13 Foundations to Address Every Skin Concern
A roundup of your not-so-basic bases.
Inflammation and acne? Dryness and wrinkles? Name a skin-care issue, and there's a foundation for that. Here, our top picks to help camouflage (and reverse) the biggest complexion offenders.
Best For: Brightening
ReVive's lightweight formula works double duty: light-reflecting and color-correcting pigments even the skin tone and illuminate shadows instantly while cell-renewing proteins help turn back the clock over time.
RéVive Le Tint Moisturizing Veil, $105, nordstrom.com.
Best For: Boosting Hydration
In order to illuminate dry skin, you need to feed it moisture. This medium-coverage formula contains hydrating skin plumpers like samphire extract to quench parched complexions so the end result is dewy not cakey.
Clarins True Radiance SPF 15 Perfect Skin Foundation, $44, nordstrom.com.
Best For: Acne-Prone Skin
A foundation with blemish fighting ingredients like E.L.F.'s blend of tea tree oil, witch hazel, and salicylic acid not only conceals acne, but combats the cause of it, too.
E.L.F. Cosmetics Acne Fighting Foundation, $6, ulta.com.
Best For: All Day Coverage
One drop of Nars's fluid formula contains enough staying-power to camouflage redness, hide imperfections, and conceal dark spots all over the face, all day long.
Nars All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation, $49, nordstrom.com.
Best For: On-the-Go Touchups
Surratt's oil-free liquid is housed inside the base of a foundation brush so every click dispenses the perfect dollop directly onto the antibacterial bristles—no extra tools required.
Surratt Surreal Skin Foundation Wand, $65, sephora.com.
Best For: A Dewy Glow
For those craving more coverage than a BB or CC cream but with that same luminous glow, this foundation fits the bill. The light reflectors in this satiny cream blur imperfections an draw light to the cheekbones and brows like the most subtle of highlighters.
Giorgio Armani Crema Nuda, $120, sephora.com.
Best For: The No-Makeup Makeup Look
Eve Lom's foundation provides hydrating and mattifying benefits at once (thanks to a combination of raspberry antioxidants and rice powder) with a super sheer formula that's nearly impossible to detect. So go ahead and take full credit for that natural-looking glow.
Eve Lom Sheer Radiance Oil-Free Foundation SPF 20, $50, nordstrom.com.
Best For: Minimizing Pores
The oil-absorbing formula hiding in this Laneige cushion works like a soft focus lens for your pores. The semi-matte finish feels ultra light, and the handy, refill-ready compact makes it easy to touch up before happy hour.
Laneige BB Cushion Pore Blur, $38, sephora.com.
Best For: Natural-Looking Contouring
Smashbox's double-ended stick takes the guesswork out of face-sculpting. On one side you'll find silky, blendable foundation coverage, while the other houses a perfectly coordinated shading cream to end your battles with too-dark, overdone contouring once and for all.
Smashbox Studio Skin Face Shaping Foundation, $42, sephora.com.
Best For: Mattifying Oily Skin
There's a fine line between foundations that make skin look matte and flat. Sonia Kashuk's formula is infused with blue lotus, daisy flower, and mallow extracts to counter shine without zapping radiance.
Sonia Kashuk Soft Focus Satin Matte Foundation, $12.99, target.com.
Best For: Soothing Sensitive Skin
When it comes to tricky skin-care woes like scars and rosacea, Josie Maran's argan oil formula erases redness and calms inflammation with buildable coverage that won't irritate these issues.
Josie Maran Vibrancy Foundation Fluid, $45, sephora.com.
Best For: Anti-Aging Benefits
Worthy splurge: Sisley's formula has been injected with the same high-tech peptides, antioxidants, and extracts found in the brand's cult-favorite skin-care formulas along with reflective pink mica particles to create the illusion of a youthful rosy glow.
Sisley Sisleya Le Teint Anti-Aging Foundation, $170, nordstrom.com.
Best All-In-One
Hourglass's foundation stick also doubles as a concealer. Swipe it on straight out of the tube, then blend with your fingers or a foundation brush for the quickest face application ever.
Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick, $46, sephora.com.
Lauren Hubbard is a freelance writer and Town & Country contributor who covers beauty, shopping, entertainment, travel, home decor, wine, and cocktails.
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