Spotlight: Eve Lom Perfect Matte Primer, Our Beauty Must-Buy This Week

Eve Lom's perfect matte primer: the hottest beauty buy you should know about this week...

When you have oily skin the temptation can be to avoid putting too much on it for fear of turning into an even greater oil slick. But too much oil is no friend of foundation and if you have oily skin we're sure you're all too familiar with the midday slippage where your meticulously applied foundation and concealer heads south and transitions into a hot mess.

An oily surface makes for a tricky base and the oilier your skin gets the quicker your foundation and concealer slip and move around on your skin. Sigh.

The solution is to get up close and personal with a primer and say au revoir to slippage forever!

We're loving Eve Lom's new Perfect Matte Primer (out September). It's one of those clever products that go above and beyond what's expected of them. In this case it helps your foundation and concealer stay put - and look flawless while doing so - plus it protects your skin and gives it a little treat too.

The skinny; expect an SPF of 15 - which is not enough on its own to completely protect your skin but it is a very welcome top-up for your normal day cream with broad-spectrum protection. There's rice powder (which is super fine and traceless) to soak up the excess slick, a natural anti-inflammatory which helps to keep sebum production this side of dewy, and a Marie Claire beauty desk favourite ingredient, Niacinamide, which helps to speed up cell turnover, smooth skin and brighten dark spots, pigmentation and old acne scars. Can you see why it's a favourite?

Formula wise it's very light and silky. Forget the brushes, we've found it's best applied with a finger tip just to the areas where you normally see excess shine or oil. For us this is over the T-zone - particularly the sides of the nose - and chin. Don't bother putting it where your skin is naturally a bit drier or where you don't wear much foundation or concealer- such as the outer perimeter of your face - you'll just be wasting product. 

Show your oily skin who's boss.