By Sarah H
I confess to being a huge Urban Decay junkie. I first started using the stuff when I was about 16 and bought a single, glittery eye shadow. The rest is history- sparkly, shimmery, vibrantly-colored history. Needless to say, when I heard about the new Naked Foundation, I was pretty excited, and am happy to report that the excitement was well-deserved.
Shades
Before the official launch of the product, my local Ulta Sales Rep gave me a sample card for the foundation. Thrilled, I took it home and tried it immediately. I was also immediately bummed, because the 2.0 didn’t look good on me at all. I had just about abandoned all hope for the product when lo!—help was on the way.
When the official product was launched, another Ulta rep did my makeup full out with UD products, starting with their new facial primer and Naked foundation. This time she matched my shade for me, and I discovered that 1.0 was a perfect fit. I am happy to say that Urban Decay is one of the very few product lines that offers foundation for pale skinned people who have olive undertones. Most foundations go pink undertoned for the lighter shades, but UD has avoided this pit fall by offering a huge variety of shades, all with different undertones. Nothing is too orangey or too pink. Victory!
Application & Feel
I am very, very picky about how a foundation feels on my skin. I don’t care if it looks flawless; if it doesn’t feel good, then I’m not wearing it. That being said, I do have a favorable view on Naked’s feel. It does not, as its name may say, make your skin feel naked. For me this isn’t a bad thing, though. My naked skin is really oily, shiny, and acne-prone. Naked gives a slightly powdery, matte finish that I really enjoy. It reminds me a bit of Biotherm’s Sense Matte foundation, which was a favorite of mine before the company pulled out of all American stores and disappeared to France. Naked looks amazingly smooth, and feels like a mattified light to medium coverage foundation.
In terms of application, you will find that the Good Karma Optical Blurring Brush comes highly recommended. I do love the brush, but if you have another foundation brush that is soft and borders on the voluminous, you’ll still get just as great a finish. Do be warned that this is one of those foundations where brush application makes a huge difference. Sponges and fingers will absorb the liquid way too fast and end up costing you precious pumps of the $38 bottle.
Coverage
The nice thing about Naked foundation is that, well, it isn’t entirely Naked. It does go on a little on the lightweight/sheer side, but you can build coverage very quickly and easily, which is a huge plus. So if you’re blessed with lovely skin and just want something to even out minor flaws, one light brush coat will do it. Or, if you’re like me and have skin like a volcanic eruption of breakouts, blemishes, and hyperpigmentation, you only have to go over trouble spots with a second coat and you should be good. Like I said previously, the finish is pretty matte, so it dries quickly and provides really solid, all-day hold. No more worrying about sweating in the sun and having your perfect skin start to melt off like a horrifying movie.
Overall, the foundation isn’t super cheap at $38, but you do get a good amount of it, and with the ingredients including a number of infamously good skin care items (like green tea and matrixyl-3000), it’s well worth it for the beauty diva or casual girl desiring flaw free, all day foundation.
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