions, whilst Moonflower gives a natural warming glow to paler skins.

A great product to even out the skin tone, Tinting Fluid easily disguises fine lines and imperfections. It contains particles of mica (a naturally occurring mineral) which are light reflective and illuminate the skin beautifully, giving natural radiance. Despite its light reflecting qualities, I personally wouldn't use tinting fluid for the majority of High Definition broadcast work as I have found the particles are quite large and strong lighting may cause it to 'bounce' a slight sparkle off the skin. Having said that, it does work wonderfully for beauty make-ups and some photographic work.

Although you do need to ensure you have blended it well in order to avoid obvious patches, Tinting fluid is very easy to apply. At around £23.00 for 50ml, you don't seem to get much for your money, however a couple of pumps will easily cover the whole face and neck so a bottle will last a long time.

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My opinions on this base have changed a little over the course of two and a half years. I still love the natural looking radiance that Tinting Fluid gives the skin; a real healthy glow that does make you feel that you have just got back from a weekend away...

From a professional perspective, I still maintain that it isn't the product for the majority of film or broadcast jobs, however for a product-light beauty or flash-free photographic make-up it could work a treat.

Admittedly I haven't purchased a bottle in a while. This is in part due to having the opportunity to test new products and seeing how they fair (and possibly a little to do with attempting to use, albeit unknowingly, an out of date bottle from the back of my cupboard - ouch!) but my one real niggle is the lack of an SPF.

I like many others am a little lazy when it comes to the daily application of product upon product; this in part has been brought about by having a child. Gone are the days of spending time on my morning routine, I am lucky if I have time to have a slip of water some days, let alone spend ten minutes in front of the mirror! I am sure many of you will concur.

Currently, I much prefer a product that is a bit of an all in one and at the moment fluctuate between products on duller/cooler days, but on sunnier/hotter days am plumping for a liberal coating of moisturiser followed by Juice Beauty CC Cream with its SPF30. Having said that I will definitely go back to my once beloved Moonflower and give it another go - although maybe when the small one has left home... ;)

Madara Cosmetics are a Latvian company founded in 2006 (the name Madara comes from the Latvian name for Wild Madder, the aromatic wildflower). They produce a range of entirely natural ECOCERT certified products, all are cruelty free and many are Vegan, nut and gluten free too.

www.Madaracosmetics.co.uk

Ingredients:

(* denotes ingredient is certified organic)

Aqua, Alcohol, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Oil*, Rosa Damascena (Rose) Distillate*, Glycerin*, Theobroma Cacao Seed (Cocoa) Butter*, Cetearyl Alcohol, Hypericum Perforatum (St. John's Wort) Extract*, Calendula Officinalis (Calendula) Extract*, Chamomilla Recutita (Camomile) Extract*, Algae Extract, Plantago Major (Plantain Leaf) Extract*, Cetearyl Glucoside, Capryloyl Glycine, Stearic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Xantan Gum, Aroma, Citral, Eugenol, Limonene, Linalool [+/- (may contain), Mica (CI 77019), Titanium Dioxide (CI77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499)]