Iconic London Velvet Smooth Pore Refining Primer.

Primer

About this product

A cream-textured pore-refining primer with a velvet-smooth finish designed to create a matte, refined base for foundation application.

Full ingredients

Isohexadecane, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate, Isododecane, Dextrin Palmitate, Mica, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Silica Dimethyl Silylate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Propylene Carbonate, Aluminum Hydroxide, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Fruit Extract, Ci 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), Ci 15850 (Red 7)

Guru Score

84%

Yay

Early verdict · Few reviews so far

What they liked

Velvet texture that blurs pores
Feels like skincare, not a heavy layer
Mattifies without a powdery feel

What they flagged

May dry out those with balanced or normal skin

What the gurus are saying

This cream primer delivers a velvet texture you press into pores, creating a smooth, mattified base that feels like skincare rather than a primer layer. Both reviewers prefer it to liquid silicone primers, noting it's thin, non-powdery, and integrates into skin. One caveat: it's formulated for genuinely oily skin and may dry out those with mild oiliness, so patch test first if your skin isn't significantly oily.

Synthesized from 2 expert reviews · most recent take March 2026

Type

PrimerCream

Formula notes

Fragrance-freeNo drying alcohol

Where to buy

Sephora → Ulta → Amazon → Google →

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What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

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AliceintheRabbitHole

59k subs

✓Yay

"This is a really nice primer, [...] a little more elevated than the Benefit Porefessional, which is what I used to use. You have to [...] press it into your pores exactly like you do with Benefit's, but this has even more of a velvet texture. It looks more like a moisturizer, and you push it into your pores to get a smooth canvas to apply foundation on top."

Robert Welsh

1.11M subs

✓Yay

"The Iconic London Velvet Smooth Pore Refining Primer is really great. It's more like a white cream. It's not like that clear, kind of gimmicky, siliconey liquid silicone. It's a little bit more of a face cream. Very thin on the skin. It doesn't feel powdery, it doesn't feel strange. You can just see it mattified and it feels more like skincare. It just feels like it becomes part of the skin, over something like Porefessional which kind of just feels like it sits on top."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Sunscreen filters

Sun protection is the best evidenced way to slow visible ageing, and the filters are what does the work. Mineral and chemical filters both protect when a product is applied thickly enough and often enough, which is where most people fall short rather than on the choice of filter.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is Iconic London Velvet Smooth Pore Refining Primer?

A cream-textured pore-refining primer with a velvet-smooth finish designed to create a matte, refined base for foundation application.

Is Iconic London Velvet Smooth Pore Refining Primer worth it?

Yes. All 2 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 84%.

What is Iconic London Velvet Smooth Pore Refining Primer's Guru Score?

Iconic London Velvet Smooth Pore Refining Primer holds a Guru Score of 84%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 2 expert reviewers we have collected.