Best Serum Foundations for Mature Skin
As we come into the warmer weather our thoughts turn to lighter coverage foundations – or at least mine do, at any rate!
I think there is a lot to be said for serum foundations for over 50, mature skin, as due their skin loving ingredients they are unlikely to settle in fine lines and wrinkles, and more likely to give wrinkled skin a glow or plumping effect which helps the skin to look fresh and dewy.
Happily there are plenty on the market to choose from. So I present to you, five serum foundations:
All chosen because they market themselves as skin loving, serum foundations, which means they are foundations wrapped up in skincare to give your skin long-term benefits. They are all light-medium to medium coverage. Two are drugstore and three are higher end. Now my skin is 67 ½ years old so I don’t think any of these foundations are going to make my skin look better over time, but what I do want them to do, and what they do do, is make my skin look nice for the time I am wearing it! And that’s all a 67 ½ year old can expect from a foundation!
And just to mention that all the links below are Amazon Associate Affiliate, which means that if you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission at no cost to you, but which helps support my blog. I only recommend products that I have tried and tested.
So, in no particular order:
IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better Foundation and Skincare £33.00
I’ve done a couple of videos featuring this foundation – one where I pitted it against the Lisa Eldridge and one where I did a round up of my top 5 luxury foundations.
The marketing says: showing us how skin care and make up can be married for ultimate efficacy, the Your Skin But Better Foundation + Skincare offers all-day hydration and coverage while feeding skin with good-for-you ingredients that will smooth, tone and refine skin texture over time.
Infused with micro-fine, illuminating pearl powder, uber-hydrating industry favourite hyaluronic acid, soothing aloe vera extract, exfoliating hepes acid and nourishing vitamins E and B5, this lightweight, medium coverage, buildable formula promises to improve skin in as little as two weeks all while blurring imperfections, minimising the look of pores and lending an enviable glow.
Micro-fine pearl powder provides a natural radiant finish: it’s made by boiling fresh or saltwater pearls (to sterilize them), and then milling the pearls into a soft fine powder, and it contains, amongst other things, amino acids, calcium and antioxidants.
Application: for natural-looking, buildable coverage, shake well and apply 1-2 pumps to clean skin using your favourite IT Cosmetics foundation brush. For best results, start at the centre of your face and blend outward.
So what’s the verdict: reliable, comfortable with a slight glow, makes skin look fresh and dewy, light to medium coverage, skin like.
L'Oreal True Match Nude Plumping Tinted Serum £14.99
Now this is, in my view, virtually indistinguishable from the regular L’Oreal True Match foundation – the only main difference I can see is that the regular one, which is also harder to get hold of, has an SPF of 17 and this one has no SPF. And this one is a bit more expensive!
So, to the marketing: discover the NEW True Match Nude Plumping Tinted Serum – the power of 1% Pure Hyaluronic Acid, now tinted. The perfect match of skincare and makeup – this innovative formula combines the benefits of a skincare serum with the radiance and coverage of a foundation. With 9 super-blendable shades this sheer formula is able to easily blend on to a variety of skin tones, leaving skin with a naturally luminous finish for a flawless nude look.
Ingredients include alcohol, butylene glycol, dimethicone, glycerine and empetrum nigrum fruit juice – an antioxidant, which, I will have you know, is in a Victoria Beckham cell rejuvenating power serum!
How to apply: Shake the bottle well before using. Apply 2-3 drops on your palms. Spread lightly with your fingers, just as if you were using your daily serum, by smoothing a small amount onto clean skin.
So what’s the verdict: I think it gives a good light to medium coverage, it’s not particularly glowy but it is comfortable – the applicator lets it down, though. But if you’re looking for a reasonably priced serum foundation, this could be the one for you. Shame it only comes in 9 shades too.
No 7 Lift and Luminate Triple Action Serum foundation £18.95
I have already raved about this foundation in a previous video, and it is still one of my favourite drugstore foundations, of any type.
The marketing says: expertly formulated to target the 3 key signs of ageing, the Lift & Luminate TRIPLE ACTION Foundation instantly conceals fine lines and wrinkles, age spots, pigmentation and uneven texture and tone for a brighter, firmer and more youthful-looking complexion. This comfortable feeling foundation with SPF 15 is powered by No7 Lift & Luminate Triple Action Serum technology. Featuring MATRIXYL 3000 PLUS™, an age-defying collagen-based peptide technology with a unique blend of optical blurrers and light reflecting particles, the foundation helps to conceal the first signs of ageing and provide a radiant, healthy-looking glow
Ingredients include Vitamins A, C & E, the formula helps to brighten the skin, whilst the optical blurring technology helps to create a more youthful-looking complexion by reflecting light away from fine lines and wrinkles. The SPF 15 actively helps to protect skin from the damaging effects of the sun. Ingredients include glycerine, butylene glycol and alcohol, but the alcohol is fairly far down the ingredients list so shouldn’t trouble dry skin too much. Gives a radiant finish.
Coverage: Medium – not light medium
How to apply: Dot a little foundation where you need it most, usually your cheeks, nose and chin. Blend into the skin with your No7 Flawless Finish Blending Sponge or No7 Foundation Brush in a small circular motion, working downwards and outwards from the centre of your face.
So what’s the verdict: I love it – this is my second bottle – it gives a higher coverage than the other serum foundations but without looking at all cakey or heavy. It says it gives a radiant finish and I would agree – but it’s not glow-y – and it’s an all-year-round foundation for warm and cool weather – a Goldilocks, foundation, if you will!
Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation £36
What is it – the newest Charlotte T on the market – super hyped like the Lisa E – and makes more claims about its properties than you can shake a stick at – but does it deliver?
How it’s marketed: not specifically at over 50 skin but it has great skin loving properties which are ideal for mature skin.
Marketing: This medium coverage, HYDRATING foundation has been expertly formulated with skincare ingredients to combine instant GLOW and buildable coverage with long-term skincare benefits. With BRIGHTENING Rose Complex and HYDRATING Hyaluronic Acid to IMPROVE THE LOOK OF SKIN WITH EACH WEAR*, my NEW! Beautiful Skin Foundation is the secret to your BEST, HEALTHY LOOKING SKIN DAY.
Ingredients include Pyrus Malus Apple Fruit Water, which is found in loads of skincare products but not usually in makeup. It’s loaded with proteins, starch, sugars, acids, vitamins and salts. The sugars (mainly fructose, glucose, sucrose) give apple fruit extract nice moisturizing and smoothing properties, while the acids (mainly malic and gallic acid) give it mild exfoliant, skin brightening and antibacterial properties.
Hyalurosmooth™ LS 8998 is a botanical alternative to hyaluronic acid – excellent for mature skin to help with hydration.
And… Rose oil contains more than 95 compounds, among them flavonoids, anthocyanins, vitamin C, and quercetin that are all known for their medicinal properties and great antioxidant effects. Similar to many other essential oils, it has antimicrobial properties too.
Now, the not-so-good thing? Out of the 95 compounds, the major ones are citronellol and geraniol, fragrant components that might irritate sensitive skin.
How to apply: Apply to the entire face and buff into the skin using my Magic Complexion Brush, for medium coverage and a healthy-looking glow. Using fingertips, pat onto areas to conceal and blend for natural-looking coverage.
What’s the verdict: it looks as though it would give heavier coverage than it actually does, but it feels lovely on the skin, comfortable, it’s at the lighter end of light medium.
Nars Light Reflecting Foundation £37.50
Now you have a perfect right to wag your finger at me about this – because I dissed it a couple of months ago in my wear test video. But…I have revisited it and revised my opinion – I now really like it – and this is thanks in part to my fabulous viewers, some of whom said it looked good on my skin. So I bow to their superior knowledge, and I’ve started wearing it again, and I like-y!
Marketing: See your skin in its best light with Light Reflecting Foundation. This innovative blend of makeup and skincare instantly blurs imperfections, smooths the look of textured skin, and helps conceal blemishes, dark spots, and redness. Visibly improves skin’s clarity after six weeks of daily use, even after makeup is removed. Powered by advanced skincare ingredients that help defend against environmental aggressors and blue light, it immediately strengthens skin’s barrier to help maintain its moisture. Suitable for most skin types, including sensitive skin. Medium, buildable coverage with a natural finish. Breathable, all-day wear. 36 shades. Makeup that looks like skin. Acts like skincare. Feels light as air. Based on a six-week clinical study of 31 women.
Ingredients include: BIOMIMETIC OAT: Visibly improves clarity by reducing the appearance of redness, while helping to soothe and calm the look of skin. JAPANESE LILYTURF: Immediately strengthens skin’s barrier, helping to maintain its moisture. CACAO PEPTIDES & MILK THISTLE: Help reduce the negative effect of blue light and other environmental stressors.
Application: Dispense a pearl-sized amount of Light Reflecting Foundation and warm with fingertips. Apply foundation starting at the centre of the face and blend out with fingertips. Focus on one area at a time and blend well.
What’s the verdict: I have revised my view – I now really like it! I particularly like the shade on my skin – Patagonia – it’s probably the best shade match of any of the foundations I’ve tried lately – even my high-end fave, the Estee Lauder, is a bit on the pale side for now.
I hope this rattle through these five serum foundations has been helpful! If you want to watch me ramble on in person, so to speak, about these foundations, check out my YouTube video on the subject [insert link].
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Dez xoxo
