The Battle Of The Foundations: What Works And What Doesn’t?

Foundation has been my favourite makeup product for as long as I can remember. I love to create a smooth and flawless base for my makeup, I feel like it’s an essential step in my makeup routine. Back in the day I used to have pretty clear skin but I was very oily. Nowadays I have a little more blemishes and the oiliness isn’t my biggest concern anymore. I’ve tried a lot of different foundations with a lot of different textures and claims and today I’m going to show you lots of different types of foundations and I’m going to tell you which ones worked for me and which ones didn’t! If you’re interested in reading about that, make sure you continue reading this post!

Mattifying foundations

Let’s start off with the first category: the mattifying foundations. Back in the day I used to be all about these foundations because my skin was just out of hand. Nowadays I don’t use them as much, but I still like to have a few on hand just in case I really need something to control my oiliness.

Pro’s

Mattifying foundations have a lot of pro’s when you’re struggling with oily skin. They manage to keep the amount of oil on your skin under control which prevents you from getting shiny. Another positive thing I’ve experienced is that most matte foundations are very long lasting. Because they’re a little more dry and because they have to stay in place even on top of very oily skin it’s important that they are strong. Compared to more dewy foundations I feel like these stay in place much better.

• Oil control
• No shine
• Great staying power

Cons

But for me there are a little more cons to mattifying foundations than pro’s. One of those things is that because they are slightly dryer in consistency they’re not always as easy to work with. Often the formulas dry down at some point which means that if you have a little blotchiness going on somewhere it’s hard to remove after it has dried down.

I also feel like matte foundations are usually a bit darker shade wise and in my experience they do tend to oxidise a little. Because I’m very pale that is a big con for me!

Also, if you have a little more dry skin or for example if it’s winter and you have a runny nose, these matte foundations can look horrible on those areas. It can start to look patchy and flakey and that’s just not a good look!

• Hard to blend
• Darker shades
• Patchy and flaky on some areas

Examples from my collection: Diorskin Forever, L’Oreal Infallible Matte, Rimmel Stay Matte, Becca Ultimate Coverage Complexion Creme, Jouer Matte Moisture Tint

Dewy foundations

Having discussed the mattifying foundations, let’s move on to the dewy foundations. Back in the day I never thought I’d ever prefer dewy foundations over matte ones, but I really do!

Pro’s

One of the biggest pro’s for me is the fact that dewy foundation just looks a lot more natural than matte ones do. Because of the shine your face doesn’t look as makeupped and these dewy foundations tend to look a little less heavy and cakey than matte foundations do.

I also feel like dewy foundations are generally easier to blend because of the more liquid formula and also because they don’t dry down like matte ones do.

Shade wise I feel like dewy foundations are generally a little lighter. This isn’t always the case, but I’ve noticed that my matte Dior foundation is darker than the more dewy one even though they’re in the same shade.

Lastly I feel like dewy foundations tend to have a more lightweight formula. This, again, isn’t always the case, but it does happen a lot in my experience.

• More natural look
• Not cakey
• Easy to blend
• Lighter shades
• Lightweight formula

Cons

But obviously there are some cons to dewy foundations as well. One thing I don’t like about them is that the dewiness can be a little too much sometimes. With some dewy foundations I just look like I put oil all over my forehead. You can powder what you want, but even that won’t work.

I also feel like when you’re getting oily and you’re wearing a dewy foundation, your foundation is more likely to move around and also transfer onto for example your clothes. It’s also generally not as long lasting as a matte foundation is.

• Too much dewiness
• Oily forehead
• Less long lasting

Examples from my collection: Nars Sheer Glow, Diorskin Nude, Bourjois Healthy Mix, Diorskin Star, MAC Mineralize Moisture

Full coverage foundations

Moving on to the next category: full coverage foundations. Sometimes when I’m breaking out full coverage foundation is what I reach for. I do like good coverage, but I only wear full coverage on occasions where either my skin is really bad or I go to a special event.

Pro’s

One of the main and most obvious pro’s of full coverage foundations is that it covers up everything. All of the redness from your blemishes or all the discolouration on your face will be gone and you’ll be left with a really nice and even looking complexion. If your skin isn’t very clear I can imagine this could be a really important thing to you.

Another pro is that full coverage foundations are perfect for creating that very clean look. If you’re going to be wearing a very bright lip colour or a very heavy eye look, having a clean complexion is key.

The last pro is the fact that, like matte foundations, full coverage foundations tend to stay in place really well because more often than not they’re rather matte.

• Flawless, even complexion
• Clean base
• Very long lasting

Cons

But there’s also a downside to this amazing thing called full coverage foundations. One of which is the fact that most full coverage foundations have a rather thick formula that can feel very heavy and that can look pretty cakey. There are definitely some full coverage foundations that aren’t thick at all, but lots of them are.

I also think that full coverage foundation can make you look very unnatural and flat. Because your entire complexion is one colour and completely even you can look very flat. An easy fix for this is some bronzer and blush.

The last con is the fact that with full coverage foundations it’s extremely important you find the right shade because if it’s even a little bit off you will definitely be able to tell and you can’t make it work like you can if it’s not as high coverage.

• Thick formula
• Cakey
• Unnatural
• Perfect shade is required

Examples from my collection: Tarte Amazonian Clay, Marc Jacobs Re(marc)able, Becca Ultimate Coverage Complexion Creme, IT Cosmetics CC+ Cream

Conclusion

I’ve discussed the three categories of foundation that I use the most and with that this foundation battle has come to an end. My conclusion is that every foundation has its pro’s and cons and that’s it’s really up to personal preference, more than with any other product, what you like and what you’re going to be using. It really depends on what you want to go for, what your skin is like and what you can work with the best. For me this is rather dewy foundation, but I do like to wear some full coverage foundations every now and then as well!

And that’s everything for this little battle. I hope you enjoyed reading it and be sure to let me know which type of foundation is your personal favourite and why!