Beauty is a $445 billion (sales) industry. In the sea of YouTubers and Beauty Bloggers, it’s easy to get lost and confused about what products really work and what products will work right for you. Before I became a stay-at-home mom for my girls and moved to Colorado I was a full-time makeup artist in Los Angeles, California. I worked for the number one cosmetic brand in the world, tested products, and trained others. In addition to helping women find their personal makeup needs at the beauty counter, I worked on countless weddings, photo shoots, commercials, music videos, and more. When I decided to make “Busy Mom” my new career I made a promise to myself to keep up my beauty routine. I got into makeup because I love it! I’m still beauty and fashion obsessed and while motherhood became my new priority, makeup and fashion were still going to be a part of my everyday life.
Makeup artist turned stay-at-home mom, turned fashion and beauty blogger. I originally started a blog at home to keep my creative juices flowing. It was a part-time hobby and I enjoyed it very much. From there it grew into a passion to help other moms and busy career women “Look better, feel better, and do better”. I’m going to break down my favorite foundations for you in hopes, that if you want to wear foundation, you will be able to find one you love and makes you feel as beautiful on the outside as you are on the inside!
I’m going to tell you what I love about each product and what that means to you. I grew up with terrible acne and have tried many different types of foundations, from drugstore to budget-breaking, looking for flawless skin.
This post is not sponsored, all opinions are my own, I only recommend using products that I’ve used and loved! Please note: My affiliate links are included in this post. This is at no cost to you, but it does keep the coffee hot and flowing in our house.
Drugstore Foundations
Loreal Paris Infallible Pro Glow Foundation || This lightweight foundation has light coverage and a very skin-like finish. It’s more coverage than you will get from a tinted moisturizer, but not enough that you will need a whole face of makeup to look natural. It’s ideal for dry skin with a slightly dewy finish.
Loreal True Match Makeup || This is a foundation I would stock my make up artist kit with. The color selection is great and it blends like a dream. If you have a hard time finding a color that works for you mixing two of these tones will give you the perfect skin match without breaking the bank. It gives full coverage with a lightweight feel. I used to use these for airbrushing!
Covergirl Vitalis Healthy Elixir || This full coverage foundation looks skin like while still giving a mostly matte finish. It’s boosted with vitamins E, B3, and B5, plus SPF 20. My personal fave.
All Natural
Beauty Counter Dew Skin Moisturizing Coverage || This foundation has been featured as a Best of Beauty Award Winner by Allure. I’m sure you’ve had a friend or friend of a friend that has insisted you try Beauty Counter. They do offer direct sales distribution, or you can buy straight from their website. This is another skin like look. A buildable light-medium coverage.
Department Store
M.A.C. Cosmetics Studio Fix Fluid || I’ve been wearing this foundation since the day it hit shelves. It’s silicone based and fills in any fine lines and wrinkles. It is full coverage with a matte finish. The silicone also helps control the t-zone oil for those with more oily skin. I don’t recommend this foundation be worn alone. Its coverage is flawless but you will “look like a ghost” if you don’t wear some bronzer or blush to add the flush back into the skin. I love to pair this with the M.A.C. Strobe Cream to add a little luminescence. Foundation for everyday wear should look like skin, not a mannequin.
It+ Cosmetics CC Cream || Another Best of Beauty Award Winner by Allure. I haven’t tried a CC Cream from It+ Cosmetics I haven’t liked. CC stands for Color Correction. Their formulas blend beautifully and give a flawless complexion without the heavy feeling of a heavier foundation.
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer || This is my ultimate go-to! It’s on the pricier end of the spectrum but there’s great news… it is sold in a travel size! I recommend this for anyone who isn’t a daily foundation wearer but might want a little coverage some days without the need to commit to a full face of makeup. It’s just the right amount of coverage with a whole lot of moisture.
Huda Beauty Faux Filter Foundation || This full coverage foundation creates a FLAWLESS finish. I was so impressed with this foundation. It photographs beautifully. It is worth every cent if you are a full face of makeup girl.
Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place || Another full coverage, waterproof, skin-like option. Estee Lauder has been in the cosmetic game a long time and they know what they are doing.
Dior Airflash Foundation Spray || This foundation is an investment. It comes in an aerosol can and is as close as I’ve found to airbrush. Photographs beautifully. I prefer to spray onto the back of my hand and buff onto face with a brush instead of spray directly onto the face. Provides a full coverage mannequin like finish. The colors aren’t as blendable as I’d like them to be. I’ve found when using this formula they have very strong yellow and red undertones that need to be blended with some kind of bronzer or contour to give the flush of life back to the face.
Applying your foundation
Most foundation brushes look like a paint brush. To get a more skin-like foundation finish and really work the foundation into the large pores and fine lines you will want to use a fluffy brush. The tighter the bristles on a makeup brush the more product it will apply, the less it will blend and buff. I hate sponges. Even the beauty blenders that are on trend right now. Sponges absorb your product so you go through it twice as fast. It also absorbs the dirt and bacteria on your face. The bacteria breeds and cause breakouts. Wetting the bacteria is just giving it a faster breeding ground. YUCK! If you can’t afford a brush, use your fingers.
What you need to know about wearing foundation
Prepping the skin for a foundation is super important. Make sure you have the best beauty routine in place for your skin. Cleanse, exfoliate, moisturize! I like to use a primer like this one from M.A.C. or this redness reducer from Smashbox to ensure the best coverage and long wear. If you have a more oily skin type you can set the foundation with a light powder. Using a setting spray like M.A.C. Fix + will increase the wear and help the foundation settle into the skin.
Removing foundation makeup is not as simple as using a cleanser. You MUST use a makeup remover! Washing your foundation with a cleanser is like washing your body in the shower with your clothes on. The soap will get through and move your clothes around, but the clothes are still on your body. I love keeping these wipes on my nightstand to ensure I remove it every night. I like to use additional moisturizer at night, but these wipes are a remover, cleanser, moisturizer in one if you are too exhausted to finish your routine.
Makeup is a very personal experience. Products that work for many won’t work for few. I’ve tried and love all of the foundations I’ve listed here, however, there is no guarantee they will work for you the same way. If you are currently using and loving a different product I’d love to know! Tell me what foundation you’re using in the comments. Don’t forget to pin and share this article!
