Ace Your Base: The New Foundations That Serve Real-Skin Radiance
Francesca is the Beauty Editor at Adore Beauty. With a background in glossy mags and bylines in publications like Marie Claire, ELLE and BODY+SOUL, Francesca has turned her love of beauty into a career. Whether she's decoding buzzy ingredients or road testing lip glosses (so. many. glosses.), her approach to beauty is equal parts glamour and highly-considered.
Whether you're a full glam devotee or a sucker for the no-makeup makeup look, I'm sure you can agree - a flawless base is *everything*.
And the new class of foundations (and foundation-adjacent formulas)? Let's just say they've understood the assignment. Think: real-skin finishes that stay shine-free without sacrificing comfort, coverage or that all-important dimension.
From dreamy mattes that blur to hydrating tints that give glow (sans grease), we have a plethora of options on site (and currently on sale!).
Built to perform, and uncomplicate your complexion routine, here are our top base products for serving face.
In The Prep Work: Best Primers
Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base
This is skincare that moonlights as primer. It’s a bouncy, nourishing cream rich in shea butter and vitamins B, C, and E that glides over skin for that dreamy, satin base. The texture is plush (almost whipped) and sinks in fast.
Why I Love It: I often find my moisturisers (particularly those richer formulas) tend to pill, separate and cling (?!) when paired under foundation. This beauty moisturises, primes and layers beautifully. Every. single. time.
The thicker, cream texture formula instantly softens and smooths over dry patches and any testure. Producing a smoothed, satin base. There is a light citrus scent that lingers, but (esp for those fragrance adverse) it reads moreso as clean and expensive.
e.l.f Cosmetics Power Grip Primer
Infused with hydrating ingredients, e.l.f's cult-favourite gripping primer leaves your skin feeling soft and refreshed. The lightweight gel smooths over texture to creates a secure base that holds onto your makeup, preventing it from sliding or wearing off through the day. It's designed to work with all skin types, ensuring your makeup looks its best for longer.
Why I Love It: This is one of those products that I love applying so much (sensory heaven) that I will repurchase it on that fact along. It feels cooling, refreshing and oh-so juicy on. Luckily for me, the finish is on par to the experience. The tacky gel texture grips and smooths for a seamless base. On days when I use it as prep, I definitely notice more longevity and radiance. This gets an A+ from me.
Flawless Finish: Best Foundations, Skin Tints and Concealers
Yves Saint Laurent All Hours Glow Foundation
A luminous twist on the iconic All Hours foundation by YSL. I like to think of this new iteration as it's dewier sibling. Boasting the same longlasting, buildable coverage we know (and love), it's just a little more glow-getting.
Luminous but not greasy, smoothing but not flat. It's designed to blur imperfections and even tone for that coveted lit-from-within look. Dosed with skin-loving ingredients like hyaluronic acid and jasmine petal extract to soften, the formula screams radiance.
Why I Love It: As an YSL All Hours devotee, my expectations here were high. I tend to gravitate towards lightweight, radiant formulas anyways so this felt very much up my alley (and aligned with my personal hopes and dreams). A quick prayer to the complexion gods and I was ready to roadtest.
Did she live up to the hype? Yes. 1000x over yes.
I truly enjoyed this finish. It feels weightless and breathable on the skin and blends out like a dream. I used a beauty blender to buff it in and was very happy with the results.
I also thought the finish genuinely looked better the longer I wore it. I’ve now road-tested it against office days (desk under aircon), rainy errand runs and and nights out and it hasn’t cracked once. Serious staying power.
This has quickly become my go-to for when I want to look polished, but still feel like I’m wearing almost nothing. The ultra-blurring, radiant and flawless finish is exactly what I was praying to the complexion gods for. (thank you!!)
IT Cosmetics Do It All Radiant Concealer
This concealer does the most - in the best way. It hydrates, conceals, brightens, smooths and holds up all day. Dosed with niacinamide and caffeine, it helps depuff and even tone as it blends. The finish is luminous and hydrating without being overly shimmery.
Why I Love It: My skin veers on the drier side, so I'm typically gravitating towards light coverage formulas that brighten without actually 'concealing' (or settling in) too much. I have a little bit of darkness (easily exasperated post night-out) but my main concern is texture aka sunken in, tear trough hollows.
This formula was a little thicker than I'm used to however it still boasted that dewy, hydrating reflect (thanks to skin-loving ingredients like Peptides and Vit E) that I love. I also found that thickness didn't accentuate any texture and actually blurred over those tear trough lines with ease. You can see the smooth, plumped out finish.
I ordered the wrong shade (too dark) but borrowed a 125 Fair Cool and loved how it turned out. It refreshed my whole complexion and added some much-needed brightening to the under eyes.
Prada Reveal Skin Optimizing Foundation
When the likes of fashion royalty aka Prada drop a beauty line - you listen. When they drop a skin-mimicking, dreamy, soft-focus foundation - you invest, immediately.
This foundation is serious about balance: skincare actives meet medium coverage that actually moves with your skin. Another skincare hybrid, the formula is brimming with vitamin E, 100% active niacinamide (calming and great for texture) and Lactobacillus Extract Complex to optimise tone and boost hydration.
The texture is fluid but not runny, with a natural-satin finish.
Why I Love It: The first thing I noticed is that the formula is thicker than I expected - it definitely feels like a medium to full-coverage foundation. Not the sheer, second-skin textures I typically gravitate towards - but it was beautiful and surprisingly natural nonetheless.
I suspect that's thanks to the high-tech IRL Micro-Filter™ Technology that Prada uses to micro-crystallize on the skin. It promises to deliver a soft-focus effect that blurs imperfections and enhances luminosity.
The coverage was rich enough to cover a stubborn blind pimple (and redness) with ease, but to let my natural skin texture and a few freckles shine through. Because the coverage was so great, I was able to forego concealer (best thing ever) and instead tapped in a little extra product (with fingers) around my under eyes. It worked a treat!
Benefit POREfessional Foundation
Known for their blurring, pore-minising powers (their POREfesisional Primer is unmatched), Benefit have released a brand new Foundation. Their first foundation launch in a decade, the formula is a 'natural' matte finish with medium to full coverage. Designed to blur over texture (including pores) with ease, it's dosed with Niacinamide, Rose hip extract and glycerin to hydrate. Bonus points for being longlasting - up to 24hr wear.
Why I Love It: I didn't expect to like this one as much as I did.
Though full coverage (my dewy-loving heart winces at the thought), I was pleasantly surprised at how seamlessly and naturally it appeared on the skin. I used 1.5 pumps for the full face (and neck) and loved how it sheered out. A little goes a long way.
A beauty blender gave it that slightly lighter coverage and dewier finish that I was after. True to name, it did really 'blur' and minimise the appearance of pores and texture on skin. It was filter-esque in nature, everything just looked a little less harsh.
I also got lots of compliments from colleagues on my makeup that day. Buzzwords like 'blurred', 'seamless' and 'airbrushed' were thrown around. The end goal, right?!
Lancôme Skin Idôle 3 Serum Supertint
I wrote a full (and thorough) Beauty IQ article road-testing this beauty - check it out here.
The TLDR; This isn’t quite a skin tint, not quite a foundation - it’s sits somewhere in the middle, which makes it ideal for anyone who wants that your-skin-but-better finish. She's lightweight in nature and again, boasts up to 24hr wear.
According to Lancôme, the Idôle Supertint is made up of 87% skincare ingredients, which immediately grabbed my attention.
It’s powered by a trio of crowd-pleasing actives: niacinamide (for tone and texture), hyaluronic acid (for hydration), and vitamin E (for skin barrier support). The idea is that it covers and perfects your complexion while actively improving the look and feel of your skin.
Why I Love It: The formula does a great job balancing glow and longevity. It was just the ethereal, softly diffused finish I was after. Not overly shiny.
I wouldn’t say it blurred my skin in the way a silicone-heavy primer or full coverage foundation might but it definitely made everything look more even and smoothed.
The coverage is light-to-medium, and yes, it’s buildable. I tapped on a second layer around my nose and chin where I needed more coverage and it layered well without separating.
Maybelline Superstay Lumi Matte 30H Liquid Foundation
A matte finish, but make it modern (aka no caking or creasing). This affordable gem gives you longwear coverage that feels surprisingly light. It’s not flat or dry; instead, it has a soft-satin effect that controls shine without dulling skin. Infused with vitamin C, it also brightens skin over time. Bliss!
Why I Love It: It performs like a high-end foundation but costs less than lunch. In cossie lives, kind of unheard of?!
I wore this for a busy day in the office and it barely budged. Zero touchups or blotting required. It gives me that smooth, pore-blurred finish without any creasing or cakiness. I will admit this did feel full coverage on (slightly less breathable than the above options), but for the soft-focused finish... lowkey worth it? I can see myself reaching for this one again.
Set and Forget: Best Setting Sprays
L'Oréal Paris Infallible 3-Second Setting Spray Mist
Think of this as hairspray for your face - but in the best way possible. It’s ultra-fine, lightweight and truly locks everything in without a sticky finish. The mist dries fast and sets makeup while softening texture. Rather impressively, it promises waterproof, transfer-proof and sweat-proof makeup for up to 36 hours.
Why I Love It: It dries almost instantly (seriously, three seconds). Locking everything into place, and somehow improving the harmony (and texture) of my makeup, the mist was fine and seamless. No droplets, stickiness or weird film.
I’ve used it recently on our long Adore Beauty scavenger hunt day (iykyk) and my makeup barely budged, no matter how humid, sweaty or chaotic things got. (they got all three). Really impressed with this one!
Huda Beauty Easy Bake Setting Spray
This one is for serious staying power. A micro-fine spray that sets your makeup with almost bulletproof hold. Inspired by Huda’s iconic baking powders, this mist ensures everything (from your undereyes to your contour) stays crease-free and fresh.
Why I Love It: I was first introduced to this product, reading the high praise from skinfluencer Alisha on a BeautyIQ article. I knew I had to try it for myself.
Pleased to report, the results were as impressive as hers. The hold is no-joke. It sets like a soft matte veil, keeps shine at bay and doesn't feel tight or heavy. One (generous) spritz of the fine mist and I know I’m good for the day.
Catch up on the latest makeup launches with the below Beauty IQ articles:
