Review: Clinique Redness Solutions Foundation

When Clininque's Redness Solutions foundation came out, I was all over it. I get redness in my face, I flush easily and sometimes it can feel so hot that it's bothersome. I don't like it, and it's a major reason why I opt for foundations that provide high coverage. I try to cover it with concealer, but I prefer to have an all over colour to even it all out. I haven't been diagnosed with rosacea however. When I went to a counter to try this out, the sales girl took all my makeup off to see how red my skin got, also to see how my skin reacted to this. There is also a complete Redness Solutions line with cleansers, moisturizers and other items to help with redness, including a yellow powder (not a fan of that though). Clinique's Redness Solution foundation is supposed to "visible reduce redness on contact  for an overall even tone. Probiotic technology helps replenish skin's moisture barrier." This formulation is oil-free and should instantly colour-correct flushing and blushing, with calming ingredients to help minimize flare-ups. For more information, check out Clinique's website.

The packaging on this is the standard squeeze pour applicator top, just like the Even Better foundation, which is nice. I have this in the colour, Calming Alabaster, which is the lightest colour. I like that this not only creates a nice base for your makeup, but also doubles up as a treatment and is intended to better your skin. I haven't noticed much change in the redness in my face over time however, I should really wear this exclusively for a month or so to test it properly, but I am fickle and like to switch my foundations up. This is great not only if you get redness, but if you have acne scaring too, any sort of redness or irritation basically.

This foundation is supposed to be slightly yellow to help even out redness. However, I find, as with all the Clinique foundations that I've tried they run dark. As you can tell from the swatch above, it is slightly more yellow than the lightest shade in Even Better (on right). I think Calming Alabaster is best suited for those around NC20, this is slightly too dark for me. I find this really odd and unfortunate because those most bothered with rosacea are those with fair skin, as it shows up more on them, and the shade selection in this product is poor for those with fair skin! I really wish Clinique would offer lighter shades.

This foundation is best suited for those with very-dry, dry-combination, and oily, so basically everyone. I don't find it particularly moisturizing however, I have to moisturize well when I wear this, today I wore a calming creme, moisturizer, and primer before applying this. I find Even Better to be more suited for my dry skin than this. A problem I have with this is it turns more yellow on my dry patches, so I have to be careful to blend it very well. The coverage is described as moderate, which is medium, this isn't a full coverage foundation. The finish is quite dewy, if you just do one layer of this it can look natural, which I like, you don't need a lot to cover your entire face. I use a flat top to apply it, tap it more heavily on my cheeks (red area) and it applies smoothly and evenly.

Overall, a decent product, but perhaps a miss for those with fair-light skin, which is a pity they should expand their shade selection for sure. Clinique foundations are pretty good, they are dermatologist tested and are supposed to be good for your skin (good for those with sensitive skin too), most contain SPF (this one has SPF15). Definitely a product worth giving a try. I would be curious to see if any of you have used this and whether it made a difference in your redness over time.

Have you tried Clinique's Redness Solutions line?