I've been interested in Deciem's various brands and products ever since their stores started popping up in Toronto so I'm super excited to finally be testing my first Hylamide product! Recently I saw that this primer was on sale because it had won some award for best primer so I decided it was the perfect time to try it. I'm not a regular primer wearer because I haven't found one that I really like yet and unfortunately, I don't love this one either.


This product is called a "prismatic blurring surface hydrator" but from what I can tell and what the sales rep in the store said, it's essentially just a pore blurring foundation primer. The texture is the standard silicone-y primer feeling that dries to a powdery finish.

The directions on the back say: Apply under or over liquid foundation. Can also be used without makeup. When I was in the store, the sales rep told me that it can also be mixed in with liquid foundation (this is also stated on their website). The website also says that powder products should be applied on top of the HA Blur.

The Claims (from the Hylamide website):

• Blurs
• Minimizes pores
• Hydrates
• Plumps 

The unique feature of this primer is that it uses hyaluronic acid powder as the blurring agent. This is supposed to make it compatible with all skin types (even dry skin) and all makeup. But note that this primer still has a lot of silicones in it, and in my opinion behaves similarly to other silicone primers.

Before I get into the review, I should mention that my skin is combination and sensitive. I get oily throughout the day but I also have dry patches around my nose and on my cheeks. This makes it hard for me to find face products that work because they need to be mattifying enough to control oil but also hydrating enough to not emphasize my dry spots.

I first decided to test this out on its own, without using any makeup. Here is a before and after:

Before HA Blur. I only have moisturizer on.

After HA Blur.

In my opinion, this primer didn't blur or minimize the appearance of my pores. But it did mattify and smooth out my skin. You can see that in the after picture, my nose and cheek is less shiny. When skin is matte, skin can look less textured and pores can look less noticeable. I do think the primer is hydrating and did a good job smoothing over dry spots. I've used it several times on its own and I do like the effect it gives and it feels nice on the skin.

Unfortunately, this product is all downhill from here. After liking it on its own, I decided to test it mixed with and under foundation. I didn't test it over foundation because I would never rub another product on top of my foundation since that would move the makeup around and make it look patchy. 

I mixed it with the Kat Von D Lock-It Tattoo Foundation, which is one of the foundations I use regularly. I apply all foundations with a beauty blender type sponge because I find that fingers or brushes always leave streaks and emphasize dry areas. 

HA Blur mixed with Kat Von D foundation.

This is what it looked like after I had mixed it. As you can see, the primer gave the liquid foundation a mousse-like texture. I applied it with a damp sponge like I normally would and here are the results:


The first thing I noticed is that this primer emphasized the dry spots on my cheek. It kind of clumped up around these areas and made my foundation look very patchy. The primer mixed in also made my foundation very hard to apply because it would stick to the sponge but not transfer onto my skin. It looked ok from a normal distance but it looked significantly worse than just using the foundation on its own.

Next I decided to use it under my foundation like a traditional primer. I am using the Kat Von D foundation here as well. 




As you can see, it was a disaster. The primer under my foundation made my skin look incredibly dry and the makeup clung to every bit of dry skin. It looked especially bad around my nose and upper lip. These pictures were taken after a lot of blending and trying my best to make it work.

As a reference, this is what my foundation usually looks like without any primers:


In conclusion, I like the HA Blur when used on its own. It mattifies and smooths skin without making it feel dry. But I hate the way the product works when mixed with or used under foundation. It made my foundation look patchy and clumpy and emphasized dryness. This primer might work better with other foundations or with a different skin type but personally it did not work for me.