Hello again! About a year ago, I published a blog about my No Foundation Makeup Routine. I had heard a few beauty gurus do this and wanted to see if it worked for me. If you read that blog (or many subsequent blogs of mine since then) you’ll know that I pretty much eliminated foundation from my routine altogether. (Last week’s blog happens to be an exception; I’ll touch on that later.) Now that it’s been a year, I figured why not share my thoughts on my current foundation situation? Keep on scrolling to find out if I regret going foundation free.

In that No Foundation Makeup Routine blog it was obvious to see that I had jumped on the bandwagon pretty quickly. I found that there were numerous benefits to skipping foundation and just letting my natural skin shine through. The results were so good that I never really had the desire to put foundation on my face again. I even decluttered my last two bottles of foundation in my Decluttering My Makeup Collection Part 3 blog post. However, since it’s been a while, I figured I should put my previous claims to the test. Enter my first foundation purchase in a year. 

If you read my Tarte Cosmetics Haul (+ Makeup Look) blog from just last week, you’ll know I recently picked up the Foundcealer Foundation from Tarte’s 7 for $63 sale. I intended on giving it to one of my friends, but thought this was the perfect opportunity to experiment with foundation after such a long time. Not going to lie, it felt pretty weird blending the product on my face. I forgot what it was like to kind of mask your skin and watch imperfections disappear. I didn’t hate it, it was just different. I didn’t hate the results either. My skin looked really good after I finished the rest of my makeup. I was actually surprised at how much I liked the overall effect.

Then, two hours passed by. And that’s exactly when I remembered why I went foundation free in the first place. The product had completely sunk into my fine lines, looked especially heavy in certain areas (particularly around my nose and cheeks) and made my skin feel disgusting. The polished effect was nowhere to be found. I really just wanted it off my face altogether. 

It’s also important to note that it’s definitely not Tarte’s fault. ALL foundation I’ve tried in the past gave me these exact issues no matter the formula, finish, or anything in between. I’m also not really surprised at the results. I feel like I’ve been able to understand my skin more in the last year than ever before. I have a better grasp on what works for it and I officially know that foundation is not one of those things. (I’m sure I’ll play around with foundation again, just probably on a day where I won’t need to wear it for too long.) So, to answer the long-awaited question: no, I 100% do not regret going foundation free.

At the end of the day, I would rather let my imperfections shine through if it means my skin looks and feels better. I recommend ditching foundation to everyone, but especially if you’re struggling with texture, large pores, and fine lines. Foundation seems to emphasize these “problems” more than anything else. However, if you still dig foundation, that’s cool too. No judgement here! The goal is to always do whatever makes you the happiest. And for me, that’s not wearing foundation.

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