Over the last weekend I did something that I’ve never done before: I went to Sephora, completely makeup-free.
Yea, I know, not really a big deal.
Well, it is if you’re me and you’ve been struggling with skin problems your entire life. Having clear skin feels amazing, but in a very strange way I feel like I’m losing a part of my identity. Just the other day, as I was washing my face, I noticed a tiniest breakout on my chin and said : “awww, look, it’s a pimple!” with a smile on my face. My husband, who was shaving his face and standing next to me, looked at me with a slight pity in his eyes and said “you are SO weird, you do know that right?“.
One of the major things that changed along with my skin, were my foundation choices. I can finally try products I’ve always wanted to try, but knew wouldn’t work with my Snape-like oily skin. One of them being: Armani Luminous Silk foundation. I mean the word Luminous itself was very off-putting to me. I loved my foundations very, very, very matte. As flat as it gets. If I saw a hint of oil coming through, I’d blot it, powder it- do whatever it took to make it go away.
Today, all I reach for are light, dewy, sheer formulas with a natural finish. Luminous Silk is definitely beautiful and a perfect foundation for these warmer months. As much love as this foundation is getting, I was skeptical about it, but so far I’m loving it. It goes on very smoothly, doesn’t cling to any dry patches, feels light, looks natural; I just can’t attest as to the radiance it’s supposed to give, because my skin is SO damn dry at the moment. It does contain a little fragrance (like most high-end foundations I’ve used and I really don’t get why adding fragrance is necessary) but it’s very delicate and undetectable after a few minutes. Most importantly, it doesn’t irritate my skin.
Welp, I think it’s safe to say I get the hype now.
Chanel Vitalumiére Aqua– currently reaching for this all the time. This foundation did absolutely nothing for me before I went on Acccutane, now I can’t stop using it. I love the watery formula and ultra-light feel and the minimal coverage. I think that this foundation will work only with someone who already has good skin and doesn’t need a whole lot of coverage or deals with large pores. This foundation is very, very light and feels amazing on skin, BUT as with a lot of Chanel products, it’s loaded with fragrance so if you have sensitive skin, watch out.
Another amazing base product that I wish came in a fragrance-free version: Guerlain Meteorites Baby Glow foundation. Apart from the fact that it’s loaded with fragrance- I love everything about it. It has a light coverage and adds a beautiful glow to skin, it’s long-lasting and the shade matches my skin nicely (it does come only in 3 shades). It’s the type of product you want to reach for when your skin is looking a little dull, maybe when you didn’t get enough sleep (once again though, it does contain strong fragrance).
It’s no secret that I love my True Match foundations. I remember when True Match foundation came out, actually. I fell in love with it the moment I used it and it’ll always be my favorite. I love both the original and Lumi versions. They’re both very light with easily blendable and buildable formula. They already give nice, light coverage, but I love mixing a drop or two with a moisturizer, too, if I want even less coverage. Lumi obviously has better packaging and adds even more of that healthy glow to the skin. Hands down the best drugstore foundation(s)- especially if you like light, natural coverage and have normal to dry skin. I always recommend these two to everyone I know. Lumi is actually a nice dupe for the Luminous Silk, although the latter does last a little longer on me.
Urban Decay’s Naked Skin is one of those foundations I love, but for some reason don’t reach out for very often. It’s very light, but gives quite a nice coverage- I love using it best with a beauty blender. This might seem like a nice option for dry skin, but I unfortunately can’t count on this when my skin is extremely dry- it tends to cling to every single dry bit, unless I soak my face in a good moisturizer before.
Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint in Alaska, Guerlain Meteorites Baby Glow Sheer Makeup, L’Oreal True Match in N2, Urban Decay Naked Skin 1.0, Armani Luminous Silk in 4.5, MUFE Mat Velvet + in #30, Chanel Vitalumiére Aqua in 10 Beige and L’Oreal Lumi in N1-2
If there is one foundation that I could never go without with my extremely oily skin, it’s MUFE’s Mat Velvet +. This is probably the only foundation that worked well with my oily skin, while also being lightweight, giving nice coverage and not feeling cakey. I love it for warm weather because it’s light, but also water-resistant. When I was on Tazorac my skin was extremely dry (to the point of peeling) but also.. extremely oily. It was the strangest thing ever. During that time, I loved mixing Mat Velvet + with True Match.
Another matte foundation I love is NARS Velvet Matte Skin Tint. The shade is my summer shade so if my skin goes back to being oily, I’ll definitely have to pick up a lighter one. I wouldn’t call this a “skin tint”- it’s a foundation. Light (not sheer, which you’d expect from a skin tint) to medium coverage and it has that nice, matte finish.
