Saturday, March 5, 2011

Foundations That I Dislike

At least half the battle in finding the right foundation for me is finding one that is light enough (the other half is one that doesn't irritate my dry skin). I wear about NC15 in MAC, I don't think of myself as pastey white, I have friends that are whiter than me, and know there are people out there lighter than me. As you can tell all the foundations that I am going to talk about today are from the drugstore, these are all far too dark for me. I find that drugstores really do not know what an "ivory" shade looks like, when I think "ivory" I think white, porcelain I think very pale too, not pink. The trouble with drugstore is their foundations are pretty cheap, so I justify buying it, if it doesn't work out it's okay, I haven't wasted that much money I say to myself. And there are rarely testers, so you just guess at your colour, it's the lightest they make, it must work for me, but in many cases it doesn't. I think companies really have to get it right, they often do not cater to light toned girls.

Offender #1 - Maybelline Superstay Porcelain Ivory
One of the worst colourmatches ever, their lightest shade, "Porcelain Ivory" is anything but, it's quite pink, and if not blended in right it has an almost red stain to it. This foundation is not forgiving either since it does go quite matte very fast and sticks to your skin (since it claims to be 24 hour wear). I can't wear this foundation at all.

Offender #2 - Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse Classic Ivory
I used to buy Classic Ivory shades a lot because the lightest colour was often too pink for me, and this is the case with Dream Liquid Mousse, love the foundation, but the colour, terrible. This is the actually one of the darkest foundations that I own.

Offender #3 - Rimmel Stay Matte 100 Ivory
I like this foundation as well, but the lightest colour is too dark. In this case, I wrote to the company after buying this, told them how NONE of their foundations match me, and they offered to send me a free product, which turned out to be the Stay Matte powder, that was nice of them, but they keep putting out foundations that are too dark. I recently tried their Match Perfection foundation, and the lightest shade was very dark for me, can't wear it.

Offender #4 - Rimmel Lasting Finish 100 Ivory
Another Rimmel foundation, I like how liquidly and runny this one is, but again, the colour match isn't right. This one actually isn't terrible, but I included it here anyway.

Offender #5 - Revlon Age Defying 002 Fair/Light
What irritates me about this foundation is they do carry a lighter shade, I think it's 001 Fair, but we don't get it in Canada, so I am SOL on this one too.

There are others, but these are the ones that stand out to me the most. After trying so many foundations and being disappointed, I find that higher-end ones have a much better shade selection and I end up wasting less money that way, plus if I don't like it, I can always return it. I think finding the right foundation is a lifelong battle, since your skintone changes, your needs and your skin gets lighter and darker depending on the season. If you are fair-light, please tell me your best suited colour match below!

What is your most disliked foundation?

29 comments:

CrystalLuvz said... Best Blogger Tips

The first foundation that I purchased is still the one for me. Since it's something you put on your entire face, I decided to look for something high end. The foundation I use is the MAC select SPC 15 in NC20. Perfect match and I love the light-medium coverage.

Eiryn said... Best Blogger Tips

I'm slightly paler than NC15 and its too yellowish for me, but the best color match EVER for me has to be the L'oreal True Match in Cool Tone, Alabaster. Its not TOO pink like most cool tone ones tend to be, and its the best foundation i've ever used. I have a horrifying case of acne, and with concealer it covers it all. Never trying a new foundation unless this one is discontinued. :)

Justine (Productrater) said... Best Blogger Tips

@Eiryn - Ahh see there are people paler than me! woohoo! Loreal true match has a good colour selection definitely, I wear W2, but I should probably be W1 and I hear ya on the too pink, it's either too pink or too dark for me. Glad that you found one that works for you. :)

Ashley said... Best Blogger Tips

I hear the Revlon Age Defying Spa foundation is really good for drugstore. Too bad they don't carry the lightest shade in Canada.
Even though I'm not extremely pale, I find it pretty hard to find a light-to-medium shade. I lean towards medium shades because I think light makes me look a bit ghostly (all in my head) but then a make-up artist reminded me that foundations oxidize so a lighter shade is better than darker!

Dyna said... Best Blogger Tips

thank you for sharing, it's usually very very hard to find a foundation which is not pink or matches your skin perfectly :/ I am using the hd nyx foundation, the texture is really nice :D

Justine (Productrater) said... Best Blogger Tips

@Dyna - what shade do you wear in NYX HD? I want to try that one, but there aren't many swatches available online yet since it is quite a new product.

Jamie Dorman said... Best Blogger Tips

It's really hard for me to find a match in foundation, but luckily I do have pink undertones so I can find matches at the drugstore. My problem with drugstore foundations is that they never make one that is actually moisturizing to the skin. My skin need a moisturizing foundation even after my moisturizer and most drugstore foundations make my skin flake.

Justine (Productrater) said... Best Blogger Tips

@PoorCollegeStudent - totally agree with you, having dry skin+pale skin is a terrible combination when you are looking for a drugstore foundation!

Unknown said... Best Blogger Tips

I love how if I ever need advice on foundations I always pop along to your blog- you seem to have tried them all!
I am very lucky, I have a medium light skintone so the 'lightest' ones are usually just right. I do sympathise with you though, I have a friend who is literally white and she has only ever found one foundation that is light enough for her skintone.
Great post!
xx

Sophie said... Best Blogger Tips

I'm an NC15 at MAC (though it's a tad too dark if I layer my foundation), and I find it so hard to buy foundations. I'm currently using MAC's Satin finish as it's a light coverage, which I need for school.. just to cover the bad bits ;)

It's so hard finding foundations, Urban Decay is among the worst for their colour range. Their lightest was a very tanned/bronzed brown. No thanks!

xxx

Unknown said... Best Blogger Tips

I always read your foundation posts as we are just about the same skintone! Yes, finding foundations for super fair skin is soooo hard!!! Especially in the drugstore. But, even when I go to Sephora, the MAs always want to put me in a shade too dark. xoxo!

Unknown said... Best Blogger Tips

I find it hard to find the right shade, they either don't have it or sold out and never re stock (Walmart) have you tried Annabelle their skin true foundation I bought natural ivory and it's not pink at all and matches my skin perfect. I'll but a review up on my blog so you can see the color.

wimbly11 said... Best Blogger Tips

I'm using the Maybelline Superstay one right now. The lady at the drugstore recommended it. I have the same issue. It sticks to my skin and doesn't spread easily at all. I still have not found a good foundation!

CJ :) said... Best Blogger Tips

i just like you have trouble finding drugstore brand foundation that would really match me and my skintone.. i have tried a couple of times and failed. so no drugstore foundation buying for me anymore.. come to think of it.. sure they are cheap but the amount of failed foundations we bought.. still a waste of our money :(

KayKay said... Best Blogger Tips

wow the maybelline dream liquid is really dark for it to be the lightest shade. i agree with it being hard to find a good drugstore foundation because im a woman of color and NEVER get my shade. theres always a big gap between the darker shades or its not dark enough. you end up saving $$ going to the high end stores. and the dry skin, ugh tell me about it. i HATE having dry skin =(

TINA said... Best Blogger Tips

Im pretty pale myself, its hard to find a foundation that matches....I also have Maybelline Superstay and I agree it bad!

Try BB cream! it works for me :D

Liz (Beauty Reductionista) said... Best Blogger Tips

Believe it or not, my most despised foundation is the Armani Luminous Silk. Yup, it does NOT suit my skin well at all, nor does its shade range match me. I've often been tempted by these drugstore foundations in the past but I never pick them up since it's hard to swatch and test colours while in the store. They've gotten better about that lately so maybe I should give it a whirl.

Grumpy Mom said... Best Blogger Tips

I haven't had huge success in finding a great drugstore foundation, but ones that are suitable in both coverage, finish and shade that i like are:
Almay TLC liquid 16hr wear - Buff (2nd lightest shade)
Neutrogena Healthy Skin liquid (3rd lightest shade)
Both work well for my yellow/neutral undertones, combo skin. However, the price point is laughable at $17.99 for Almay and Neutrogena isnt available in Canada.

Justine (Productrater) said... Best Blogger Tips

@Grumpy Mom - I really like the Neutrogena healthy skin, I picked it up last time I was in the US, but the lightest colour was pretty dark for me too, classic ivory.

Anonymous said... Best Blogger Tips

THanks for sharing... good to know ;-)

KL said... Best Blogger Tips

Have you tried BB Creams? They don't have a wide range shades, but they are generally pretty light.

Leah said... Best Blogger Tips

Thats bad :/ At my drugstore they have plenty of testers everywhere, and if they don't, you ask and they open a brand new bottle just for you to experiment with.
xxx

Justine (Productrater) said... Best Blogger Tips

@Leah - what drugstore do you shop at? Around here it's very rare that they do (this being in Canada). And even when they do have testers it's hard to get a real idea of what it looks like/how it oxidizes/looks in different lighting etc.

Megan Hickman said... Best Blogger Tips

Can anyone suggest a good FULL COVERAGE foundation? I usually have dry skin but ever since I went off the pill I have had SUPER oily skin with some dry spots here and there. I have never had to deal with oily skin before. I thought dry skin was terrible- but I think I would trade it for oily skin! LOL!

I really think that I wear too dark of foundation. I never really know what colour I truly am? Usually I purchased the beiges or neutral beige- more so the medium colours than the light ones... I think I might be more light though? Not sure :(

Anyway, I have a hard time with foundation because I like a full coverage. Something that will last all day and cover up a blemish here and there!

Any suggestions? High or low, doesn't really matter.

MUA Lindsay said... Best Blogger Tips

After trying Revlon ColorStay & Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse, I gave up on drugstore foundations. Their colors are aweful and I hated the formulas in general. I'd much rather spend the money on MAC or Makeup Forever and have an almost-great product. But I'm totally with you on the shades. I'm probably about the same coloring as you and know there's plenty out there lighter. I don't understand why MAC doesn't go down to NC/W 0! Or even negative, at this point! I do have Face & Body, in white, in my kit, just encase it's needed, but what a pain to mix your foundation. I find MUFE's shade range a lot better for me. (#20 in Mat Velvet) Thankfully my skin seems pretty forgiving to colors and there's some days I just don't care... :-(

MUA Lindsay said... Best Blogger Tips

@Megan Hickman: You might try Makeup Forever Mat Velvet+ or MAC Pro Longwear. Sephora (for MUFE) or MAC can color match you in store, if you can get to one. Also, for the oiliness, you might try a new skincare routine. I'm a big Clinique fan, but if you can find something that works, even a little, it's a blessing!

Megan Hickman said... Best Blogger Tips

@MUA Lindsay Thanks so much. I do have a Mac and Sephora near me so I will have to try them out! How is Mac with returning? I know Sephora is AMAZING and that is why I <3 them SO MUCH! If I buy the Mac Pro Longwear and hate it or the colour, will they exchange for another colour or return?

How much is the MUFE and MAC? Thanks.

Justine (Productrater) said... Best Blogger Tips

@Megan Hickman - MAC is excellent for returns and exchanges, just keep your receipt and don't overuse the product, I've returned stuff before. Ya for full coverage and oily skin, it should be pretty easy to find a good foundation (I have dry skin so full coverage is too much for my skin). But I would suggest the MUFE Mat Velvet as well, I have a review on that here.. http://productrater.blogspot.com/2011/02/review-make-up-for-ever-mat-velvet.html

Or the MUFE HD too, less mattifying, more glowy but still good coverage.

And the estee lauder double wear is great for full coverage too.

MAC foundations tend to irritate some people, if they work well for you, there are some good ones, pro longwear is one, studio sculpt is nice too, I have most of their foundations and love them.

MUA Lindsay said... Best Blogger Tips

@Megan Hickman: Like Justine said, MAC is great with returns, too. MAC Pro Longwear is $29.50 and MUFE Mat Velvet+ is $34. (US$)

I, personally, wasn't too impressed with MUFE HD... though I did wear it on my Wedding Day, it was before I discovered Mat Velvet+.

If you want to test out the two, or whatever ones, just ask for samples. I know MAC is great with this, and I've heard Sephora is, too.