Vacationing and Foundationing (Tarte vs. Mac)

Sorry for being completely MIA as of late, I was on vacation! Granted, that was two weeks ago but then mid-terms came around and weeks of studying and testing later, I'm back and I'm here to stay!

While I was on vacation, I attended a wedding. While I was packing for the trip, I noticed I was out of my most important bottle of makeup - my Mac foundation. Wanting to give something else a try, I went out and purchased a foundation I had heard a TON of bloggers raving about, Tarte 12 Hour Full Coverage Foundation - part of the Amazonian Clay Line. After giving it a try, I decided to compare the two for you:

Here's my skin type and what I was looking for:

• Fairly dry, combination skin
• Full coverage that lasts all night
• I use a yellowing primer so I prefer to buy foundation a shade lighter than my skin color
• I applied both foundations with a fairly dense foundation brush
• I don't break out so much as I have darker spots from when I did use to have acne problems

Tarte 12 Hour Full Coverage Foundation ($38)

Pros: Provides an excellent and lasting coverage. I wouldn't particularly say it has 12 hour coverage, definitely something closer to 8-10 hours. Very, very blendable. Quite matte at first, but evens out later on. I did not achieve any pretty, dewy skin results with this one. Packaging made the product easy to use (just squeeze out onto the back of your hand and apply with a brush, as needed)

Cons: Thick consistency and it's definitely buildable but only if you want to feel like you're wearing a 5 pound mask of make-up on your face. Really difficult to find the right color match, definitely not the same variety that can be found with Mac. It made my skin look quite fake. 

Mac Studio Fix Fluid ($27)

Pros: A pretty smooth coverage and definitely makes my skin look it's best. Very easy to achieve that dewy look with. Very buildable and doesn't feel too heavy on the skin. Tons of colors, so it's easy to match with your skin tone. 

Cons: The coverage isn't what I thought it was in comparison to what the Tarte foundation can do for me. The coverage won't get through 8-10 hours like the Tarte foundation will but you will definitely get a good 6-ish hours with this. Not as blendable as the Tarte foundation, it's fairly average in this category. Leaves me with slightly oily skin and does cause me to break out if I use this too often. Packaging lacks in comparison to the Tarte foundation, I have to sort of shake it out of it's bottle (though I've heard Mac is introducing a new packaging for this product). 

So all in all, while Mac does have a TON of cons, the way it makes my skin look is nothing in comparison to what any other foundation has done for me. Until I find something better, this is my HG. 

In fact, before returning home, I re-purchased my Mac foundation. And as the lady behind the Mac counter said "Never stray". Once you go Mac, you never go back.

Mac foundation (and its impossible to use packaging)

Tarte foundation (and its fabulous packaging)