Almay Smart Shade Foundation Review
A few months ago, I shared on Instagram that Almay reached out to me and was so incredibly sweet to send me a cute goodie box full of few of their newer products to test out. Included in that box were three Smart Shade Skintone matching foundations, as well as a blush and bronzer that I even included in my July Favorites. But with the foundations, I thought it’d be a great idea to compare the three shades and see how “smart” they really are. I’ve always been interested in the technology behind these Smart Shade products and wondered if they’re really true to their claims.
I received the shades Light, Light/Medium, and Medium, which are shown in that order left to right in the swatch pictures below. They come with 1 oz. of product, which is standard for most foundations and retail for around $10 each. It does have SPF 15 in the formula and includes directions for use of that on the back. However, I definitely wouldn’t recommend using this as your only sun protection if that is important to you.
This foundation claims to instantly transform into your ideal shade while providing beautifying benefits. Unfortunately, it doesn’t list any of those benefits on the packaging and I wasn’t able to find them anywhere when researching the product. So I have no idea what that could mean and also am still uncertain as to how the Smart Shade technology is supposed to work exactly.
What really caught my attention is that the foundation comes out white at first with what seems like pigment beads inside and the color of it actually starts to show up once you begin blending. With an exception for the Medium shade, which initially came out as a light tan. This aspect of it reminded me a lot of the L’oreal BB Creams. On my hand, you can clearly see the difference between the shades and the individual tones they each have. Obviously those three shades won’t match every single skintone there is, so you’d just choose the one closest to you and the Smart Shade formula will adjust from there.
My favorite thing about this foundation is how natural it looks on the skin. It provides light coverage, so one layer will still look like your natural skin just a little better. However, it is also a buildable formula and can provide more coverage if you work in thin layers. The packaging is really nice. It’s very slim, easy to get the product out of, and would be great for travel. The only complaint I have with this is that it made me look a bit more dewy than what I usually prefer. I have extremely oily skin, so even the most matte foundations will look dewy on me after about an hour. Other than that, I think it’s a really great product. It doesn’t break down throughout the day and won’t cling on to any dry patches on the skin.
If you have any other questions for me about this product or suggestions for other foundations you’d like me to review, let me know in the comments! Also, I’d love to hear what your thoughts are if you’ve tried this foundation before. Do you think Smart Shade makeup is really “smart?”
~Mani Monday~
This week, I decided to go with something a little more simple and opted for a pastel pink. This particular shade is one of the Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure polishes in the shade Pink A Card. I don’t necessarily love this formula because it does tend to chip on me, usually within about 4-5 days. But I do really love the brush on it and the color is such a beautiful and classic feminine pink that matches with everything.
What’s on your nails this week?
~Christina~
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