Catrice

Catrice Soft Glam Foam Primer Review

By Maychiri's Thoughts - September 07, 2025

Oh? Time for something brand new today! This is the Catrice Soft Glam Foam Primer!
 

While writing the overview for the new Autumn/Winter 2025 refresh (which you can read here!), I realised that I actually really wanted quite a lot of the products – including this primer! Now, I am not a fan of anything that looks glowy as my skin is already plenty “glowy” on its own with all the sebum... but this is an entirely different kind of primer! See, this is a foam primer! I’ve, personally, never heard of such a thing before; primers are usually either gels or liquids, never foam... but it makes perfect sense, looking in hindsight. Like, so many Korean beauty products are foam, which helps them absorb more rapidly and better into the skin... so why wouldn’t a primer be like that, as well? It actually makes perfect sense when you think about it! I just never considered this before. So, when I saw this for the first time, I was awed – and knew that I simply had to buy it once it arrives to Croatia. No way am I missing out on this! I must know what  a foam primer is like! Even if it makes my face greasy! So, now that I finally have it, let’s see what it’s like! 

 
Or, if you would like to see it in video format, click here to watch my Instagram Reel, where I tried it out!
 

 
Packaging: plastic bottle, nothing too special or extravagant. The plastic is relatively soft, but it doesn’t feel too cheap. Still, would have preferred it being glass. But seeing how many times I have already dropped it, perhaps it is for the best that it is plastic, haha! I love the colours of the cap; this gentle peachy pink colour fits the name and entire theme of the primer perfectly. The bottle itself is transparent, it’s the primer that is peachy pink. The bottle is relatively heavy and feels robust enough for this price. The cap is peachy pink and glossy, which is so elegant and pretty! The cap closes very securely, with a click, but sometimes it’s like there’s a tiny bit that doesn’t close properly so you have to press down twice just to close it right. Maybe that’s a casualty of one of the falls? 

 
 
 
 
But otherwise, it really closes extremely tightly. There is a pump inside, that dispenses the foam primer, but it will get its own section. The overall build quality feels good; nothing has broken (yet) and it feels robust. No leaking, either! As for details, there aren’t any, really. Just the name and information about the primer. Black text really doesn’t suit the theme here, it is way too harsh. There’s a lot of text in the back, so it is very tiny! Good luck reading it!
 
 
 
 
 
So, in order to turn the liquid formula into foam, you need a foaming pump, which is exactly what this is! And it is super robust; it feels high quality despite being made out of plastic. I appreciate the textured surface where you’d place your finger to pump out the foam, it adds a lot of grip so that your fingers don’t slip. This is a small detail, but it matters! The pump requires a decent amount of push to get it going, so you don’t need to worry about accidentally dispensing the primer. But once you press it down, you are able to precisely pump out the exact amount of primer you need, be that a tiny little squirt or a giant amount. It creates this great foam that takes a while to turn to liquid on its own, so you don’t need to hurry when you are applying the primer. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I really love this pump! I think I will save this bottle once it is empty to see if I can make my toner into a foam toner, the pump is just too good to let it go to waste! And if you press down on it fully, you’ll get a humongous amount of primer! Such a great pump, wow!

 
 

 

 
Ingredients: glycerine, apple (Pyrus malus) extract, inulin, cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) fruit extract for nourishment. No parabens. Ooh, fruit extracts! This should make the primer hydrating for the skin. And the extracts aren’t at the very end of the list, so there is a decent amount of them in the primer. The scent is so lovely! It’s pretty intense, but since it is gentle, it is easy on the nose. It smells so fresh and clean! Like, it just smells like freshness! What flower this would be, I don’t know. Maybe mallow? But it is also kinda like lotus... hmm, well, whatever it is, I love the scent! It smells clean and fresh and like some expensive K-Beauty product! And it is so soothing, as well! The expiration date is 12 months after opening. 
 
 
 
Colour: while the formula is peachy pink in the bottle – and quite noticeably so – it isn’t pink on the skin, thank god! Once it turns to foam, it becomes white, which, after it is buffed into the skin, becomes colourless liquid. So you don’t have to worry about this primer adding any pink tones to your skin. This makes it suitable for any skintone. The golden shimmer also disappears on the skin, or it is so tiny that I just cannot see it. Awesome! Last thing I need is to be glistening and glimmering like gold. It is really quite wondrous how the white foam becomes so clear once you start rubbing it... this primer is magic, I am telling you!

 
 
 
In the bottle, the primer is a peachy liquid with gold shimmer that looks somewhat soapy. It creates a lot of bubbles when you shake it up! It looks thick and opaque, but everything changes once you pump it out. It becomes foam! And it is not that dry, cloudy type of foam you’d find in bubble baths, this foam looks more like a bunch of tiny micelles! It for sure looks hydrating, especially once it melts into liquid.  
 
 
 
 
The formula is noticeably greasy and heavy at first; it feels occlusive and like it is going to cause problems for my acne-prone skin. That’s only at first, though! Because, once it melts into the skin, it becomes much more watery than greasy. It takes like 15 seconds for it to become one with the skin. I really like this formula not because of this, but because of how it feels to use! See, the foam is so bouncy and fluffy and feels good and fun to use! And the sounds it makes! So bouncy! So fun! However, upon further inspection, this does still feel greasy when I touch it, even after it has had a chance to fully absorb. It doesn’t feel comedogenic, though. It’s actually quite lightweight! And it never pills! This is crucial, because, then, makeup won’t pill (as much) either! 
 
 
I also like how it is slightly grippy without feeling too tacky. It's just enough grippiness, to me. Very cool formula! I adore it, even though it is a bit too greasy for me. But I simply cannot dislike the foam!
 
 
 
The first step to applying this primer is to shake it up! This is necessary to get it ready to foam up. Then, just pump it out and you can apply it! And wow, it is so fun to apply! This is because the foam feels so bouncy and fluffy and fun. The primer is extremely easy to apply precisely because it is foam, so it absorbs into the skin extremely quickly. However, you really do not need more than 2 pumps. I prefer to do small pumps, so that I can precisely apply exactly how much I want to. The foam practically melts into the skin, I love this! It also dries in like 15 seconds so you don’t have to wait for a long time before you can continue with the rest of makeup. But I still cannot get over how fluffy and bouncy the foam is! This is by far the most fun primer to apply!
 
 
 
Oh my god! The very first thing I feel is this amazing hydration that feels soothing and has a cooling sensation – without menthol! It feels incredible! Like skincare! Yes, it does feel greasy at first, but it quickly becomes watery instead of greasy. It feels like it is deeply hydrating the skin, which should help any makeup on top of this primer last longer because happy skin = better makeup. However, this extremely hydrating, cooling sensation quickly disappears, leaving behind a slight feeling of tightness. This is because this primer has some grip to it. But it’s not uncomfortable. In fact, it is super comfortable! After it absorbs, I can barely feel it on my skin! It doesn’t feel like a tight cast on my face nor like a greasy layer in top of it. Even though it does feel greasy to touch. It is also non-comedogenic; I haven’t had any breakouts caused by this primer, so it is suitable for sensitive, oily and acne-prone skin! Amazing! See, this is why it was a great idea to make it into a foam!
 
 
 
Okay, so, this is a hydrating primer, first and foremost. It offers deep hydration, which helps the skin look slightly plumper and healthier. I love this! But I am not a fan of the second effect it has: radiance. Look, my skin is oily enough on its own, even on the best of days, so I avoid shiny products like the plague. And this leaves the skin looking pretty shiny. On skin that is less oily than mine, this would probably look like healthy radiance. On me, though, it just looks greasy. Not like glass skin, just greasy skin. I really don’t like this, but, thankfully, the shine disappears once I apply a foundation on top. So, if you like radiance, this primer will be good for you. And... that would be it in terms of effects, really. It doesn’t optically blur pores, it doesn’t give a faux-filter effect, it doesn’t mattify skin or neutralise redness. Okay, the calming feeling might reduce some redness but it doesn’t have any colour-correcting in it, is what I am saying. It’s mostly just to add hydration and a good amount of glow. I would much rather prefer that it had a pore-minimising effect, but it is what it is. I guess there is use in having this glowy texture. Probably.
 
 
 
So, I’ve been using this primer often lately, to test it out under multiple foundations, just to see how it react with different formulas... and I am happy! It works wondrously with most formulas, only slightly sliding under those foundations that have a dropper to apply them with. But liquid foundations work super well with this primer, as do cream ones. What I am most happy about is that the foundations don’t look like a greasy mess with this primer underneath. Of course, if the foundation is shiny, then, well, YMMV, but, since I mostly use matte foundations, they stay matte despite this being a shiny/radiant primer. This primer primes the skin really nicely; everything on top applies so smoothly and blends out like a charm! So it really is a great base for makeup! It doesn’t cause foundations to separate from the primer after a few hours, either. I think the key to it working so well is that it hydrates the skin and blends seamlessly with it. And since it never pills thanks to the foam formula, it is that much easier to apply anything else on top! This is turning out to be a great innovation!
 

 
Longevity seems to be pretty decent! At least, under makeup, it is. Makeup seems to stay in fresher condition for longer, with a bit less oiliness at the end of the day. However, on its own, it tends to start breaking down within 2 hours, so it doesn’t like oily skin too much. Skin is still oily, but not quite as much as it is usually, so it seems like the deep hydration is working well. That said, it is not at all waterproof or sweatproof; it will break down if it gets too wet or oily. So you really need to set it well if you want it to really last the entire day. But I honestly am surprised it lasted this long; usually, primers start to look very oily within 2 hours, so the fact that this one doesn’t look like a terribly greasy mess is a wonder! 
 

 
Since it becomes so lightweight and isn’t too oily, this primer is extremely easy to remove. Just one swipe with micellar water or some makeup remover gel and presto – all gone! And no greasy residue or anything else!
 

 
Oh, and one last note: this primer tends to run out relatively quickly for some reason. About 5 uses in, and I have already used up roughly 1/3 of it, so I doubt it would last an entire month of daily use. Maybe it could if you applied a very light layer?
 

 
 
 
All in all, I actually really like this primer! The only thing I truly dislike is that it leaves your skin looking  greasy – at least, it looks greasy on my skin, which is already oily. The shimmer, thankfully, is not visible. It would be horrible if it were greasy and shimmery... I wouldn’t want to look like Edward Cullen. But, since this is a primer, it being shiny isn’t a huge issue because it will get covered up with foundation anyways, which will likely take away most of the shine. To me, this is a great thing! However, if you prefer shininess, you might find this to be not that good. I didn’t know what to expect at all from this primer, I was just hoping it would play nicely with foundations/concealers and that it wouldn’t cause breakouts. And it is that and so much more! The formula is liquid in the bottle, with very noticeable golden shimmer; however, it becomes foam once it goes through the pump. It changes from being a peachy pink with gold shimmer into a pure white foam with no shimmer. And the foam looks almost like micelles! It is that hydrating, lightweight kind of foam that readily absorbs into the skin without much need for rubbing it, though, since I tend to apply a bit too much, I need to spend a good few minutes buffing it into the skin. But I don’t mind that because the sensorial experience of buffing in this foam is sooo fun! And so relaxing! The foam does feel greasy, though. But it absorbs pretty quickly, leaving behind a nice, even canvas for the rest of makeup. It doesn’t feel grippy to me; it is just hydrating and lightweight. Oh yeah, it feels super hydrating while I am applying it, and I noticed that foundations tend to look fresher and more hydrated for a longer time when I use this primer underneath. That’s the fruit extracts at play! This primer doesn’t do much besides hydrating the skin and adding radiance; it doesn’t optically minimise pores, it doesn’t neutralise redness (apart from the calming formula naturally soothing the skin), it doesn’t matter the skin. So, if you are looking for any of that, this primer won’t be it. But I am so happy with how content – no, happy – my skin is with this primer! No new breakouts from it, and my skin just feels super calm the entire day! And it works incredibly well under most foundation types, be it liquid or cream. When I do a full face of makeup, I cannot judge how long this primer lasts, but it seems to stay the entire day if you aren’t sweating much. Because sweat (and water in general) seems to dissolve it. On its own, I can get maybe 2 hours before my natural sebum starts to break through, but I am not going to wear it solo anyways, so as long as it stays the entire day under setting spray and everything else, I am happy! I honestly did not think I would enjoy this primer quite this much, but it is pretty darn good! Sometimes, innovations are trying too hard and end up being flops... and then, there’s times like these, where the product being innovative pays off so, so much! And now that I think about it, why didn’t I think about primer being foam before...? It actually makes perfect sense for a hydrating primer like this to be in a foam format! So yup, this was a success! I will keep happily using it until it’s empty (which, btw, it gets used up a bit too quickly for my liking)! And I will give it a recommendation – it has earned it, despite some notable flaws! Yay!

 
 
Rating: 7/10

 
Would buy again? YES (despite looking greasy on me!)



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