Illamasqua is fast achieving cult status on the London beauty scene. There has been so much hype around the Skinbase Foundation that I was convinced it could be my HG. I was seriously excited to try it out. The formula is inspired by Asian Beauty Balm creams and promises to create the 'perfect complexion' whilst feeling totally natural. There are 18 shades with a variety of undertones to choose from.
(For reference I am usually NC20 in Mac. I have normal skin.)
I went into Illamasqua's flagship store on Beak St, London to get colour-matched by a MUA. She matched me as a 3, the shade with the lightest yellow undertone. I was surprised to be matched with such a light colour but my skin looked good in the store so I decided to buy it. A bit fickle of me in hindsight...


Good Points:
- Extensive colour range
- Full coverage (could pass as a foundation-concealer)


Bad points:
- I was matched with the wrong colour. Shade 3 is a very ashy yellow and made me look unhealthy and grey and photographs terribly.
- Although the foundation feels good on the skin, the formula is very thick and difficult to blend to an even finish. It feels like a mask.
- It sits terribly in the hairline and accentuates pores and the smallest of dry patches.
- The plastic bottle looks pretty but is impractical. There is no way to control how much product is dispensed and it becomes more difficult to squeeze out as it is used up.


Overall, this is one of the worst foundations I have ever purchased. It was a complete waste of money.

I really hoped this would work for my dry sensitive skin but it did not. It looks fine close up although i do think there needs to be more yellow shades but but it made my skin fairy dry throughout the day. My skin feels tight as i type. Then since my skin is dry its overproducing oil so i looks greasy even thought feel really dry. Would not repurchase

This foundation was easy to apply, with buildable coverage as advertised. It is about medium coverage upon my initial application with a sponge, and I've even been able to use this as a concealer. Once it's on, it's hard to tell that I'm wearing foundation, but it doesn't quite give that smooth, gorgeous finish that I get with MUFE HD. I prefer the upside-down squeeze tube to a pump because it allows me to have better control over how much product comes out, and I won't have problems getting the last little bit out. Illamasqua wears well throughout the day on me, and I'm very pleased with it!

I bought this in a shade 8, which is a nice match for my NC30 skin. I like that this foundation has both yellow and pink undertones, since my skin seems to have a little bit of both naturally. My first impression for this foundation is how expensive it is because of the small packaging and the fact that you only get an ounce for the price you pay. However, I can overlook that because this is a wonderful foundation, probably one of the best foundations I've used in the past couple years. I don't know how well the squeeze tube packaging will fare once I start to run out, but for now it works ok. I apply this foundation with my hands because I feel it can be a little thick to apply with a foundation brush and my hands help warm this foundation up for application. Upon first application, it appeared a little too pale for my liking, but within minutes, it settled into my skin and made my skin look flawless. I do find that this lasts all day, but after 6-8 hours of wear, my forehead does get a little shiny. Another great thing about this foundation is that it doesn't break me out. Love my first foundation purchase from Illamasqua!

I'm NC25 and decided to buy the shade 8 as they shade (6) that I wanted to try was sold out online. It was a great colour match and blended easily to give a very natural finish to my skin - not too matt or rich. It lasted well throughout most of the day and looks flawless in photographs. I also like the squeeze bottle so I only use the amount I need. The only problem I had with it was my nose became shiny which doesn't happen with any of my other foundations.

I just purchased this a couple weeks ago from Sephora. I was disappointed that they were discontinuing Illamasqua's Rich liquid foundation and this one came out. The other one is only $36 and this one runs at $46 -_-. It's less pigmented than the rich liquid but still gives a full coverage. It's also more of a satin look than the other that sets more matte. However, I do like it.

I bought this because of the good reviews and especially after watching Pixiwoo use it in countless videos. It was Lollipop26's review that eventually led me to give in and buy it. I bought it from ASOS for £25 in the shade 10 and I'm an NC35. On the Illamasqua website it claims the shade 10 has "yellow undertones" but this is far from yellow it was more of pinky beige and over my yellowish skin tone looked grey. It kind of reminded of how terribly pink and beige some drugstore foundations are and this felt exactly like that, it just made my skin look so grey. The foundation itself has a medium consistency not too runny or thick, it doesn't feel heavy on the skin and goes on fairly nicely. The main reason for disliking this foundation, other than the colour mismatch is that it just looks like a drier version of my skin. I was so disappointed! My natural skin looks so much better and more glowy on its own. I have dry skin and seeing Pixiwoo who also claim to have dry skin I thought it would be a good shot but I was so wrong. So now I'm stuck with an entire bottle of it and I extremely dislike it :/ it doesn't look invisible to HD environments like it claims and for people with dry skin I just couldn't image how it works. The only way this could possibly work is for a combination or nomal-oily skin as it would probably do a good job at keeping things matte. I gave it two lippies because it didn't work for me and I've tried drugstore/chemist brands that have performed much better than this. Really gutted with this :(

Great finish, great colour match (but that may change in the winter months coming - Australia), feels super light and looks so natural and healthy. I couldn't stop staring at myself whenever I have this on - I look about 10 years younger. Wish it was more long wearing and this is a lot harder to blend than most foundations I've tried before. Still, I'm keeping this in my foundation drawer.

Ref: Illamasqua Skin Base 12, MAC NC 37-40

I am NW20 and got this in shade 6. Not the greatest colour match but a little goes a long way and the coverage is great. It is a little more sheen-y than I normally like so I would not repurchase. Guerlain Extreme still very hard to beat ...

I was so dissapointed when I first bought it. First, color was off (MA said it was just right)
I bought 03 and it is really yellow, while i'm neutral.
Second, I couldn't make it look good, it was awfully streaky when I used my fingers and the coverage was poor.
Flat top brush kinda made it look better but with a SPONGE...! What a diffrence! Went from 'meh, I should swap it' to 'I'm buying a second one!'
Didn't give it 5 just because I had to spend half a bottle to get it right which shouldn't be so difficult :)
I like the sweet smell, coverage (medium to full) and staying power (untill I wash my face!)
Finish is really nice anad natural, and the shade, while really off undertone-wise, it blends and assimilates really great!
I'm guessing when I buy the right shade I'll be coming back to upgrade the lippies :)