Random stream of consciousness coming your way, take a deep breath:

“What’s in my waste paper basket I wonder? I haven’t delved in there for at least three months. For all I know there could be things living in there! A family of mice, perhaps, or a small tramp. It’s a big bin, so a small tramp would fit, if he curled up very tight.

What’s this?! A Topshop Skin Tint! What’s this doing in the bin? And my Dr Lipp lipbalm? And the charger for my iPhone – I was wondering where that had got to! A cheque book, this year’s expenses file, some tweezers, the book (Room) that I was going to lend to my sister-in-law…

This, my friends, is the danger of keeping your bin right next to your desk if you are a) very untidy and b) lazy. I often hear things dropping into the bin from the edge of my desk, but I rarely stop to see if it’s anything important that has taken the Dive of Death. When it comes to actually emptying out the bin, I find all kinds of things lurking. I once found a shoe.

Back to the Skin Tint. Packaging-wise, it’s in a nice tube with a stripy lid that looks as though it has been drawn on with a crayon. An ‘arty’ touch. I like the packaging; it’s pretty basic but as pretty as it needs to be to look ok in the makeup bag… Lid off, and there’s a black plastic pump to dispense the makeup. So far so good…

The shade is ‘fair’. A pretty good match for my wintery skin tone. I’ll pop some on shall I? Oooh! Quite liquidy, but hold on…what’s this? It seems to thicken out once it makes contact with the skin, and it absorbs really fast. It reminds me a little bit of the Korres Watermelon Tinted Moisturiser, except it doesn’t smell of watermelons. And it’s less liquidy to start with. And it doesn’t set quite as fast. So not really like the Korres then.

Is it just me, or does this Skin Tint leave a bit of a residue? The polite beauty term for this seems to be ‘dewy’, but I think that ‘waxy’ might sometimes be a better description. ‘Dewy’ suggests a fresh radiance, when much of the time the final finish is more…greasy. The Skin Tint does seem to have given a little colour to my pallid skin, and it has also evened it out and made it look smoother. There’s a hint of ‘freshness’, but I can’t get rid of the niggling feeling that it’s sitting a little heavily, especially around my T-Zone, which is prone to oiliness.

I’m off to have a look in the proper mirror. O…..K….. How’s it looking? Hmm. Surprising. Although it feels a little slick and oily, the finish is actually just very sheer and slightly radiant. It doesn’t look shiny at all! A nice, fresh-faced hint of colour.

An interesting one, this; it depends how you prefer your base to feel rather than look. The finish is fresh-looking, but the feel and texture is kind of slippy. A bit like the Becca and Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturisers. It’s entirely a ‘personal preference’ kinda thing. Which I hope isn’t a cop-out. Oh GOD, am I a cop-out? Grow a spine woman, and say what you think:

I love the finish, don’t love the feel.

There, I said it. I would prefer it a little lighter – still with a dewy finish, just without the feeling that I need to sweep a load of powder over the top to finish it off. Is that possible? I have no idea! I know that my Chanel Hydramax finishes off perfectly, but then that doesn’t cost a tenner, so….

Have I come to any sensible conclusion about this Skin Tint? No. I want someone else to test it out and see what they think. Someone with dry skin maybe. Talk to me people.”

Skin Tint is £10 from Topshop.