A Beautiful and Affordable Foundation (Finally!)

There's a beautiful light coverage foundation at Sephora that's just as lovely and much more affordable than the Giorgio Armani Maestro foundation.  A couple of weeks ago I wandered into Sephora with some time to kill (bad idea) and got talked into getting color matched.  I'd seen the ads for the color matching service but it sounded gimmicky to me, but it actually works really well!

The sales associate held this little device up to my face and took a couple of pictures.  I got matched to shade 2Y11 and then the sales associate can filter through all of the foundations based on the coverage you want, or the finish, or whatever you're looking for.  I wanted something really light that would work for the summer.  I love my Bobbi Brown Tinted Moisturizer and even though it's light coverage, it is heavier on the skin since it's meant to moisturize as well.  I could tell that the color matches were accurate because some of the suggestions were for foundations that I'd tried before and knew were the correct color.

I selected the Sephora Collection Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation in 35, and it's a perfect match.  When the sales associate tried it on me, I was reminded of the Giorgio Armani Maestro foundation because they are both in bottles with droppers.  Both foundations are very thin and almost water-like.  I decided to give the Sephora one a try because I knew my Giorgio Armani foundation needed to be replaced, and the thought of something similar for less than half the price was very persuasive.  (For reference I wear shade 35 in Sephora and shade 10 in Armani Maestro.)

I'm happy to report that the Sephora Collection Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation was awesome, and I actually prefer it over the Giorgio Armani.  For one, the finish of the Sephora foundation is slightly more luminous.  It hits the sweet spot between totally matte and glowy for a very pretty satin finish.  Armani Maestro is totally matte, which is fine, but I prefer something with a bit more luminosity.  Second, Armani Maestro has SPF, which many people view as a positive, but is not something I look for in a foundation.  Typically, the amount of sun protection that you get from any SPF contained in foundation is pretty minimal because we just don't slather foundation on the way we would with a stand alone sunscreen (or at least we shouldn't lol). Plus, I use a separate sunscreen anyways (currently this one from Tarte).  Also, Armani Maestro, like some other foundations that contain SPF, can leave a very slight ashiness that comes across more visibly in photos.  With all the selfies that I take, I can't risk that!

Bottom Line: I highly recommend the Sephora Collection Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation because it's lightweight, has a great satin finish, lasts all day, and is under $25!  Check it out next time you're in Sephora, you won't regret it.

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