L'Oreal MagicSmooth Souffle foundation

First of all, is L'Oreal Magic Smooth Souffle a foundation? A primer? A powder? All of them?

I can't tell, but I can tell you this: for $ 15.99 at Rite Aid, I love it! 

Let's begin our review:

Summary: 

Texture: at first I was grossed out by the commercial  because the lady in it seemed to be actually touching skin in the jar. It is really impalpable, soft and lightweight. It feels greasy at first (it is mostly silicone-based) but it dries out quickly. 

Coverage: sheer

Packaging: as you can see from the picture, it is a jar (duh!?); most will find it unsanitary but I personally use a swab and that's fine with me. 

Smell: it doesn't have particular smell, it just smells like silicones. 

Duration: the application lasts long enough. I don't use a face primer but I was satisfied with the result. Don't expect a 18 hour long lasting formula, though. 

Tip for application: If you have dry skin, I advise to use you regular moisturizer because silicones can dry out your skin in the long run. If you have oily skin, go for a lightweight formula or gel-based moisturizer, you surely don't need more than that. Please remember to use sunscreen, because this product lacks SPF. Be sure to use an oil-based make-up remover because silicones are better removed with oils rather than soap. 

Final result: I hate to say this, but I like this product better than any other big brands' foundations (Smashbox, Helena Rubinstein, Elizabeth Arden and so on) because it makes your life easier. It just combines 3 steps in 1, which is what a practical person like me goes for. The final result is surprisingly smooth and even; I didn't even use concealer because, although the coverage is sheer, for some reasons it covers my dark circles very well. 

Pros: fast and easy 

Cons: no SPF (I think adding UVA blockers would have messed up the formula) - tester are not offered in store and it could be really hard to match your color. I am medium (Italian ahah!) with warm undertones, and the 518 matched my skin perfectly. One tone up, and it became dull and grey. Uh, no thanks. 

Ingredients listing: 

Cyclopentasiloxane*, Dimethicone*, Crosspolymer, Acrylates Copolymer, Disodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Aluminum Hydroxide. May Contain: CI 77891/Titanium Dioxide, CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499/Iron Oxides.

According to SkinDeep, the first two ingredients are ok for your skin. They are commonly referred to as "protective agents". However, they are NOT biodegradable, so this is why I used the red color.

The first ingredient, cyclopentasiloxane, is really volatile and it's what gives you the impalpable result. 

Needless to say, according to PETA, L'Oreal is not among the companies that don't test on animals. 

What's good for your skin, is not always good for the environment.