Revlon PhotoReady Foundation

image from ulta.com

It seems like anytime a new foundation hits the market there is a frenzy on makeup blogs and discussion boards. I apologize for being late to the party but I wanted to try out the new Revlon Photo Ready foundation in a few different scenarios before I gave my final verdict. Let me remind you about my philosophy for foundations. Much like mascara I believe that your results may vary. What works for me may not work for you and vice versa. That being said, I did not find the Revlon PhotoReady foundation to be a good foundation for me. But I thought it was a decent foundation for a drugstore foundation.

Confusing?

OK. Let me tell you what I liked and what I didn't like.

Likes:

• Pump applicator that dispenses enough in one pump for a sheer coverage and enough in 2 pumps for medium to full coverage.
• Liquidy, slippery feel to the foundation (similar to MUFE HD foundation).
• Light feel once applied to the face. Did not feel mask like when using it for sheer coverage.
• Decent price. $13.99 ( at Ulta) is not bad when considering that MUFE HD costs $40 (at Sephora).
• Good color match for my MAC NC15/NC20; MUFE HD 115 skin (002 Vanilla).
• Nice satin finish that didn't look too matte or too dewy.
• No fragrance and didn't break me out.
  

Dislikes:

• When applied for full coverage it looks cakey and tends to look & feel mask like.
• The foundations settles into my pores especially on and around my nose. The foundation also settled into the fine line around my mouth (my laugh lines - which makes me not want to laugh)
  
• This foundation is NOT for oily skin. My T-Zone is oily and by noon I was a shining beacon of grease. What's worse, when I blotted using blotting papers ALL of the foundation came off with the papers!
• SEVERE lack of color choice for anyone over a MAC NC35/40. It's almost like women of color don't exists in the Revlon PhotoReady world. Very disappointing.
• Difficult to blend using fingers or flat foundation brush. Blended better with a skunk brush.
• Hard to wash out of my skunk brush.
• Lasts about 4 hours on me.

Some other reviewers have commented that the foundation is sparkly. As much as I like to hate on anything that reminds me of Twilight Vampires, I sadly cannot hate on this aspect of the foundation. I never saw any sparkles. Perhaps it's because I use La Mer translucent powder that already has some slight shimmer to it, or perhaps it's the MUFE HD powder I used to set the makeup, either way I didn't notice the sparkles.

The condition of my skin is a little schizophrenic as of late. I'm currently on a regimen of Retin-A Micro .1% and it is winter and very cold and dry. My skin is confused if it should be dry or oily. So some days it's an oil slick and others it's dry and flakey. On any given day, Revlon PhotoReady foundation managed to make a mess out of the oily areas of my skin AND a mess out of the dry flakey areas. I tried wearing this foundation with different primers and moisturizers underneath and none of them made any difference. My nose and forehead just hated this foundation. It started to get oily almost as soon as 2 hours after application, and blotting with papers didn't help one bit. The makeup SLID off my face. I was so careful not to touch my face, but inevitably I would sneeze or have an itch and literally the foundation on and around my nose would come off and it would look terrible.

What's worse, on days when my acne was inflamed or I had a scar that was showing up the foundation not only didn't cover it well, it started to emphasize the dry flakey areas around the blemish. so I basically had purple marks outlined by dry skin on my face. NOT a look I was going for.

Foundations with SPF typically have a terrible time when photographed. Basically the sunscreen in the cosmetic reflects the flash and gives a ghost like look to one's face. So, I'm not sure why Revlon decided to put SPF in this foundation. That does not sound photo ready to me. What's worse, if you find that you are oily and the foundation doesn't stay on your face what good is the sunscreen?

I really wanted to like this foundation because it was a decent color match for me, but the formula was a complete and utter let down.

Do you NEED this? Only if you have normal to slightly dry skin, small to invisible pores, no blemishes, need sheer coverage and only if you are lighter skinned. Well that's very specific isn't it? Those that do have success with this foundation, I envy you. If you did like this foundation I would love to hear from you about your skin type and how you apply the foundation.