Mixed Makeup has worked through more than 10 foundations, and the picture is pretty clear: she approves most of what she tries, with only a handful of mixed or skipped takes in the whole record. She named no single winner, but she is not short on strong opinions.
What does Mixed Makeup recommend in foundation?
The foundations she rated well tend to sit in the middle of the finish spectrum. Not flat matte, not slippery glossy, just what she calls 'pretty skin'. She loved the Makeup by Mario Surreal Skin Natural Finish Foundation for exactly that reason, calling it her current favourite and the one she travels with. She also praised the Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Longwear Matte Foundation for ticking every box a person wants from a classic foundation: all-day wear, full coverage, no cakiness, and a wide shade range. And she surprised herself with the Fenty Beauty Pro Filt'r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation. She noted it is not her personal style, but called it a genuinely great foundation because the texture feels lighter than the coverage it delivers. She also flagged that the Sephora Collection Reveal the Real Skin Tint at around fourteen dollars lasts all day and is simply easy to use, which counts for a lot.
In her words
"My favorite foundation [...] right now is the Makeup by Mario, the more recent one that he launched. It is so good. [...] I travel with it. I just think it makes your skin look really pretty. It's not too luminescent and it's not too matte. It's just perfect."
"It really is incredibly longwearing, it's full coverage, it looks flawless. If somebody doesn't like the skin tints, doesn't like all these new things everybody's talking about, and they just want a classic foundation, Double Wear takes all the boxes of what a person looking for a good foundation would need. If they're looking for full coverage that's going to last all day, give you full coverage, not going to look cakey, going to look like a skin finish, and lots of shade range."
"But this is also an amazing foundation formula. I hate the shape of this because you can't sit the bottle up. It's like an egg shape or something. You can't sit it up. So that sucks. But other than that, it's my only complaint. I would say this foundation is kind of like the Armani that I've loved and loved and loved for years, but with a touch more coverage to it. That's what I love about this. I still love my Armani, but this one is so good."
"I want you to get one of these Dior foundation sticks. Usually foundation sticks are thicker and heavier, but this is what I wear. This is what I'm wearing right now. I don't have much makeup on. I just put it onto my brush and I put it on my face. And this is like my natural go-to. And it's really really fast."
"It feels very light, it doesn't feel like you're putting pancake makeup on. It's deceiving, it actually is very [...] light in texture. It doesn't feel heavy but it does give you like a solid amount of coverage. You are perfect after that foundation. [...] It's not for me, but it's a great foundation. I can still appreciate a really good foundation when I see it and when I try it."
"A great one that's super affordable is the new Sephora Collection, it's called Reveal the Real, it's like $14, it is so good, it lasts all day and it's just easy."
How many foundations has Mixed Makeup reviewed?
Mixed Makeup has reviewed 15 foundations, for an approval rate of 80%. 12 approved, 1 mixed, and 2 skipped.
What has Mixed Makeup skipped in foundation?
Her skips are rare but firm. She gave the bareMinerals Original Loose Powder Foundation her lowest possible rating, calling it one of the worst products she has ever tried and saying it should be banned. Strong words, and she stuck by them. The L'Oreal True Match Nude Hyaluronic Tinted Serum Foundation was a different kind of skip. She actually likes the formula, but the dropper has no wiper to clean the pipette. That means product pools around the bottle neck and makes a mess every time. That one packaging decision is what cost it her approval.
"This is the L'Oreal skin tint. I do love this formula, I do too, but unfortunately L'Oreal didn't invest in a wiper. Usually when you have a dropper like this you will have a wiper, and the wiper's purpose is to actually wipe down the excess formula from around the pipette so you don't get this mess. L'Oreal did not invest in a wiper, and as such you can see there's a huge amount of product collecting on the pipette itself and therefore spilling out around the bottle neck."
"I'm shocked this is on the list. I'm going to rate it a one. This is one of the worst things ever made. It looked terrible. It was better at times? No, it wasn't. No, it looked terrible. Even then I remember being like, why does it look terrible? Bare Minerals definitely had a better comeback leader, but this specific product that put them on the map should be banned."
What should you take from Mixed Makeup's picks?
Mixed Makeup's record on foundations shows she is a generous reviewer who finds something to like in most formulas. What tips a product into a skip for her is usually practical: packaging that makes a mess, or a result that simply looks wrong on skin. If you are looking to her for a steer, the Makeup by Mario Surreal Skin Natural Finish Foundation and the Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Longwear Matte Foundation stand out as the ones she spoke about most warmly.
Watch Mixed Makeup say it
Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.
- L'Oreal True Match Nude Hyaluronic Tinted Serum FoundationSkipped itWatch at 18:57
- bareMinerals Original Loose Powder FoundationSkipped itWatch at 25:30
- Makeup by Mario Surreal Skin Natural Finish FoundationRated itWatch at 26:45
- Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Longwear Matte FoundationRated itWatch at 9:16
- Lisa Eldridge Seamless Skin FoundationRated itWatch at 6:48
- Dior Forever Skin Perfect 24Hour Multi-Use Foundation StickRated itWatch at 4:37
- Fenty Beauty Pro Filt'r Soft Matte Longwear FoundationRated itWatch at 41:31
- Sephora Collection Reveal the Real Skin TintRated itWatch at 24:58
- IT Cosmetics CC Cream OriginalRated itWatch at 2:06
- bareMinerals Original Pure Serum FoundationRated itWatch at 6:01
- NARS Light Reflecting Advanced Skincare FoundationRated itWatch at 28:53
- bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted MoisturizerRated itWatch at 33:27
- ILIA Skin Rewind Complexion StickRated itWatch at 4:31
- Dior Backstage Face & Body FoundationRated itWatch at 15:43
About this expert
See everything Mixed Makeup has reviewed
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This guide reflects what Mixed Makeup said across her videos about 15 products in foundation, aggregated by The Guru Index. Sponsored takes are excluded. The approval rate is the share of these products she approved. It is general information, not medical advice.