Don’t miss Adventures in Theatre Makeup, an introduction (with reviews for some cheek colours and a highlighter)!
What it is: Ben Nye Cream Foundation in Ultra Fair
The coverage and feel: huzzah, a silicone-free foundation! Now, slopping on enough of this to be “theatre appropriate” can create some major grossness, but for everyday wear it’s far from terrible. It’s kind of like the Ben Nye Cream Foundations have the coverage of a concealer, but the texture of a foundation. Which is… awesome.
For those with oily skin wanting heavy coverage, this might not be for you. Otherwise, I think it would be fine for dry to normal skin, as well as for oily/combination-skinned gals who want light to medium coverage and set with powder. (My t-zone can shine up pretty badly, and this is just fine with this it.)
The curse: you know how hard it is to foundation-match in person, with a shade range of 10-20 choices?
Well, Ben Nye produces this formula alone in over 50 different shades. And it’s a PITA to find, unless you live in a city with a specialty shop.
Why the curse is actually a gift: well, once you find your shade, you’re pretty much set. And if you can’t find your shade, there are a ton of options that you could blend to customize your perfect foundation! (Ben Nye products are ridiculously creamy, so it’s easy to blend products, even in their packaging.) Plus, theatre makeup is a great option for pale girls: finally, lines that always carry our shades!
The added bonus: time for some math. (Kidding!) These are 0.5oz each, and you’d probably only need half as much foundation as normal. And… they’re $8 per pan. Nope, I’m not pulling your leg — they really are! Size + pigmentation + cost = a really great deal. (Math skills + Rae = none).
Some swatches: Just as a bit of a “starting point,” here are some concealer swatches as compared to Ultra Fair. I hope they can help someone out there :) Taken in indirect sunlight, and in the shade with flash.
The verdict: yes. YES. A huge yes! They’re ridonculously creamy, insanely cheap, super pigmented, silicone-free… as you can see, I can’t stop raving about them!
Well, that’s a lie. I can stop raving about them, and I’m about to: you can’t rave about foundation in your sleep, after all, and I’m writing this draft at almost 1AM. So, feel free to ask questions in the comments. Or to let me know how totally incoherent and hard to read this was.
