A WEEK IN FOUNDATION: TARTE SHAPE TAPE HYDRATING FOUNDATION

Tarte Shape Tape Hydrating Foundation in Porcelain

Another week or so, another foundation review. Thank you to all of you for such great feedback following from my first post in the series, I'll link it in the footer if you haven't seen it yet. A Week in Foundation is my recurring post testing foundations daily on top of different primers. I've tested a brand new Tarte Shape Tape Hydrating Foundation in Porcelain for just over a week and I'm happy to pass on my findings to you. Does it live up to my holy grail concealer? Time will tell.

Little intro...

Tarte Shape Tape Hydrating Foundation in Porcelain swatched

Tarte Shape Tape Hydrating Foundation is beautifully packaged in a heavy matte glass bottle with a blue stripe to identify the hydrating version quickly. It’s £35 for 30 ml and sits firmly within luxury makeup price bracket alongside foundation from premium brands. The shade I own is Porcelain and suits my skin very well and doesn’t oxidise. It’s almost invisible on skin and offers medium coverage which is buildable to strong medium. It doesn’t set in fine lines, wrinkles or accentuate dry skin which makes it perfect for dry, dehydrated and even mature skin. It's currently available only from States but I'm pleased to report that my delivery came through Yodel and I wasn't charged customs!

Monday: touchinSOL No Poreblem* 

For my first day, I choose my recent fave, No Poreblem Primer as it tends to make me look flawless. I applied the foundation over it with a beauty blender and the coverage was medium at best. I had to add on foundation quite a bit around my cheekbones and around the mouth where my redness and capillaries are at their worst. Having said that it didn’t look like I’ll ever look cakey even adding the foundation. I must have used at least 4-5 scopes of the doe applicator when I was done and built up coverage to strong medium. I set concealer and base with touchinSOL Sun Cutting Powder to add a bit of SPF protection. The overall look was semi-matte but healthy, invisible on the skin. At hour 5, the little glow came out which made it look even better. I was super tired that day, yet looked awake and fresh. Checked again at hour 9 and I was glowing and fresh still with foundation almost intact, definitely not cakey or visible. I took it off after a good 15 hours and whilst I was glowing it wasn’t shiny in any extreme way. So far so good! 

Tuesday: Too Faced Hangover Primer

I tend to not to go for two hydrating formulas at the same time in terms of base, but my super tired skin needed a boost this morning. This time I used a Sigma F80 brush and applied foundation directly from doe applicator onto the brush. I used 3 scopes to cover my full face and got to medium coverage. My cheeks could have used a bit more but I decided to just go with concealer there (my new fave Makeup Revolution Conceal and Define). Again set with powder + damp Beauty Blender. I achieved semi-matte finish and again invisible on the skin. I just feel like I’m using a lot more foundation but it could be just the way the doe applicator dispenses it. I liked the finish throughout the day. Foundation looked fresh and natural until late hours (I was doing overtime)! It was on a glowing side when I came home but nothing too extreme. 

Wednesday: Becca First Light Priming Filter 

If Becca’s famous original primer is a little too much for you, I recommend you try the First Light Primer aimed at restoring radiance and banishing dull complexion thanks to the purple tones of the formula. It’s light and gives the most beautiful finish. It’s glowing as if there was nothing there. I decided to add it to my routine on a busy Wednesday morning. A day after working from home is always hectic but I wanted to look my best. The application went on smoothly. I feel my Sigma F80 + Tarte Hydrating Foundation gives me the best finish and allows to build on coverage better. High medium coverage is my favourite kind and after setting it with RCMA No Colour Powder (applied with Beauty Blender as always) it gives that your skin but WAY better finish! I really enjoy this foundation as it’s truly almost invisible on the skin! The duo worked so well as after 13 hours from the application there was a little glow, seriously minimal, just healthy! No cake, no dryness, it’s quickly becoming a fave of mine! I haven’t noticed any changes in my complexion either, no clogging! 

Thursday: This Works 3in1 Mask, Moisturiser & Primer

This Works primer definitely made way in my previous post, so I was wondering how will it fare with a different foundation. I used it on its own on top of the serum. It must have been my dry day as I later learnt - it just wasn’t enough. The application was simple again and this time I managed only two scopes of foundation directly onto the brush, not the skin which buffed in nicely to a strong medium coverage. I’m getting there lol! My skin felt strangely dehydrated all day and sadly it showed on the skin. Foundation was visible for the first time since I tried it, which is a shame and totally my fault for skipping most of the skincare steps in the morning. I said visible but don’t get me wrong, still not bad. I don’t think it kept my bronzer on as well today and I only used a strobing primer as a highlight so I can’t really comment but that disappeared also. I like my highlight to be there all day, so sadly today was a miss from me. Judging on other days, I think this primer is a no go with Tarte that’s all! 

Friday: Dermalogica Hydrablur Primer

Application as per previous days (Sigma F80 + Beauty Blender). I didn’t think too much of it before and during application but it surprised me during the day! At first, I noticed my skin to be flawless, very similar to my fave No Poreblem Primer actually (would you like a review comparing them both?). I really enjoyed the healthy glow of this foundation today, which doesn’t seem to turn into a shine at all. I’ve wore it for 9 hours only as I got ready really late but it looked beautiful at the end of the day. Definitely an improvement from yesterday, but I also multi-masked in the morning and got rid of all dehydration prior to the application. 

Saturday: L’Oreal Infallible Primer Shots Luminising Primer

Let’s start with ‚how freaking beautiful is the packaging’ here? A magpie in me rejoiced when I first saw it. Let’s see how will a drugstore primer fare today shall we? Ok, so the application was as smooth as any other day. The finish was probably the nicest so far in terms of the glow. I really like the shade of L’Oreal as it’s cooler than Becca and suits my skintone so well! The skin remained glowing but not shiny for good 8 hours before going shiny. Nothing a quick touch-up wouldn’t fix but I try to stay as real to the review and possible, so I didn’t opt to remove it. My skin looked really great after 10+ hours too! 

Sunday: Smashbox Primerizer

You know I love my Primerizer so much and I rarely strayed until No Poreblem came about. It hydrates, yet the skin is left almost matte and keeps everything in check for the longest time. On application there are no changes. Still using the brush to ensure the coverage is there and damp sponge afterwards. This allows the foundation to stay put the longest if you really take the time to buff it into the skin. I love how beautiful it looks before powder, so decided to skip that today and only set my under eyes and around the nose with it. I’m quite surprised how well it lasted, first check point after 5 hours revealed all the healthy glow but no shine. I only experienced some shine around the hair line (sweat) after 9 hours. The foundation and primer combo kept the contour & highlight on well too. I’ll definitely see if I can skip the powder with it once I test it during the week. 

Final thoughts.

I remember writing final thoughts on Chanel Les Beiges foundation and describing it as one that’s definitely visible on the skin. Nothing brings me more joy to say that Tarte Shape Tape Hydrating Foundation has passed the visibility test with flying colours. It’s probably one of the most invisible foundations I own and one that packs some coverage punch too. No, it’s not full but with a right method of application a high medium is achievable. What’s unusual is the ability to built on the coverage without the cake. I mean don’t waste your product, 2-3 scopes are sufficient for the whole face, but you can add it on probably to 5-6 scopes and it will not show on the skin! It’s definitely something I haven’t experienced with other foundations. 

Controversy.

I rarely gave in to dramas surrounding the beauty industry but I think the controversy surrounding Tarte Shape Tape foundations range alongside the new Estee Lauder Double Wear and Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer has to be picked up by every beauty enthusiast. It’s important to talk about it, because consumers are the one that can make the change happen, we just need to be vocal about it! Tarte Shape Tape foundations launched in a very limited number of shades, in fact none that would suit the beautiful deep skin toned complexions. It’s a true shame that in this day and age, we have to talk about it still but racism presented in the beauty industry is real and hasn’t really gone away yet. Brands need to learn their consumer base and need to cater to all and not only light skin tones. It’s no longer appropriate, nor has it been before to exclude half if not more of the population simply because you want to launch the product quickly with a promise of more shades to come! It’s no longer appreciated by anyone to have to defend their brand choices simply because the brand does not give a rat’s arse about their perception. Controversy sells right? Yet it is important to remember us humans come in many shades and to celebrate each complexion with undertones suited to all and not the lucky few! I hope Tarte has learnt on their mistakes and soon we’ll see launches that are inclusive of all shades. I mean if Rihanna’s brand new baby brand Fenty can do it, so can you established brands! If a £4 concealer can come in many shades so can your Collection! I could go on but I think I’ve made my point. Racism is not something we can stomach anymore in any form or shape, so grow the hell up beauty industry and start to cater to us all both whiter than white and the dark and delicious! 

Which foundation review you'd like to see next? I have been testing touchinSOL Skin Coat & EX1 bases, so please vote in the comments below and I'll be happy to oblige.

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Love