Hard Candy Sheer Envy Pore-Defense Primer Serum Review

Hard Candy Sheer Envy Pore-Defense Primer Serum ($7.16 at Walmart) is brand new for Spring 2016 and promises to tighten pores while smoothing the skin and helping your makeup last all day. As someone with really dry skin, I had invisible pores most of my life and never would have looked twice at a product like this...I would always seek out hydrating formulas instead. But once I reached my mid-thirties, I started noticing a lot of pores showing up on my nose and cheeks even though my skin is still dry.

Overall, my skin's texture isn't as smooth as it used to be and I have to be careful not to use products that can make my skin look worse. Lately I've been seeking out pore-minimizing formulas and when I saw this, I couldn't wait to try it because it's super affordable...not to mention I love Hard Candy products. Let's take a look!

Sheer Envy Pore-Defense Primer Serum is free of silicone, oil, and alcohol which is pretty impressive for a primer...most of the ones I've tried have at least one of those ingredients! It contains "pore-tightening actives and astringents that absorb excess oil" such as algae extract, kelp extract, willow bark extract, bamboo extract, and witch hazel as well as micro-fine powders that blur fine lines.

Unlike the other Sheer Envy primers that come in tubes, this comes in an adorable little aqua colored bottle with a pump. It has a silver cap with the Hard Candy logo embossed on top. Overall I'd say they did a really nice job on the packaging!

One thing that totally surprised me the first time I used this is that the primer serum itself is the same color as the bottle! The outer packaging mentioned that this would color correct your skin for a more even tone, and the greenish tint does seem to counteract redness around my nose and on my cheeks.

I was also surprised by the feel of this primer...despite not having silicone or oil in it, it still manages to have a slicker feel due to the glycerin and shea butter in the formula. I was expecting it to feel dry or have a powdery finish but I was pleasantly surprised that this feels comfortable on my dry skin and makes it feel super soft, plump, and smooth.

That being said, I don't know how oily skinned gals will feel about this one. There's currently one review on the Walmart website from someone who has oily skin and she said that it feels thick and never seems to sink in or mattify her skin. I noticed that when I first apply it, my skin looks dewy but if I wait a minute or two, it does completely sink in and gives a beautifully smooth surface to apply foundation to. Unfortunately, oily skin may not soak this up as quickly as dry skin will, which is a shame because it does contain a lot of oil absorbing ingredients.

I tried to photograph the results on my face, but it was hard to capture the pores with my camera. I found that it was easier to see them on my hand, so I used that for my before and afters instead. You can see that it doesn't completely erase the look of pores and uneven texture, but it definitely creates a smoothing and tightening effect on the skin.
My makeup went on so much smoother and it lasted all day without fading. In fact, this primer is right up there with the best of them in terms of keeping your makeup in place! It looked the same at night as it did when I first put it on in the morning.

Overall, I'm really impressed with the new Hard Candy Pore-Defense Primer Serum. It's the perfect solution to help minimize uneven texture and pores while hydrating and smoothing my dry skin. It's really rare to find a pore-minimizing primer that doesn't make my skin feel even drier and I love how evenly my makeup goes on over this.
I'm hoping that those of you with oily skin can use this too...the review on the Walmart site is just one person's opinion, so it's likely not everyone will feel the same way. There aren't a lot of reviews out on this product yet, so I'd love to hear from those of you with oily skin that have tried this to see how it worked for you.

You can pick this up now at Walmart stores and Walmart.com.