Okay, I imagine this is a review that I am, yet again, tardy to the party here. This foundation has been out for a couple of months or something now and I'm just now getting to this review. Obviously, I need to get my ass in gear. ANYWAY, as I'm sure is evident by the title, this is a review on the Revlon Colorstay Whipped™ Crème Makeup. I know that a lot of people are pretty excited about this foundation and a lot of people are reading numerous reviews on it, but I'm throwing my ring in the hat - er, hat in the ring as well.This review is SUPER long and SUPER picture heavy so...you've been warned, lovelies.
But anyway, w/o further ado, onwards to the review!
I want to get this out of the way - I didn't plan on trying this foundation. I saw "crème" and went, "Hell no, this will not be for me." Then, when I was reading the info on the endcap display, I noticed this keyword: matte. When you have oily skin, this is one of those keywords that you look for. Whereas people with dry skin might want to look out for "dewy" or "brightening".
So, I just want to mention that, while this is a cream makeup, etc, it's not really meant to be for those w/ dry skin. A lot of people seem to be giving the impression that it's great for all skin types. I really disagree. It's a cream, yes, but it's not a super hydrating one, honestly. All of the bad reviews I've read are usually along the lines of "this looked really bad on my dry skin". No offense but, uh, DUH? It's a MATTE, long wearing foundation. And despite what people seem to be saying, it's not that great for super dry skin. Also, if you have super oily skin, this might ALSO not be for you. But now I'm rambling; let's get on w/ this.
I think part of the problem is that, since this is a foundation meant for those w/ oilier skin, most of us try it and find that it is borderline too hydrating for our skin and think, "Well, this is a very moisturizing foundation. GOOD FOR ALL SKINTYPES GO," while forgetting that, uh, we have oilier skin. This is hydrating to me, but I also slick up faster than *insert lame food simile here*.
Here's what Revlon says about this foundation:
Finally, truly decadent makeup offers ultimate performance. The mousse-like texture feels like silk on your skin. And, the time release formula balances skin for a flawless look. All day flexible wear without flaking, caking or feeling heavy.
-Buildable to full coverage for flawless skin
-Soft, matte finish all day long
-Withstands heat and humidity – great for summer
-Comes in 16 beautiful shades"
When you open up the little ingredient sticker, you see:
Wears up to 24 hours. Talc-free and paraben-free. Buildable to full coverage. Bouncy, whipped formula feels ultra light and silky smooth."
I purchased this from Meijer for about $13. The shade I got was "220 Nude" and it's a tad bit light for me, but I can work w/ it.
If you like avoiding silicones, this is not the foundation for you. The first ingredient is dimethicone. The next couple of ingredients are emollients and also used to help the "spreadability" of the product. Interestingly enough, this foundation also contains salicylic acid. There isn't an SPF in this, so if you get your SPF from your foundation, again, not for you. I use a moisturizer w/ SPF 30, so this didn't bother me, but I can understand how you wouldn't want to slather a moisturizer AND a cream foundation and powder, etc, on your face.
This has a medium coverage. It's pretty buildable but I find that the more I cake on, the more, well, caked-on it starts to look. It doesn't cover up all of my redness and dark circles, but that's okay w/ me, because I prefer light coverage anyway. It's not an automatic full coverage foundation, so if you like that type, you will have to work w/ this. It's not like the original Colorstay, which I find to have a really heavy coverage. This also blends much better - the dry down time is longer, so you have more time to work w/ this product.
The texture. Oh, the texture. The only thing people really care about knowing, right? This is not a mousse-like texture. I thought it would be somewhat similar to the L'Oréal souffle foundation, but it's not. It's a cream, yes, but it doesn't feel "whipped" in the sense I would normally have thought of. It's not like whipped cream or anything. It's very much a cream, but it doesn't feel as heavy as most face creams or cream makeup do. It is a light feeling product but it isn't "bouncy", in case you were wondering, haha. It's heavy enough that it's not going to immediately fall out of the jar, but it will eventually go back to shape. The jar, by the way, is pretty substantial - if I threw it at someone, I could, at the very least, knock them out, haha. It would also make a nice paperweight. I know people like the packaging and think it looks "classy" but it's cumbersome and heavy to me.
I know some people go w/o setting this, but I still set my t-zone. This does seem to dry, not to a powder finish but to a "natural" matte finish. That being said, I still get oily 5-6 hours into wearing this if I don't use a powder or primer.
Okay, we're going to talk about this phrase really fast: "Wears up to 24 hours." I'm sure you've seen this before. It shows up on many products! This is a catch-all, ass saving phrase. It doesn't guarantee 24-hour wear. It just says it could last 24 hours. Like, if you had a job as a doll, and you sat in an air conditioned room all day long, it'll probably last a full 24 hours. I'm not a huge fan of these types of phrases because I think they can be misleading BUT they're not incorrect. Hypothetically, this foundation COULD last 24 hours! But under normal circumstances, I'd say I get 15 hours of decent wear out of this before it starts to fade and look a bit patchy.
I do like this foundation. Is it HG status? Fuck no, that still belongs to Smashbox's Camera Ready BB Cream, which I ADORE. But I have been using it a lot lately. I don't know that I would repurchase, but again, it's not HG for ME, so that's a big factor, haha. I use a mattifying primer and the Urban Decay De-Slick setting spray w/ this. I prefer using my fingers to apply it as well. The coverage is the best, and I find that I use less than when I use any brushes.
I wore this a ton of ways. W/ a primer and no powder, it looked nice for about six hours. Then it started to get oily looking and patchy around my nose. W/ no primer and a powder, it lasted way longer - closer to 10 hours, but it still broke down and got patchy around my nose and mouth. I got the absolute best wear w/ both a primer and a powder - on a regular day, I got about 15 hours before this started to fade and wear off. I would suggest a mattifying or oil-control primer, although any primer will help w/ the wear.
I tried applying this w/ a stippling brush (MAC 187), a damp sponge, the e.l.f. Studio Powder brush (flat top buffing type), a standard paddle foundation brush, and my fingers. I have pretty large pores, for reference. I preferred the finish and wear the best w/ my hands. The MAC 187 finish was the next best, but I've just been in the habit of using my fingers anyway, so that might be why I prefer hands the best.
My bare hand.
The foundation, not blended.
Foundation blended in. Notice my scar is no longer red. I don't know why the lighting changed so much, but you can tell this is way too light, haha.
After six hours of wear, including two hand washings. Scar is still covered up!
Bare skin.
My right side (your left) was applied w/ the e.l.f. Studio Powder Brush. My left side (your right, the side w/ the monroe piercing, haha) was w/ the MAC 187. I didn't set these w/ powder or use a primer. I don't know why I suddenly developed ghost face, but this foundation is too light for me. But it doesn't contain SPF, so who knows!
Left side is foundation, right side is bare skin,
Left side is foundation, right side is bare skin,
My right side (your left) was w/ a paddle foundation brush. My left side (your right, side w/ piercing) was applied w/ a damp sponge. I didn't end up using the rounded foundation brush, but it's still in the photo. I've been making some incredibly herp-derpy expressions in all of these pictures, apologies!
Left side is foundation, right side is bare skin,
Left side is foundation, right side is bare skin,
Left side is foundation, applied w/ my fingers, right side is bare skin,
This is w/ Urban Decay's De-Slick spray, Benefit's POREfessional, Korres Quercetin & Oak Concealer in "Light", and MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in "Medium".
Left side is my full face, right side is bare skin,
This is a herp-derpy shot of my face at 2 PM. I had applied this foundation at 5:30 AM, worked a four hour shift, and sweat my ass off. It held up fairly well but you can DEFINITELY tell it did get shiny.
Left side is my full face, right side is bare skin,
WOW. Did you make it through this entire post? If so, I seriously congratulate you because this was ridiculously fucking long. A+ though!
