How Brands Should Make Foundation

24 Comments

1. Literally EVERY dark skinned person I know is told they’re NW45. Which is sooooo wrong. Hahahaaa!

2. Abolutely agree! I rant these points daily while I apply foundation. Why do brands think the 50+ age group has dry skin? I am 61 and super oily (not just T-zone). Many foundations for oily skin are full coverage, suddenly you have crinkles you never saw, and pores as big as a volcano crater. Sometimes foundation makes primer swirl around your face (I have at least 12 primers) – a polka dot face is lovely *said sarcastically* Lightweight foundations seem to be dewy, luminous and hydrating. Last year I set out to find my HG. After 27 and no HG, I chose the best of the lot – but had to mix shades (seriously, is fair skin with cool undertones so unusual?). Six months later-discontinued. Starting all over again!

3. Foundation is such a PITA. My fave is Estee Lauder Double Wear but the names of them are letters/numbers… so, for example, 3N1C. And it’s like… what the actual eff does that even mean?! There’s no explanation and it’s actually the FIRST foundation I HAD to get matched in store for. I couldn’t just guess and be right. I probably would’ve been wrong with the TF Born This Way though because in that one I played in store first rather than just ordering and I’m actually in between 2 of the shades. So I’d have to buy BOTH to get my match. So, I’ve never purchased. I’m sure they’re not hurting for sales but the more shades that are available the more sales you get!

4. I agree with you. I hate buying foundations thinking I’ve found that perfect match, and if the color matches it’s always something with it that doesn’t look right! I have tried applying it and setting it differently, and still….disappoints me. I stick to bb creams more now

5. AMEN. I agree 100%.

   I have bought so many shades, so many formulas and I don’t think I’ve ever had a product be “perfect”. In a way, I think this is what companies want. I buy a lot more when I can’t find what works vs. having a HG. Ugh.

6. I have never found a foundation that works for me. Either they’re too light, too dark or too heavy. I’ve resigned myself to never finding the perfect match!

7. Great video. I’m tired of the excuses brands give for not making a wider variety of shades. I wish they would include more undertones as well. I can’t speak for lighter shades but it’s frustrating when a brand makes a foundation but it’s only red as dark skin only has red undertone. I think the limited undertones contributes to consumers thinking that makeup isn’t for them when the truth is the brand has fallen short.

8. You make some great points, and I agree with all of them. I do wish more companies would bother to put descriptions with the foundation colors (neutral, pink undertone, etc.) I also have wondered if these companies follow color guidelines via Pantone or anything, so there would or could be something more universal. That question applies to lipsticks and eyeshadows, too. Companies definitely need wider color offerings, too, and less of the philosophy that beige will work for nearly all.
   The fragrance in foundations and skin care option is a huge turnoff for me. I have a few brands that I avoid like the plague because the scent is so strong. Anything perfumed on my face leads to itching and breakouts. I don’t know why companies think I want to rub something that smells like dryer sheets all over my face.

9. As a fellow fair person, omg I feel this rant so deeply. TRUTH. Sort of related: as a kbeauty blogger, it’s so disappointing to review a bb cream that’s available in ONE shade, not even kidding. I hope some companies take this to heart and hire you to fix their foundation mess! The foundation nightmare makes me work harder on my skincare routine so I can hopefully ditch it forever!

   1. I WISH I could ditch foundation! I have rosacea. I work very hard on my skin but nothing makes it so that my redness is 100% gone. Before I went cruelty free I loved korean bb creams! Holika Holika Petite Orange was my favorite.

10. Foundation can be such a pain in the butt to find in stores whether drugstore or otherwise. I absolutely agree with your points, especially the need for different types of foundation for different skin types – that’s an important one. It’s so hard to find them to match let alone help with our skin benefit wise. Definitely agree. I’m glad I don’t use foundation often because I hated all of those things too.

    1. If I didn’t have redness from rosacea on a daily basis I would avoid foundation except for special occasions.

11. I wish someone would invent a foundation that can stand its ground on my super-oily face for any length of time!

    1. Yes!!!

12. Hi Phyrra – loved your video and every point you made was so, so true. I find not being able to tell the undertones of the “classic ivory” or lightest shade drives me crazy. I have wasted a good half of my makeup life not wearing the correct foundation and, even when I have purchased HE foundation – not even the MUA could work out why the foundation was turning orange on me…
    A consistent rating system within the brand would help too – not just the purchaser but also the MUA as well.
    And I feel passionate about foundation shades being created to suit all skin tones too.

13. I completely agree with you. I have a hard time choosing a foundation. I’ve been using the same one for so many years, even though I’m not completely happy with it. But it’s too overwhelming to try to find another foundation.

14. I loved this video. The points you made are right on point. The numbering/naming system of products within a line can drive me nuts. You can’t even trust that their names work in all their products. At one point MAC was pretty much the standard but it’s not anymore nor is their system infallible.
    And don’t put fragrance in my foundation or I don’t want to buy any of your products!!

15. Foundations lines that don’t make colors for extremely pale skin tones. I have to sacrifice what I would like in a foundation and rather just choose the shade that matches me the closest. When I go to Sephora to try and find a new foundation because the last one broke me out-thank you for adding essential oils and fragrance I am always told ‘we are going to have a hard time matching you’ I wish there was a foundation company that would make custom foundation by matching your skin tones and undertones plus making it for oily/combo/dry formulations. The concealer comment you made is spot on.

16. I tried the Idun Minerals foundation and sadly, Jorrun is too light/pink for me and does not work for my dry skin. So I think this is the hard part for formulations. What works on your dry skin may not work on mine, or may even make me oily and visa versa. In terms of shades: not all women with fair skin have pink undertones; not all women with fair/olive skin want to look orange; most women with fair skin do not want their skin “warmed up” with a darker shade. In all honesty, I kind of wish each brand would make their own white mixer or mixer to lighten or darken a foundation so it would actually WORK with their formula. Mixing never seems to work for me because I have some purple in my skin so I think the white can pull out the pink in a foundation and make it even more pink on my skin. If it does work for the color, I find it changes the formula and honestly with sensitive skin, it’s just more ingredients to cause a reaction. I don’t understand how so many brands do not have shades for fair and very fair women or better shades for women of color. Sorry for the length of my comment 🙂

    1. See, I feel like the Jorunn is perfectly neutral, which makes me happy. I’m so sorry it doesn’t work for you. The foundations I listed up there might be ones that will work for you, they’re all on the hydrating side for me. Of the foundations I own, the Kat Von D L41 and L42 are definitely more pink toned, but way too drying.

       The Face Atelier Zero Minus white foundation mixer might be what you’re looking for. It’s an actual foundation that works with their foundation.

       So sorry for your struggles! I can relate with the amount of money I’ve spent trying to find the perfect foundation or trying to make a not quite perfect foundation work.

       1. I am fair with neutral undertones, and Jorunn was a perfect match for me, too!

17. Loved this video, and wanted to cheer when you talked about having four different colors, I am a pale olive undertone, I buy light to medium neutral and tend to hope for the best. Also loved 50 shades of beige… so true,

18. For me, many foundations are too yellow and don’t give a neutral or pink option. But lately, I have found a number of foundations that work for me. Someday, I want to try the Norrsken Foundation.

19. I definitely agree that there should be more formulas that suit the needs of specific skin types. One size definitely does not fit all with foundations, and dry skin types are not going to have the same needs as combination/oily skin types. I also definitely think that more companies need to widen up their color choices since lighter and darker shades are often neglected altogether!

Comments are closed.