Porcelain Beauties: Rants and Raves for foundations

[Tahti]

Quote:

Originally Posted by *JJ* does anyone have studio fix powder in N3? i've been using NW15 but it's a tad too dark for me. i'd hate to give up SF powder, it's perfect for every day.

Yes, it's so much better than NW15 merely for the fact that it DOESN'T OXIDIZE (grrrrrrrr) I don't use it on myself very often so I can't see much colour difference in between the two, but the lack of oxidizing if anything is a massive bonus ^_^

 

[jenizzle]

I've started using Illamasqua light liquid foundation in LF105, which worked perfect for me until I got a bit of a sun tan on my face >.<

I now use Gosh Lift Me Up foundation in Neutral and I'll swap to the L'Oreal True Match when the colour fades from my skin some more! Definitely aim to be back to my Illamasqua by winter though, it's such an awesome foundation especially for my skin type (flaky yet oily!)

 

[staceb1990]

I REALLY want to try Illamasqua, but the swatches on their website and Sephora's confuse me, so I'm afraid to order anything. If you're an NC15 or N3er, what color do you use for the Illamasqua foundations?

 

[*JJ*]

i ordered illamasqua's cream foundation in 110 and it was way too light for me, it's almost sheet white. too bad, because i loved the texture and the coverage. i think the next color (120) will be too dark for me

i hope i get a chance to check it out in person, i don't want to order another foundation i won't use

 

[Tahti]

^ You could always use a powder foundation over it to match your skin... I have the Cream Foundation in 110 and it's a bit too pinky-white for me, but I put my powder foundation over it which is more yellow toned (can't remember what number it is, sorry!... it is Illamasqua though) and it's flawless! I've never had a combo that good that matches my skin.
The MA at the counter matched me, she was amazing! It actually looks like my face is the same colour as my neck which is perfect ^_^ Maybe go in for a match if you can? I love the cream foundation, don't give up on it! ;D

 

[kikobaby]

Im and NC20 and i just wanted to rave a have found my hg non oxidising foundation!! its dior nude fresh glow makeup, i got both the liquid and powder foundation and the color match is perfect i love love this stuff!!

 

[*JJ*]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tahti The MA at the counter matched me, she was amazing! It actually looks like my face is the same colour as my neck which is perfect ^_^ Maybe go in for a match if you can? I love the cream foundation, don't give up on it! ;D

i'd hate to give up on it too! have you seen the cream foundation in 120? is it a lot darker? darker than mac's NW15?

 

[Tahti]

^ I haven't seen it but I can't imagine it would be darker, because I have the Powder Foundation in 135 and that's about the same shade as MAC Studio Fix N3, maybe just a bit darker. I posted swatches of the stuff I have in the Illamasqua Swatch Thread, HTH!

 

[Winthrop44]

The new NARS Sheer Glow in Siberia is SUPER light, probably too light for me even!

 

[Dani California]

Ahhh finally, pale people like me

Thank god I found this thread!! I usually use Prescriptives traceless tint in level 1, as its really light like a tinted moisturiser, I find foundation too heavy!! But it is the PERFECT shade for me, matches spot on!! however I keep hearing horrible rumours of prescriptives disappearing........and I don't know what to try next if its true!!

Any ideas? I've no idea where to start as the prescriptives is spot on colour and texture wise for me. No idea what shade I would be in any other brand for example. I'm very pale like dita von teese, maybe slightly pinky undertones rather than yellow.

Brilliant thread

 

[*JJ*]

found these great swatches on cosmetosaur's blog, i thought they were very helpful:

 

[Noctuid]

I'm very pale, too.

I could wear MAC Studio Sculpt in NC15, but it doesn't agree with my skin, so lately I've been using mineral make-up, Earthen Glow mineral's Cover Me. Like the name says, it covers well and they have very light shades - surprisingly I'm not even in the Fair-category but Light. I'm also testing their new full coverage mousse foundation, but I'm not sure how to blend it on my slightly flaky skin (I've never used any mousse foundation).

I'd like to have a liquid foundation besides mineral, so I was glad to find this thread.

 

[ButterflyDior77]

I am pale/fair as well with dark brown hair and green eyes.

I wear Mac NC20, which might actually be a little light, but it does the job.

The thing that fits my skin tone like a glove is Diorskin Nude Foundation in 020 Light Beige. It is pricey (45.00) but it is seamless and great formula. I also have the matching loose powder to set it with. I've gotten a lot of comments on how great it looks on me. It has a bit of a glow, and is a light to medium coverage.

 

[PixieLou]

I'm extremely pale, NW15 and NC15 are way too dark for me. I'm also very neutral toned so it's hard to find a pale enough foundation that doesn't make me look too yellow or too pink.
But, I've found that Illamasqua rich liquid foundation in 105 mixed with Estee Lauder Double Wear in 1C1 Shell for full coverage, or mixed with Bobbi Brown oil free foundation in 0 porcelain for medium coverage matches nicely.

All the Pixi foundations, except the vitamin veil in shade no. 1 are all pretty fair with a yellowish undertone. I don't have to do any mixing with a white foundation for those.

For pale mineral foundation I just love Lily Lolo foundation in Porcelain, and it's very neutral toned, plus it gives good coverage.
Everyday minerals also make very light foundations, but the coverage is too sheer for me.

 

[NoAddedSugar]

Still searching for perfection. I've just re-read a couple of my own posts. Funny how you can really love a foundation at first and then quickly come to loathe it. Over the past couple of years I've tried MUFE Velvet, which although a good colour match was way too heavy and amplified my pores no matter what primer I used. It looked good twice and then I could never replicate it. I also went mineral for awhile. At first I really loved Bare Minerals but then I realised I was spending about 45 minutes applying my foundation because my face has a lot of red in it and requires a higher coverage or loads of concealing. It's quite expensive for the amount of product I was using so I switched to Maybelline which, again, I really liked for a while and had a better coverage so less time and less expense. However, it wore off quite quickly even with a primer and by this summer after a year of using it I was looking for something a bit longer lasting and also liquid as I was feeling too dry looking even though my skin is generally oily. I did buy the MaxFactor cream one but like a lot of other creamy styles it just went a bit cakey and weird on me by midday and the colour was never really light enough. I also tried the liquid version of Maybelline minerals and it's ok but a tad yellow and again does not last. Feeling frustrated and not wanting to waste any more money on foundations. I found half a bottle of L'ancome Colour Ideal in 010 in my drawer. I had been using it in spring 2008 and after a test it proved to still be in good order. I have to say I remember loving it because of the texture and coverage. I've been using it again for the past few months. It's not perfect though. My biggest gripe is that it does have a tendency to wear off but I did buy the new UD face primer (pore perfecting) since I've been waiting for it to come out for years. I hope this will help it last longer. The colour is good enough for my purposes. As I have redness the yellowish cast helps. Although the range does tend toward darker shades so not really ideal for girls paler than me.

 

[Dani California]

Hi guys

OK, seeing as my beloved Prescriptives traceless level one is being discontinued........grumble grumble

I too am on the endless hunt for something to replace it aka perfection with......Gah what a task....tut tut.

I thought I'd share the ones I found that I thought were decent with my fellow porcelain beauties. I have two major criteria when looking:

1. my skin is reasonably ok so don't want heavy foundation like wearing a mask thankyouverymuch.
2. finding a shade PALE enough damn it, that doesn't look bloody orange or brown!

Smashbox
Tinted moisturiser comes in 2 much lighter shades.....fair and lighter still luminous, which I think is online only? Quite impressed with that.

Dior
Their new nude foundation looked promising in the lightest shade 010 ivory I think it was.

Givenchy
Their photo perfexion foundation while a bit heavy had a good pale colour in 01 perfect ivory. I didn't see shade 2 perfect petal though.......which is pinkier grrr. Also sublime light looked quite promising as well.

Estee lauder while they had paler colours, the stuff was like a mask

L'oreal true match looked good N1, looked a good true pale porcelain colour on me. Also Max factor have a new one out, second skin, palest shade creamy ivory. Revlon natural looked good in the light to pale shade

All in all, quite impressed with my little search so far..........another thing puzzling me was where are all the pale pinky shades of foundation? if anybody can point me in the right direction?

Meanwhile I hope my rummaging around helps somebody

 

[NoAddedSugar]

@ Dani California

Hi Dani! I've noticed that there is a real problem with the paler shades in this country. Not sure why considering that a good portion of the white british population are pale. The emphasis always seems to be on warmer/golden shades.

My problem is that when I do find a company that does really pale shades they are TOO pale. I'm not paper white. It's really frustrating especially when I find a texture I like that lasts most of the day it's always a tad too yellow or too dark.

I might try the L'oreal True Match you mentioned since I think it is meant to be similar to the Lancome Colour Ideal I've been using and if good enough, less expensive.

The funny thing about Max Factors "Creamy Ivory" shades is that they always look good as a test in the store but when I get them home and do a normal application they are too dark on me.

 

[xxainixx]

nc 15 sff is a little too dark for me. but however, i find that estee lauder souble wear in bone suits me! really happy to have found a shade i can wear!!! YES!

p.s just thought i would share =)

 

[Paramnesia]

I have a few MUFE samples:

L-R:
- MAC select cover up NW15
- MUFE HD foundation 125
- MUFE HD foundation 120
- MUFE face and body foundation 32
- MUFE face and body foundation 20
- MUFE Mat Velvet+ foundation 20
- MUFE Mat Velvet+ foundation 15

I found the mat velvet+'s lightest shade to be the best match for me but i have dry skin so i'm a little concerned about that.

 

[ktdetails]

ok super fair neutral to yellow toned ladies....Giorgio Armani Lasting Silk UV SPF 20 in shade 2 is amazing stuff. My neck is so pale - nothing ever matches it - but this stuff does.

I look washed out when I first apply it (but that's how the rest of my body looks) - and that's what blush/contour/highlight is for - to add color/dimension back to an even canvas.

I have never found such a good match. It's not orange, it's not pink, it's not beige - it's like a pale banana yellow - the inside of the banana - not the outside - HA!

Laura Mercier, Bobbi Brown, MAC, CoverFX, KohGenDo, Chanel, Clinique, Lorac, Nars, are all too dark, too orange, too pink or too beige or even too grey. Or the foundation is terrible and won't blend or feels really heavy.

The GA LS UV SPF20 is oil-free/water based and super long wearing - if you have super dry skin - you should use a primer. I like to use my Sephora #55 brush to apply - but I can use my fingers if I'm in a hurry.
My face looks the same at the end of at 12 hour day with this stuff.

I add a pump of shade 4 if I want to warm it up a bit - but I'm really pleased with shade 2 - it matches my neck and wearing shade 4 alone is too warm for my neck.

Try it out ladies - it's so light - I hope it doesn't get discontinued if the right people don't know about it and buy it!

It's not the Luminous Silk - it's the Lasting Silk UV spf 20.

If you're sick of MUA's telling you to bronze your neck to compensate for a foundation that isn't perfect for you - try this!