I’m Giving Up My Beloved Full Coverage Foundation for This Skin Tint

No makeup-makeup. A dewy finish. Natural-looking skin. These were makeup selling points that my beauty colleagues (and everyone else) would eat up in an instant. Not me, though. I always preferred a classic matte look for my foundation, so much, in fact, that I’d joke that I prefer my skin to be flat and flawless like a mannequin. I was like that classic Drake meme, saying “nah” to any dewy foundation and “yes” to mattes, and mattes alone.

Call it a product of staying home the past three years, or turning 40, but things are changing in my foundation drawer. Instead of reaching for my favorite full-coverage foundations, I find myself choosing lighter ones that have more of a sheer finish. (The old matte-faced Marie can’t come to the phone right now. Why? She’s dewy!) The one that’s been in my daily rotation these past few weeks is Caliray Freedreaming Clean Blurring Skin Tint.

TIP

With the Well+Good SHOP, you can now add products to your cart right from this article page. Just click on the product below and more details will pop up in a new window. Hit “add to cart” and voila! That’s it! As you read more SHOP articles, you can keep adding products to your cart and check out when you’re ready (look for the cart icon on the right side of your screen).

Caliray is a new makeup brand that was launched in Fall 2021 by Wende Zomnir, the co-founder of Urban Decay. It’s inspired by the carefree, laid-back glam of California, and has sustainability and “clean” ingredients at its center. The tint itself contains 94.5 percent natural origin ingredients, like prickly pear, which is a great antioxidant used in skin care (and my margarita last weekend) that can help with inflammation, acne, and balancing the skin, as well as nourishing and hydrating jojoba oil and vitamins C and E.

The tint comes in a pretty, sunset-hued bottle with a small spout that dispenses the product. The formula is super thin and serum-like, a total 180 from my usual foundations, so that took some getting used to. Because it’s so lightweight, sometimes I forgo my foundation brush and will apply it with clean hands (something I rarely do, and never with mattes), which makes it super easy when I’m on the go. The result is more skin-enhancing, not a traditional foundation-like effect. However, it is buildable, so if I do use a brush, I can easily control the application depending on whether I want more or less coverage. It comes in 10 shades.

Now, if I do have a zit or an acne scar that I want to fully hide, I do like to use a little bit of concealer in addition to the tint, but otherwise, I’m super happy—and still shocked that I’ve become a skin tint convert. If you’re looking for a lightweight foundation that gives great complexion with added skincare benefits, I can’t recommend this enough. Take it from me, a former full-coverage foundation princess!


Want to be the first to hear about the latest (and greatest) SHOP product drops, custom collections, discounts, and more? Sign up to have the intel delivered straight to your inbox.