*affiliate links, I purchased this*
Revlon ColorStay liquid foundation was my ride or die for YEARS. As I’ve gotten older, my love for full coverage, thick foundations has waned. They just don’t look as good on my skin as they used to. I was intrigued when I heard Revlon had come out with a cream to powder foundation that has a complimentary concealer within the compact. It has been a while since I’ve found a drugstore foundation that I loved, but I thought this might be worth a try.
I found the Revlon ColorStay 2-in-1 foundation at Bed Bath and Beyond for $12.99. It looks like Revlon is on sale at ULTA this week for BOGO 50% off. The color of the foundation looks much darker in the compact than it is. I found that my typical shades of ColorStay liquid (Buff and Sand Beige) were good matches in the 2-in-1 compact as well.
I used Skindinavia Makeup Primer spray and applied the ColorStay 2-in-1 with a barely damp Beauty Blender which worked pretty well. The foundation gives a solid medium to full coverage. It has enough to cover some redness and discoloration, but I would need to use a bit of concealer for spot touch up. The foundation feels creamy and light, but goes on with a demi-matte finish. The texture definitely has some slip to it. The accompanying concealer is about a shade lighter than the foundation, and has a drier texture and more pigment than the foundation. The concealer is only appropriate for undereye concealing or adding a bit of highlight to the face. Don’t use it on blemishes, because the color won’t be a good match.
Here’s where I ran into my problems with the foundation. It looks like it’s set since it goes from a cream to demi-matte, but it doesn’t actually set. It transfers and comes off with even the lightest touch of my finger tip. I gave it a good 45 minutes to see if it would set, and it never did. I ended up setting it with powder, just to see how it would hold up for the day. I had decent results for about 4 hours, then it seemed to just wear away and I had a lot of shine/oil breaking through my skin. I didn’t blot so I could see how it would hold up for a few more hours.
The end of the day, I had lots of shine and oil breakthrough, a few areas of dry patchiness, and overall uneven wear. The concealer was too dry for my undereye, and looked cakey even though I used moisturizer under my eyes. That may be more of an issue with my skin, rather than concealer formula. My eye area is super dry and I have trouble with many foundations. The Revlon 2-in-1 Compact foundation just isn’t for me. I’d say if you have skin that’s neither too dry or oily, and want something medium coverage and quick to apply you might like it. I did find that the foundation was fairly quick to apply and easy to blend.
Have you tried this foundation or the original ColorStay? What are your favorite foundations? I heard the original ColorStay got a makeover and finally has a pump on the bottle! ?
