The Two Best Prestige Foundations For a Flawless Face (and Their Drugstore Dupes)

I’ve tested them all, and they deliver on their promises

Come on, admit it. You want to look beautiful.

And a beautiful face begins with a good canvas. That means, first and foremost, taking good care of your skin. Things such as staying hydrated, wearing sunscreen, using moisturizer, and purchasing products containing collagen, peptides, retinoids, and other skincare “must have’s” go a long way towards firming, plumping, and lessening pesky problems like discoloration, acne, and wrinkles.

However, if you have any experience with makeup, you know that the perfect foundation helps your skin look even more wonderful.

And because I’m a beauty junkie who’s tried too many foundations to count, I know which foundations work and which don’t. So, if you’re looking at your skin and thinking it might need a tune-up, here are some products to try.

But first, let me tell you that I have no affiliations with these brands. I’m just giving you my opinion, and trust me, it’s a very well-informed one.

It Cosmetics CC Cream

When you play with makeup like I do, you tend to switch foundations often (because you have tons of them). However, there are some foundations you keep coming back to because they never fail to make your skin look great.

For me, that foundation is It Cosmetics CC Cream.

Though I call it a foundation, it’s really a CC cream. This means it’s lighter and more breathable than regular foundations, making it much more natural-looking and comfortable to wear.

The It Cosmetics brand was developed by plastic surgeons and has SPF 50 to protect your skin from the damaging effects of the sun. It also contains ingredients that improve your skin long-term.

For example, this is what the company’s site states about the cream.

“Infused with hydrolyzed collagen, peptides, niacin, hyaluronic acid, antioxidants and vitamins, this skin-loving full-coverage foundation reduces the appearance of acne scarring, wrinkles, redness on skin, dark circles under eyes and large pores — all while giving you a luminous, supple, flawless-looking complexion. It’s truly your one-step for instant complexion perfection!”

Big claims, huh?

But they’re true.

The cream was won numerous awards, such as the Allure Readers’ Choice Award, and is featured in top products lists from Byrdie, Elle, Good Housekeeping, and many more beauty-based publications.

As a matter of fact, one editor of Byrdie describes the moment she first became enamored by the beautifying powers of this cc cream. She states:

“The first time I saw IT Cosmetics’ CC+ Cream on someone up close, I was pretty much mesmerized. My coworker had come into work one day looking suspiciously glowy (her skin was radiant even under fluorescent lighting), and when she told me that this CC cream was the only product she was wearing, I was interested, to say the least.”

Instagram star Courtney Kerr also validates the cream’s magic in her online magazine entitled KERRently, stating that the product will “make your skin look like a walking Instagram filter.”

As a forty-nine-year-old woman who has hated her freckles for decades and been plagued with acne well into her forties, this cream covers them both. However, it also leaves your skin looking luminescent and feeling light and soft.

The cream (averaging around forty dollars a tube) comes in twelve shades with multiple formulas to treat every skin concern. For example, the company makes the cc cream in natural, matte, and illuminating finishes (my personal favorite). They also have a full coverage moisturizer, which I use when my skin looks extra dry.

If you’re thinking of trying the cc cream, moisturizer, or other It Cosmetics, they have a virtual try on page to give you an idea of how the products will look on your skin.

Drugstore dupe

If you’re on a tighter budget and still want a foundation that makes you glowy and flaw-free, try L’oreal’s Infallible Pro-Glow Foundation. This medium coverage foundation has a ton of staying power and hides most flaws. However, the most significant benefit is that it instantly manages to impart a lit from within look at only thirteen dollars a tube.

Estee Lauder’s Double Wear Foundation

Another foundation I use regularly and highly recommend is Estee Lauder’s Double Wear foundation.

According to the NPD Group’s data on prestige beauty makeup, it’s the number one foundation in the U.S. Allure editors also voted it as one of their favorites on their “Best Base Makeup of 2021,” and if you do your own internet search, you’ll see the foundation is on almost every other top beauty list as well.

For example, Macy’s site for the product boldly states:

“For millions of women, it’s Double Wear or nothing.”

Celebrities such as Kendall Jenner and Adele would probably agree with this statement, as they both love the brand and wear it regularly.

Estee Lauder Double Wear is precisely what its name states. It stays put through almost anything. For example, Ulta writes the following of the product:

“Sweat, heat and humidity resistant. Waterproof. Lifeproof.”

You also won’t have a problem finding your perfect shade, as the foundation’s 56 shades cover all races and skin tones.

I could go on forever citing the glowing reviews of this product, but I promised you my personal opinion, so here goes.

When I apply Double Wear, it covers everything that needs to be concealed. It’s like a magic eraser covering acne, skin discoloration, scars, and many other problems. As a matter of fact, if you use this product, you can probably throw away your concealer.

The shade I use is spot-on, not something you usually get from many other foundation brands. One of the reasons it matches so perfectly is that when I first purchased the product, the makeup artist used the brand’s iMatch Virtual Shade Expert. It looks like a scanner used at your local supermarket and uses artificial intelligence to find your best match.

And like the product claims, it’s non-transferrable. It also doesn’t cake and grab hold of fine lines and wrinkles.

However, be sure and use moisturizer before you apply Double Wear because it is of a thicker consistency. However, if you like a sheerer, more natural coverage, the foundation also carries Double Wear Sheer, which lets more of your skin show through but still carries it’s long wearing capacity with it.

The price for the product is around forty dollars a bottle, but it’s worth every cent. Trust me on this one.

Drugstore dupe

Revlon Colorstay foundation is one of my favorite long-wearing, full coverage foundations and comes in at a whopping fifteen dollars. It has formulations for both dry and oily skin. Like Estee Lauder’s Double Wear, it has a sheerer formulation for those who prefer less coverage. So give it a try and see what you think.

The Bottom Line:

A post on Instagram reads:

“May your foundation match your neck, concealer be creaseless and winged eyeliner be sharp enough to kill. Amen.”

However, with the foundations listed above, you won’t need prayers to look beautiful — all you’ll need to do is purchase them and put them on.

The winged eyeliner?

I’ve been practicing, but I’m not a deadly weapon at this point.

One more thing.

If you also have a favorite foundation that’s your number one go-to, let me know. I’m all about experimenting.

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