I’m late. Not that late, but late nonetheless. I recently purchased the Anastasia Beverly Hills foundation from Sephora.com (thanks to the Flash Shipping) and have been testing it out so I can give you all an honest and fair review. First things first, before I even bought the foundation I was in awe of the shade range. From very light to incredibly deep and rich. So I was hella excited. Then I saw the price and knew I had to jump on it. A high-end foundation stick that retails for $25? This must be a joke. But it is indeed real.
Now on to what really matters. I was lucky enough to buy the correct shade online just going off the swatches and color chart, so I got to really test it right away. (Sidenote: My foundation stick was broken when I got it and fell into my sink, but I was too lazy to return it so I just kept using it.) I purchased the color “Cocoa” and from the initial swatches, I had an “Oh no. I got the wrong shade” moment of terror. However, as soon as I blended it out it matched perfectly. The formula is very creamy and easy to blend. Of course, I prepped my skin with an oil controlling primer as usual, so that may be a contributing factor of the ease of blending.
I finished up with my typical powder and setting spray, because no foundations can do battle with my oily skin and win, especially not a cream, so I didn’t want to set this one up for failure. The foundation is medium coverage and gives a natural, skin-like finish. If you have hyperpigmentation, you will definitely need to conceal beforehand. It lasted a full work day without my oil breaking through to heavily. I did get a little dewy looking a few hours in, but nothing that had me self-conscious or needing to continuously blot.
Oh, did I mention, it didn’t make my sensitive skin break out at all!? That may have been my favorite part of trying out this foundation.
I did, unfortunately, have two issues with this foundation, but they aren’t dealbreakers. 1. It does show texture. I tried applying with a BH Cosmetics Flat Foundation brush, a Morphe M439 Deluxe Buffer Brush, and a Beauty Blender, with similar results. I wouldn’t choose to wear this foundation if I were going to be photographed, especially in HD. I would opt for my Makeup Forever Ultra HD or Lancome Teint Idole Ultra foundations. 2. It transfers. Oh does it transfer. Every paper I touched the days I wore it ended up with brown fingerprints all over. Didn’t matter which setting powder or setting spray I used. The fact that I had foundation on my fingers all the time was probably partially because the formula is so lightweight I forgot I was wearing makeup.
Pros:
- Amazing shade range
- Easy to blend
- Holds up well on oily skin
- Did not irritate my sensitive skin
- Very lightweight
Cons
- Not full coverage, so extra concealing is necessary if you have blemishes
- Transfers easily
- Shows texture
All in all, I liked the foundation. Can’t say I loved it because of the 2 cons I mentioned above, but I will continue to wear it as an everyday, going to work option. I will say I hope Anastasia Beverly Hills decides to expand their foundation line into various formulas because they certainly get an A+ in the shade range they created.
