Huda Beauty Faux Filter Foundation Review- Is It Worth Your Hard-Earned Cash?

Year 2017, sometime around May, the Huda Beauty Faux Filter Foundation first hit the market. Beauty enthusiasts from all over the world went gaga over this foundation which claimed to give a “photoshop finish” to your skin. People literally fought to get hold of the bottles which were selling off like hot cakes. A brainchild of Dubai based blogger, entrepreneur and beauty guru Huda Kattan, this foundation promises to give an 'airbrushed finish for a second skin look'.

This ‘game changing’ foundation remained out of stock everywhere due to their high demand and getting hold of a bottle wasn’t that easy. Also, I didn’t want to jump into something just because everyone was doing so. I wanted to take my own sweet time and after a few wars between my heart and heart, I finally thought of giving this foundation a try.

I know it’s been a while since the launch and my review is quite late considering that, but better to be late than never.

Let us get into the nitty-gritty details…

CLAIMS-

PRICE- Rs 2990 for 35ml

AVAILABILITY-
Online at Nykaa
Offline at Nykaa Luxe stores across the country.

PACKAGING-
The foundation comes in a super luxurious looking bottle with a pump dispenser. It looks like glass, but actually is plastic; doesn’t look cheap or fragile. Love the ombre effect. The bottle further comes housed inside a black box which has all the details mentioned. The bottle is sturdy and travel friendly and I absolutely love the overall packaging.

INGREDIENT CALLOUTS- Free of sulfates SLS and SLES and parabens. This product is also cruelty-free and made with recyclable packaging.

EASE OF CHOOSING SHADES-
Available in 30 different shades. The shades were pretty difficult to navigate online, so I thought of picking it up from the Nykaa Luxe Store, New Delhi and it was even more difficult there. The shades are actually so close to each other that it becomes difficult to differentiate. I am NC20 in MAC and Sand in Estee Lauder and I was matched to #Chai 210B which is for ultra light skintone with beige and golden undertones. Generally I prefer my foundation a little darker than my actual skin tone. I can go out wearing a foundation darker than my actual skin tone, but never with one that is lighter. #Chai, though matched perfectly, looked very stark. I then started swatching shades darker to it, and frankly speaking I didn’t find much difference between the shades in that spectrum. I remained confused amongst Chai, Custard, Macaroon and Cheese Cake. After spending an hour and freaking myself, my husband and the shop assistant out, I finally settled for Cheesecake 250G which is for deep light skin tones with golden and peach undertones, just to be on the safest side. 

G – Golden, has yellow undertones.
N – Neutral neutral tones.
B – Beige, has blue tones.
R – red, has red undertones.

TEXTURE AND APPLICATION-
The first thing you will notice about the foundation is its strong fragrance. I have a sensitive nose and detest strong smells. This gives me itchy nose and I wish it was fragrance free. 

The texture is thick in one word and being on the thicker side blending becomes a little tough as compared to usual liquid foundation. Best way to blend it seamlessly is to start with small portions, blend and then move to the next. Like right cheek first, then left, then forehead and so on. Also, blending with a wet sponge gives a smoother finish than with a brush. 

COVERAGE­­- A small pump is enough for me to cover the entire face. And boy!! This foundation definitely has a high-coverage. I used a tiny amount and still it was enough to conceal every flaw that my skin has, giving it an even finish. It beautifully hides my pigmentation, dark circles, spots and scars on my face. As it has a heavy coverage, it is easy to go overboard and cakey with this foundation, so keep the quantity in find.

Can you guess which side has the foundation on?

FEEL and FINISH- The product claims to have a ‘radiant matte’ finish, but on me, it set into a dewy finish. I have normal to dry skin and any foundation that says matte, sets into matte. But this didn’t. It had a dewy, shiny finish which needs powder to set properly. Otherwise it just creases and sinks into lines and pores. Also, being on the thicker side, this foundation does feel heavy on my skin and the finish isn’t as natural as I wanted it to be.

LONGEVITY- You can wear this over your daily moituriser or over a primer. I would any day recommend it over a good face primer. Over a moisturizer I have to stay cautious, as it might move or sink it into pores and lines. But over a good primer, I can never get enough of how amazing the foundation looks. I keep catching glimpses of myself throughout the day and it definitely looks way better and ‘natural’ over a primer than over a regular moisturizer. 

FINAL BITS and BYTES-
I love foundations that melt in your skin giving a natural finish. As per this, I love how it conceals and corrects everything and saves the time of using a concealer and corrector separately, but again hate the factor that it feels heavy on my skin. The foundation does give a ‘faux-filter’ finish like claimed, but it doesn’t look natural, the way I personally like. It photographs really well and also looks more natural on pictures, but in real I can see and feel the foundation on my skin. This is definitely not an everyday foundation and is great for parties and shoots. On one hand I love the dewy glow it imparts, on the other hand I absolutely hate that smell. So overall, it has been a decent purchase. I am not totally bowled over, but I quite like it when I want to go bold with my makeup.

So if you are a lover of dewy looking skin and are looking for an Instagram-worthy glow and heavy coverage, then this is your sure thing.

RATINGS- 3.5/5