I've never been a foundation fan but as I've gotten older my skin has changed from oily & breakout prone to more of a combination that can be highly variable due to seasons, weather, etc. Also I've started to get wrinkles, nothing too severe, but between dryer skin and lines ... Well it was time to use foundation for real.

I'd been using bare minerals medium tan or shiseido bronze, both of which I used pretty sparingly and only to even out my skin and give me a little color. I think I'll go back to them for summer.

Anyway, in my quest for a winter foundation I went to a nearby Mac store, based solely on their reputation for great foundations. What a waste of time. The person who helped me couldn't match my skin color at all. I left very frustrated.

So then I walked over to Rite Aid down the street & winged it with this product in buff beige (168).

What great stuff! The color match is PERFECT. It's not too greasy, and it makes my skin look so much better.

Reading other reviews I see that lots of people don't like the way the product comes out onto the brush or the brush itself. I actually like those things.

I twist the top until the makeup appears, then smear it on my clean palm, then use the built in brush to apply, dabbing the brush into my palm when I need a bit more foundation.

Then I take another foundation brush that I just bought & LOVE (the tarte airbrush finish bamboo foundation brush) & buff my whole face, blending into my hairline and under my chin etc.

Honestly, my skin has never looked better!

continued >>

I have one word for this foundation, GREASY! I don't have oily skin, but this foundation looked so greasy and slimy on my skin it was disgusting. I could feel it on my skin all day and it just felt gross, I couldn't wait to take it off! This foundation never really sets and instead of looking glowy it just looks oily and nasty. It draws attention to every imperfection on my face and makes pores look huge. It tends to "pool" in pores instead of covering them and making them appear smaller. The coverage is light to medium, so if you have acne or scars or a lot of things to cover then this is not going to be enough coverage for you. I have rosacea and this really doesn't cover it well and if you try to layer it, it just ends up looking super CAKEY and nasty on skin. Even when I try to set it with a powder is still looked oily! This also will clog pores since it is suffocating to the skin. This also contains bismuth oxychloride, which is really bad for the skin, it causes micro tears in the skin which will later lead to infection.

It's been a challenge finding an DS foundation for my winter dry skin with the following criteria. Buildable, natural looking coverage, good shade selection, and no mica or other glitter like ingredients. (lack of sparkle is why I went with the VL Smooth instead of the VL Serum).
Did some research, checked reviews here and off to to CVS I went.
In the store I first picked up Buff Beige which is in the middle of the display but is darker than the shades to the right & left of it. Odd layout by L'oreal. I had a coupon so bought Natural Buff and Natural Beige. $15.99 for .85 oz bottle.
N. Buff is a pretty good match leaning light so N.Beige balances that out.
Application was creamy, and blended well (with a separate buff brush and/or fingers) and the coverage is medium without primer. My skin looked nice and dewy, even when I put powder on the glow was still there, (oily skins should shy away), with no settling in lines, pores or dry patches. VLSA feels very light. It also wears well, color stayed true and my skin still looked just as nice later in the day. Removed easily with Olay SS face wash.

Now...on to the bad and the 3 lippie rating:
The brush top twist click bottle. What a pain! I cut off and removed all of the brush bristles, to be more hygienic and have more control over application, then I pour it into a smaller jar that I have. The foundation itself is 4 to 5 lippie rating but had to deduct L'oreal's annoying packaging. Ulta has stopped carrying this and I have a feeling this will be D/C soon. So if you like this foundation..Stockpile alert! continued >>

PROS: I like the finish (satin on my skin.) I have quite dry, mid-40's, large-pored skin that is so hard to find foundation for. This is pretty kind to my wrinkles compared to most foundations.(I've tried 32.)


CONS: The stupid brush contraption that makes you have to click (even if one careful click at a time, it comes out in a huge gush.) It makes it more expensive to use, because there's quite a bit of waste. Color selection is small. The lightest shade (classic ivory) is quite pink. The nude beige is more warm-toned, but it is too dark. I'm an N10-15 (leaning to NC). (see alternates for my solution of using the Serum Absolute version instead.)


APPLICATION TIPS: I put it right on top of my moisturizer while it's still "wet" when I want a light coverage. I like it even more when I use Loreal's Magic Smooth primer or some name like that. (I pat it into pores and then let it set for a bit before applying makeup.) It also makes this last longer on my face.


REMOVAL TIPS: If you are prone to clogging, you may want to remove this with a cleansing oil before using your regular cleanser. I actually just put a few drops of jojoba oil in my olay sensitive cleanser.


ALTERNATES: I like to use the Serum Absolute instead for much better color range. I use 144 (light ivory - which is much warmer than this line's ivory) mixed with just a bit of 146 (nude beige). The Serum Absolute lasts longer on my face too. It looks just as good in my wrinkles and pores. I just put it on top of my moisturizer (Replenix SPF 50 Moisturizer in the silver tube) for more of a tinted moisturizer look.

This is definitely my HG foundation. I love a natural dewy finish. it's like I found my soulmate!!!

I was looking for good sale on this foundation so I can try it and found a GREAT DEAL at Ulta. They have it on clearance for $3.79. I had a manufacture coupon that took $3 off. Plus the $3.50 off $10 purchase coupon you can print off at Ulta website. I paid 55 cents for it. So at this review I gave it 1 for price.
I'm NC25 and bought this in 170 Nature Beige. Possibly the most yellowish shade of the line. It's a bit dark for me. But I think this is the closest shade for me. After blending it out it kind of blend in better with my skin tone. For this I might use it more in the summer.
The formula is very smooth. Just like it said. I like to use it with a flat top brush. Coverage is light to medium. Dewy finish, not drying. I set it with powder and it last a very decent amount of time and it doesn't transfer easily. I'm quite surprised by the quality of it.
Overall this is a good drugstore foundation for combination to dry skin. The regular price runs from $13-$16. The brush head doesn't bother me. I only twist it out to put on the back of my hand. And I always wash my hands before putting on makeup anyways.
L'oreal has confirmed that they are discountinuing this product. But so far I haven't seen it on sale elsewhere other than Ulta. When I find it on clearance again I'll definitely stock up.

I think this just might be my HG foundation. This is definitely a foundation you must get!

Pros:
-awesome consistency, doesn't get cakey
-blends out amazingly
-medium coverage
-spf 17
-staying power is amazing
-finish is slightly dewy

Cons:
-the applicator. it absolutely sucks. you either get zero, or way too much product!
-kind of pricy for a drug store. 13ish dollars? but so SO worth the money

Excellent product; actually better than many of the more expensive highend products I've tried. It goes on so smooth and provides great coverage without being too much. I don't mind the brush, I put a bit on my face using the brush and then use my beauty blender to blend it in.

I had high hopes for this product and it certainly did not dissapoint. I was actually very surprised at the quality of this drugstore foundation. I'm a high end foundation and product kind of girl but this might acutally become an hg for me. Right now my skin has been annoying the heck out of me. I gave birth to my third baby almost five months ago and my skin has become dry and I was having minor breakouts which sent me to a dermatologist. My dermatologist prescribed me differin cream for acne that would have most probably went away on its on...well my skin went from dry to minor breakouts to even more dry and flakey and a intial breakout that has left my skin a hot mess to say the least. My matte foundations like Lancome teint Idole and Clarins Ever Matte has not been flattering on my bumpy skin. Ok on to the review...This foundation has been great at smoothing out my skin. It has a glow to it but it's not too glowy to the point that my skin looks oily. It's very buildable. I would say the coverage is medium and buildable without a cakey look. For the most part it feels light on my skin but it does feel a bit heavier than what i'm use to but I don't mind it. It looks so beautiful on my skin and it looks great out in natural light and It also photgraphs very well! My face almost looks airbrushed and i've never had that with any foundation before. I'm in love with this product to say the least and could not be more happy with it! This is saving my confidence during these winter holidays!

I love love this foundation. I always try new products but keep coming back to this for my everyday foundation. I have dry skin, especially during the winter months. For me this foundation hydrates my skin, smooths everything out and doesn't settle into my smile lines around my mouth while giving medium coverage that I can build a little. I've gone through 2 or 3 bottles. At wal-mart the prices was $13 or $14 I think...a little pricey for drugstore. However, at Ulta, just recently it's been marked down to $3.79. And its stayed at the price for several weeks!

If you have dry skin, give it a try, keep the receipt just in case. Highly recommended for dry skin.