OK so I did a post yeaaaars ago—four years ago to be exact—on my foundation stash and the foundations shades I wore in various brands being an NW45/NW47 kind of girl. Now we know that MAC is NOT a foundation guide as I’ve written posts on it and mention it in just about every foundation review I can. It has somewhat helped in the past for me to help many of you find me in Google searches, but the reason why we shouldn’t use it as a foundation equivalency anymore is because 1. I deeply suspect most of us were put into shades that weren’t the best back in the day because options were limited (have you ever noticed EVERYBODY and their grandma is a damn NW45 or NC45) and 2. One brand’s dark brown with red undertones can look very different from another brand’s dark brown with red undertones (and of course with other variations, just using dark brown with red undertones as one example here) and 3. we have WAY more options these days (as compared to back in the day) that might better suit us. You can read more about this in my Why MAC is NOT a Foundation Guide post.
See my concealer stash and shades here
But since I obviously don’t own the same foundations I did four years ago (these things DO expire, ya know) and because so many new formulas and shade ranges have been added, I decided to do an update.
This list will include the foundations I like and/or use the most as well as concealers and powders. I’ll have links where you can read full reviews and swatches for each complexion product, but if you want to see what shade I might wear in a foundation that isn’t listed in this post, make sure you check out my past foundation reviews. (I get sent foundations that I test out but don’t necessarily need to keep in my personal stash)
For reference, I’m a dark brown with neutral undertones. I can sometimes take a little red in the undertone of a foundation (but not TOO much). I very rarely need a summer color and a winter color. When I do tan (which seems to only happen when I’m in the Caribbean for a while), I tend to get pretty red in undertone (read about that here).
Note: the lighter a foundation’s formula is, the more people can get away with wearing it. This is why things like tinted moisturizers and lightweight foundations come in fewer shades—more people can wear the same shade making it pretty flexible. This is not the case with most if not all medium to full or full coverage foundations. You want to get those right because they tend to be pretty pigmented and it will be VERY obvious if you have on the wrong shade.
***UPDATE 1/20/19: I now have a Fenty match! Scroll below to find out more.***
Beauty Blender
Bounce Foundation: 4.40 (see full review here)
Bobbi Brown
I don’t currently have a good foundation match at Bobbi
Creamy Concealer: Golden (to highlight face) Almond (to highlight under brow bone)
Cover FX
Total Cover Cream: N110 (for base) P125 (for contour) and sometimes I use N120 for contour [see full review here; see all posts here]
Pressed Mineral Powder Foundation: N110 (for base, though I rarely use it) P125 (for contour) and sometimes I use N120 for contour; N80 (for highlight) [see full review here; see all posts here]
Power Play: N110 (see full review here)
Custom Cover Drops: N110 (see full review here; see all posts here)
Dior
Face and Body: 6.5N (see full review here)
Dior Forever 24 Hr Skin Caring Foundation 6.5N (Matte)
These aren’t in my stash anymore, but figured I’d mention my shade matches
Diorskin Forever: 70 (see full review here)
Diorskin Forever Undercover: 70 (see full review here)
Estee Lauder
Double Wear Nude: 7N1 Deep Amber (see review here)
Fenty Beauty
Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Foundation: 445. I did a First Impressions video on this—check it out here to see application and find out more.
Flesh Beauty
Foundation stick: 34 Pecan (for base) 28 Cafe (for highlight) and either 39 Coffee or 40 Espresso for contour [see full review here]
Laura Mercier
Loose Setting Powder in Medium/Deep (to set foundation) [see full review here]
L’Oreal
True Match Super Blendable Makeup: N10 (see full review here)
Make Up For Ever
Super Matte Loose: #56 (see review here)
NARS
Soft Velvet Loose Powder in Mountain (for highlight) [see full review here]
RECOMMENDED READS:
How to Get Your Foundation to Do the Most
Are You Wearing the Wrong Foundation?
Why ONE Foundation Won’t Cut it for Women of Color
Why I Now Highlight and Contour Every Time I Do My Makeup
The Black Girl’s Guide to Shopping at Sephora
The Black Girl’s Guide to Drugstore Makeup
NYX Pro Foundation Mixer
MY FAVES:
Out of all the foundations, I own, I would say I use and love Cover FX Total Cover Cream the most (with mixing the Cover FX Custom Cover Drops to make my own foundation blend as my close second), though lately I’ve been wearing the Dior Face and Body a lot since it came out. I also REALLY love the Flesh Beauty and will incorporate it more into my makeup looks as the weather cools down. EDIT: 8/19/18 My faves have also come to include Dior 24 Hr Skin Caring Matte and I don’t wear the Flesh Beauty as much.
UPDATES:
See my matches in these here.
MORE MATCHES:
Juvia’s Place I Am Magic “Kenya” (click the link to see which shades I use in the concealer to cover, contour, and highlight)
The Lip Bar Skin Serum Foundation: 5.02
As I test more foundations, you can use the link below to see what else I match to.
