Foundation Search - Estee Lauder Double Wear

In my continued search for the best higher-end foundation, my first port of call, based on the number of people who raved about this on social media, was Estee Lauder's Double Wear.

 

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I first tried out a sample of the Double Wear Light (30 ml £32.50).

A lightweight, natural-looking foundation that controls oil and will apparently last for 15 hours without fading or melting off. It also has an SPF of 10.

 

My first colour match in a Debenhams in Hastings was matched up for me as Intensity number 3 - which on hindsight, is actually slightly too dark for my skin tone. As a side note, I have been colour-matched a few times now with a different shade chosen each time! So it really does pay to have a second (and maybe third or fourth!) opinion.

They do have skin-reading machines at most Estee Lauder counters, but more often than not, the representative would match your colour by eye - and that's obviously going to vary from person to person.

 

The good thing about the samples you can pick up in store is that they do last for several wears so you can get a good impression about how it will work for you.

 

I really liked the texture of this foundation, and felt that it blended well and I didn't need to wear powder over the top. It certainly controlled the oiliness in my skin without being so matte that it clumped on any dry patches.

As for longevity, it certainly felt that it lasted all day and was very natural and light so a pleasure to wear. But, I found that the coverage was just a bit too light for me for everyday wear.

 

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After being pretty impressed with the Double Wear Light but wanting a bit more coverage, I then decided to try out the Double Wear Stay-in-place (30 ml for £32.50).
My first colour match was for 2N1 - Desert Beige (which was a shade I was happy with).
This is a natural, semi-matte wear which claims to last up to 24 hours (although, I don't think I've ever been in a situation where I've kept my foundation on for that long!).
In terms of wear and texture - it's just like the Double Wear light but the coverage is much better.
Again, it blends well, has good coverage whilst still remaining natural-looking, controls my oiliness, needs no extra powder and lasts for as long as I need it to.
I also got a second opinion colour match on this and was given a totally different shade - this time 1N1 - Ivory Nude - which is quite a step away from the Desert Beige!
So far, this is coming in very high on my wish-list, maybe even at the top. But I think I'd go and get yet another colour match, and see if someone picks a shade already chosen for me, or if I end up with yet another entirely different suggestion!

Something that's undoubtedly helped me with my foundation application is this absolutely stunning rose gold large buffer brush from Iconic London.
I was supremely lucky to be sent this to review and couldn't believe how magnificent this beast was upon opening it!
It's from their Evo range and costs £32.99 (Buy HERE).
I've previously been using brushes like this from Primark and T.K Maxx and have been really happy with them, so I wasn't prepared for the difference in the performance of this Iconic London buffer. I mean, a brush is a brush, right?

 

Wrong! There are clearly brushes out there that deliver a far superior make up application and I have been converted to the idea of spending a bit (a lot!) more to get better results.

This brush head is almost the size of my body brush, but despite this, it really gets into all the countours of my face, including my eye area and around my nose.

And it's so super soft, you don't feel at all 'wrong' about taking it right up under your eyes to the very delicate skin.

It makes claims that you will have flawless skin after every use, and while I don't think that this 46 year old will ever get anywhere near 'flawless' status, it does an amazing job. So much so that I'm wondering if I should go back and re-try it with some of my discarded foundations to see if it makes a difference to how they work on my skin - maybe I'm being slightly optimistic, but or me, it does feel that this rose gold wonder could do pretty much anything!