A Neat Feat: How to sweat-proof your FOTD with this wonder primer
ICYMI, Project Vanity now has a Store tab with a curated collection of products we love! One of the things that I remember Liz being really excited about is an antiperspirant made especially for the face, called the Neat 3B Face Saver Gel (P850 for 50g, Project Vanity store). The parent brand is Neat Feat, a New Zealand company that focuses on a wide range of antiperspirant toiletries. The Face Saver Gel is labeled as a “facial antiperspirant” and because of its promise to reduce sweat, athletes and people in hot climates are encouraged to use this product.
For cosmetic application, having a product that helps control sweating can be useful for keeping your makeup intact. At the very least, it can keep you from needing to dab tissue and accidentally messing up your FOTD. So let’s put that claim to the test!
Part 1: Texture Test
As a product that is more focused on function rather than form, I had to first wonder how the Face Saver Gel would perform when used under makeup. Makeup primers are meant to smoothen the base, or at least deliver some other function to improve makeup wear time or application. The FSG looks and feels kind of like a primer, but could it work as a replacement?
I first had to check for compatibility because if a product is not compatible under makeup, the foundation can clump or separate over it. I expected powders to do well because the FSG dries thinly and fully, so there should be problems with dry on dry. I was most worried about the rest of the foundation types, because I theorized that putting heavier foundation over the thin, dried layer of FSG would either “melt” it off and form clumps, or cause the foundation to separate. I was also concerned that blending the foundations over the FSG would cause it to get rubbed off.
To test this theory, I applied the FSG on the entire length of my inner arm. I swatched several types of bases over it: a powder foundation (Ellana Minerals Loose Mineral Foundation), a silicone-based liquid foundation (Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Liquid Foundation), and an oil-based cream-stick foundation (Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Stick Foundation), and a wax-based solid foundation (RCMA Foundation). While waiting for the foundations to set, I spotted a water-based foundation (Make Up For Ever Water Blend) and did an additional test on the back of my hand.
Swatches, from left: Ellana Minerals Loose Powder, Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Liquid and Ultra HD Stick, RCMA
Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Stick Foundation
I first applied a tiny amount of foundation to each test area, to see how it would react to the FSG. Blending with just my fingers, ALL the foundations applied more smoothly compared to my usual experience, except for the water-based foundation, which applied similarly as without FSG. Contrary to my fears, FSG does not easily disintegrate under foundation, even when I aggressively blended the stick and solid foundations. The silicone-based liquid foundation applied pretty nicely over FSG as well.
As I added more foundation to each swatch to check if it would separate or crack, I found that every formula-type layered and set very well over itself. I experienced none of the clumping, tearing, or separating I had feared. I did, however, notice that FSG does nothing at all for fine lines, pores, or texture, which I am very much okay with since it does not claim to be able to do any of those things.
MUFE Water Blend applied over Neat Feat FSG, 30 minutes later
Ellana Minerals Loose Mineral Foundation (powder), MUFE Ultra HD Liquid (silicone-liquid,) MUFE Ultra HD Stick (oil-stick,) RCMA Foundation (wax-solid) applied over Neat Feat FSG, 30 minutes later
After about 30 minutes, all foundations looked pretty normal, and seemed to be performing as expected. This simple test proves that Face Saver Gel can be worn under makeup! However, this test is not definitive as other foundation formulas may have different reactions. I definitely encourage you to first try a bit of your foundation over a small area first to see if they work together!
Part 2: Sweat Control Test
When I first heard about the Face Saver Gel, I wanted to geek out and put it through the hardest test I know. Meet my friend Jhe who, with her own admission, is the sweatiest person I have ever met – even factoring in my experience as a full-time makeup artist! She unfortunately suffers from a certain medical condition that makes her sweat so much more than normal. Standing for a few minutes outdoors will have her handkerchief drenched. Even too much physical activity indoors can have her sweating in minutes. And once the perspiration starts, it tends to keep on going for a while, even when she has cooled down already. It’s an extreme condition that most people will not have to deal with, and it will certainly test the full extent of the Face Saver Gel’s antiperspirant abilities!
To begin, I first asked her to take 15-minute walk indoors so we could see her normal sweat looks like. It wasn’t very warm and the walk was quite leisurely, but this is her control sweat pattern: The forehead is filled with small beads of sweat while the nose, upper lip, and undereye area have larger beads of sweat.
I let her rest and cool down for about an hour, and cleaned her skin before applying a thin layer of the Face Saver Gel on the upper lip and forehead, where she sweats the most. We also applied some on her nose and spread a bit of the excess product on her cheeks, where Jhe says she is normally driest and experiences flaking. The packaging expressly says not to use it on the scalp and near the eye area, so we avoided those areas as well.
While waiting, I read up on the ingredients list and found that the second ingredient (next to aqua) is Aluminum-Zirconium-Tetracholorohydrex Glycine complex, which is commonly used in antiperspirants. I feel like this is the ingredient that matters most, and it’s nice to see it so high up the list!
As soon as I applied the product on Jhe’s face, she immediately reported a slight cooling sensation. The gel doesn’t seem to be mentholated but the format does feel refreshing! It dried quickly, got tacky near-instantly, and became less shiny as the seconds roll by. I decided to wait a full minute before proceeding with the test, and by the minute mark, it was completely invisible. We topped the FSG off with a bit of Ellana Minerals Loose Foundation in French Vanilla (P599 for an 8g refill, at Ellana Minerals) to mimic her usual makeup routine.
After a few minutes of wear, she felt tightening on her cheeks and forehead. On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being Elmer’s glue levels of tightness, Jhe claims it felt like a 3. It didn’t really pucker her skin, but felt like a layer of something that keeping her from moving and smiling normally.
The results: The upper lip has similarly large and multiple beads of sweat in the before and after photos. Because this is her sweatiest area, it may not have fully cool downed yet, and the gel might have been applied over ongoing sweat production. Any trapped moisture can prevent the gel from adhering to the skin properly, and I only applied a little here since I was concerned that she might ingest the product. On the nose, the sweat beads also seem smaller and less numerous. They’re present, but were sufficiently controlled by the FSG.
Most importantly, we were pretty blown away by how the product performed on her forehead! You can see a clear line of where the sweat stopped as I had avoided getting the product too close to her scalp. This is hard proof that the product works! This was also the easiest area to clear from sweat, and the easiest area to apply product to, which I felt contributed to the success of the test.
I was initially afraid of overusing the product so I applied the Face Saver Gel on Jhe sparingly, but now I feel like I can get better results as I figure out the proper amount to apply. I just used a pea-sized amount on Jhe’s upper lip, nose, and forehead, but even with that tiny application, it really still worked for controlling her sweat! I’m really impressed that this worked as well as it did, considering the extreme case my friend suffers from.
I recommend applying enough to get a nice layer coating each area but you don’t really need to use a lot to appreciate the Face Saver Gel’s benefits. It’s definitely a pretty neat (hehe) item to have in a pro kit! Sweating is definitely a big issue in our country, and it would be nice to be as prepared for sweaty clients as I am with oily-skin clients. I find that powder isn’t always enough to control sweat, especially for stage performers or outdoor events. I have tried lots of things such as reverse setting (powder-foundation-powder to control sweat and oil), extra powder, extra setting spray, waterproof makeup, but I’ve never gotten results as good as with the Face Saver Gel. I am also pretty confident about trying it with even more foundations, since it didn’t seem to affect the different type formulas that I currently use.
