i went to manchester at the weekend, and picked myself up a new foundation from mac. i’m in love with the studio fix powder plus, which shocked me because i’d have thought a powdered foundation would dry my skin out but it’s surprisingly nice to me. i’d run out of this a month ago, and because there isn’t a mac counter in my local debenhams i have to go to selfridges in manchester to stock up!

so, in the month i was out of my studio fix i had a toot on ebay and came across a legitimate looking foundation, on auction, from a 100% feedback seller, and there was already bids on it! but as soon as it arrived i knew it wasn’t right. the box was a dead giveaway and the shade the second. never again.

so i’ve compared the both to let everyone know what to look for when you’re skeptical of the authenticity of a mac foundation. the real compact is on the left, and the fake one is on the right. (prepare for a photo heavy post!)

notice how easily the fake lettering on packaging rubs off? instant giveaway.

if you take a closer look at the real packaging, you’ll notice these tiny sparkles.

but here on the fake foundation, the colour is more solid and flat.

they’re very similar, but looked at from this angle you’ll notice the closure of the compact is different.

when they’re both opened, not much looks different right? (haha, pink pyjamas)

but take a close look at the real one and the pan sits very near the lip of the compact.

whereas the pan of the fake one sits alot lower from the lip. small but noticeable.

same applies for the sponge compartment. they look very very similar…

but the real compact has the packaging numbers on, and the fake one doesn’t.

authentic underside labels have the batch code stamped on them, mine is (A81). understanding the batch code is really easy. they’re three numbers/characters in length. the first will be a number, the middle there’ll be a number OR a character, and lastly will be a number.

first represents the batch run
A: first batch, B: second batch, C: third batch, etc…

middle represents the production month
1: january, 2: february, 3: march, 4: april, 5: may, 6: june, 7: july, 8: august, 9: september, A: october, B: november, C: december

last represents the production year
this is the tricky part. the number represents the last number of the year of production. so if your last number is a 3, it was produced in 2003. if it’s a 7, 2007. more recent products purchased in 2011/2012 will still only contain one number for the year. my last number is 1, which means the year of production was 2011.

my batch code reads a81, which means that it was the first batch run, made in august of 2011.

although this batch code reads legitimate, it’s printed onto the label instead of being stamped. the font is also SLIGHTLY different (if you have an eye for design or typography you’ll notice this alot quicker)

the shade that i picked up are both apparently NC20. the fake one appears very pink, and the real one…well, real.

when applied to the skin, they look like completely different shades. the real one looks alot more orange (i have the palest skin ever! could do with using NC15) and the fake one a little less pink than in the compact but still a huge difference. if you have the chance to feel your foundation before you buy it, you’ll notice the texture of a fake one feels creamier and lighter, and if you test against your skin a fake one seems alot less pigmented and tends not to have a buildable coverage. it’s almost if you try and use a pressed finishing powder as a foundation, if you sponge/stipple it on it doesn’t really blend well.

i hope this helped anybody feeling a little skeptical about any mac products that they worry might me fake :)

The post Real vs Fake Mac Studio Fix Plus powder foundation appeared first on A Living Diary.