The Ordinary Foundation First Impressions Review

My Instagram seems to have been taken over with shots upon shots of products from The Ordinary!  I’m either posting about serums and oils in my skincare routine, or a new look with one of the newly released foundations.

The Ordinary has taken the beauty industry by storm with their no-frills, pure ingredient, clinical looking range of serums, oils and other skincare products.

25,000!!   25,000 was the waiting list of people for the highly anticipated release of the new Colours range, consisting of two foundations…..Coverage and Serum.  The wait for these once released was heightened with delays as they hadn’t expected such a high demand added to the fact everyone wanted pump dispensers instead of droppers!!

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My guess was that I would of course prefer the Coverage foundation as I have always preferred a matte look given how oily my skin used to be.  My skin now is more combination but I’ve never really tried a different type of look other than matte so I thought I would try both!

Coverage Foundation £5.90

‘High Spreadability Pigment Suspension System with High Coverage’

Coverage Foundations are full-coverage formulations available in a comprehensive shade range across 21 shades. These foundations contain higher pigment levels than our Serum Foundations but still offer a smooth finish that avoids the heavy makeup look that can make skin appear more aged. The texture is that of a lightweight, non-oily cream.  The Ordinary

My Thoughts

Having used both of these foundations a couple of times now, I’m quite surprised with how I feel about them and their performance.  Starting with the Coverage one:

I used this with the High Adherence Silicone Primer from The Ordinary (of course) and applied it with a beauty blender.  Two small pumps were all I needed so this bottle may be small, but a little really does go a long way!!  I wouldn’t describe this as full coverage, more a medium but buildable.  It blends out easily and isn’t disturbed by the application of other products on top…cream or powder.  The finish, I’d agree is semi-matte, which is quite a nice change for me!  I did complete this with a setting powder and in the instance above, I used the RCMA No Colour Powder.  Longevity wise, this foundation lasts well on my skin for around 6 hours.  I did start to notice that it settles slightly into my pores at that point, not drastically however, just an observation.   I would happily wear this as a daytime foundation, possibly similar to Nars Sheer Glow in terms of how long it lasts so I don’t think this would be an ‘all-nighter’ but that’s what my Estee Lauder Double Wear is for!!  🙂

Serum Foundation £5.70

‘Lightweight Pigment Suspension System with Moderate Coverage’

Serum Foundations are lightweight medium-coverage formulations available in a comprehensive shade range across 21 shades. These foundations offer moderate coverage that looks natural with a very lightweight serum feel. They are very low in viscosity and are dispensed with the supplied pump or with the optional glass dropper available for purchase separately if preferred.  The Ordinary

My Thoughts

I am really loving this foundation!  I was very surprised at this as I feel it has a light coverage with an almost dewy (but not shiny!!) natural looking finish.  It wears well and as the foundation starts to need powder topping up, it’s not an oily mess (neither is the Coverage one by the way, this just took me by surprise with this one), there’s just a nice glow…..which yes I do tone back down with powder 🙂  I have applied this with a beauty blender and it blends beautifully.  I’m not used to working with such a thin product for a foundation!  The second time I used my Sigma flat top kabuki brush and with a bit of buffing, gave a similar result.  My preference is always the beauty blender!  On me, this is not a foundation that I would trust on a long night out however I love the finish and for a day to day makeup base it is lovely and light.  I still apply a setting powder over this, but I would with all foundations.

A Foundation Guide is available on The Ordinary’s website, from this I chose shade 1.2N in the Serum foundation but then I noticed some shade guidance from Wayne Goss in a Youtube video!  In the description link on the video he gives a shade range guide based on Mac foundation shades.  I have used Mac in the past and know that I am NW20, so I opted for the 1.2P in the Coverage foundation.  The Ordinary do say that from the 21 shades available, you should find around 3 shades that will match your skintone, which I think is quite a bold statement to make.  All I can say is, I don’t tend to order foundation online for the reason of shade matching!  For under £6 each, I was willing to take the risk with this, and both shades work perfectly with my skin.  Both products feel completely comfortable on the skin and don’t cake up.  As I usually wear heavier foundations, I am not used to that, but I like it!!

30ml of product for £5.70 / £5.90 is super affordable …. even some drugstore brands are more expensive than these!  They are claimed to be SPF15 but not by use of any chemical  sunscreen but the protection provided by the Titanium Dioxide contained in the foundation.

Overall I am pleased with both foundations and would recommend them both.  I will continue wearing these and perhaps review them again having trialled them more as the weather perks up a bit.  Their longevity on my skin will be put to the test then!

Have you tried either of them?  What do you think of them?

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think in the comments box below or on my facebook page. Follow me on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook….links below🙂

Facebook……….Twitter……Instagram

There’s also a Facebook chat page about all things ‘The Ordinary’ – visit The Ordinary Chat Room to join.  (This is not a page run by me, I have just joined!)

39 thoughts on “The Ordinary Foundation First Impressions Review”

  5. stashy says:
    Reply

    I had no idea you have the option of a dropper or a pump. I think for the serum foundation, I wouldn’t mind a dropper. I went to the Deciem store near me (in Toronto, we’re super lucky to have 4, soon to be 5, Deciem stores) and they advised that they’re out of stock until end of June. I did get matched though so when they are back in stock, I can quickly grab one! I’m 1.2N and leaning more toward the serum foundation rather than the coverage. But at these prices, I guess I could afford to get BOTH! 😉

    Liked by 1 person

    • Beauty and The Ballroom says:
      Reply

      I just went for the pump as I guess I’m just used to that with other foundations. So lucky to have a store!! I heard that there’s possibly one opening in London! I do think for the price, if you can get both then it’s worth a shot. It’s not like theres a major difference like one is a heavy thick cream or anything…they are different but it’s down to preference I’d say xx

      Liked by 1 person

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  15. This is Kat. says:
    Reply

    I’m so glad to see a review on their foundation! I’ve been so undecided whether to buy some and try it out. But they look great on your skin and the price is so good I think I might have to purchase some products myself! Thank you for sharing, and great blog!

    Liked by 1 person

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