Foundations & I

My skin type & foundation issues:

I've found myself trying different foundations over the years, in search of a one, perfectly suited to me, For now, I think I've found it. I've been tackling an issue, between my skin type & foundation formulation for sometime, until I came to the conclusion I needed to change my routine. I have combination skin, which sometimes it makes it difficult for me to find a product suited for my skin. After a bath, I apply a night cream, every night without fail, as I know I need as much moisture as I can during the night, to soak in as I sleep. My skin always feels lovely, supple & moisturised, until I wake up. I find it changes & becomes noticeably drier. So, you can imagine my frustration. I apply a light moisturiser in the morning, that won't make my skin oily throughout the day & then continue to my foundation routine. 

Before I realised what product I personally needed, I purchased No7's Beautifully Matte, spontaneously. This is genuinely a beautiful foundation - for the right skin type, however, I found after a few months of use, I was initially applying a a dry formula to dry skin. 

I reverted to an old forgotten favourite of mine, which is Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid. I can't express how happy I am to have re-purchased this. This is a light to medium formulation, which hydrates my drier skin, without making me oily through the day. I knew I needed a liquid foundation, compared to the thicker consistency in the No7 one. My skin has a revitalised, illuminated look to it now, rather than a dull complexion, that I was unhappy with.

Consistency, formulation & texture:
Concealer:
After some time, I have realised what bests suits my skin, & what doesn't. Where concealers are concerned, I have used the No7 one for as long as I can remember. Its a medium to thick coverage, with a soft, thick consistency. On moisturised skin, this blends beautifully & evenly, with not much effort. I've been comfortably happy with this, until Collection 2000's came on to the make up scene. I waited quite a while, until finally caving & purchasing it, as I was initially quite content with what I already used. I tend to only change my products when one runs out, to save myself having drawers full of half used make up.
I've found the No7's formulation to be best suited for blemishes & dark circle concealment, where as the Collection 2000, I personally prefer for under the eyes. Its a lot for illumination & brightening, which is what you essentially need for dark circles, & not to highlight blemishes. The Collection 2000 is in my opinion, best for all skin types. Its a liquid formulation, with a smooth, fluid, bendable texture. I don;t believe the coverage & outcome of this product on the skin, would be affected, whether you have oily, dry or combination skin, compared to the No7, as its a dry, thick formula, best suited applied over a moisturised area. I'm perfectly happy using both of these on my skin type, however, I would be more preferable to use Collection 2000 under my eyes, to illuminate, & the No7 to conceal & cover.

L-R: No7 Quick Cover Concealer,  Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer, No7 Beautifully Matte, Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid - Swatch.

L-R: No7 Quick Cover Concealer,  Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer, No7 Beautifully Matte, Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid - Blended

Foundation:
I have used these both for a considerable amount of time, so I feel I'm quite confident in knowing which is best suited for what.
 No7 Beautifully matte is a noticeably thicker consistency, which is great for someone needing more coverage, however, as its a matte finish, I found I had to work very quickly with this product, before it set. I also found I didn't need powder, as it will create a matte finish. As I have combination skin, plus the formulation of this product, it highlighted dry sections of my skin, no matter how much I  drenched my skin in moisturiser. This became a problem for me, although I didn't acknowledge & change it until I almost finished the product. After having this problem, I realised I needed something that would moisturise my skin, as well as applying coverage. This came in the form of Maybelline's Dream Satin Liquid. This would happily sink into my skin, giving me a healthy, illuminated, flawless finish. I found that this was exactly what I needed as soon as I applied this. I found throughout the day I didn't become oily, or at least it didn't show.

My views:
Essentially, finding your perfect foundation for your specific skin type is a personal journey. No article, blog, sale assistant, etc can inform you of exactly what you need. If they did, no-one would have difficulties in purchasing & regretting products. Overall, I have combination skin, drier throughout the morning, slightly oily throughout the day, & nicely moisturised throughout the night, so it became quite a task finding exactly what I need. It took various foundations & techniques to determine what I needed, & I got there in the end. No doubt will I change up my products & routine, as my skin will change from time to time, whether its because of age, or weather. There is lots of factors to your skincare & make up to bear in mind.

I hope this helps anyone out there, finding it difficult to determine a specific product for you skin type. Its a journey that will be unsuccessful & successful. Have you found your dream foundation?

Thank you!

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx