The Tarte Shape Tape foundation has probably been the most talked about product in the beauty industry and I can't say it is in a positive way...
This foundation had probably answered every person's prayer to have a foundation to match the most famous concealer used and loved by everyone, the shape tape concealer. Even though I hadn't used the shape tape concealer I knew the foundation was going to be something different in my current makeup collection. I remember scrolling through Twitter one day, and I saw a post by Trendmood showing 15 swatches of the much-anticipated foundation and thought to myself where are the rest of the shades since there were only 3 tan-deeper shades.
I decided to research into the launch and found some images on a website showing that there were 15 shades released from Tarte for hydrating and matte each. I saw the swatches and was puzzled why there were so many light shades. I thought to myself, maybe they only showed some of the swatches so people could get a general idea of the shades? No. I was shocked to later find out that these were the only shades that were going to be released and this was going to be the shades launched.
When the foundation launched on the Tarte website, I hoped that the shades shown online were not true and that there would be more foundation shades online. I was wrong. The same exact 15 shades were launched by Tarte and I felt like I wasn't living in the 21st century. My feelings were shocked/ disappointed and let down by an international brand like Tarte who should cater to every single shade on this earth.
Even though I wasn't compelled into buying the product, I knew I wanted to use my voice as a beauty/fashion blogger and Youtuber and say what I had to say about the product. Tarte is a brand that needs to know that their consumers come from ALL different skin tones and we all having the same level of excitement for a foundation launch.
As frustrated as I was, I knew I had to put the foundation to the test for those who were thinking of purchasing it but I don't blame you for not spending your money on the foundation.
I decided to go for the hydrating foundation instead of the matte and so I put it to the test...
This foundation priced at £35.00 claims to give a luminous, hydrated finish to the skin with the same coverage as the well-known shape tape concealer. I got the shade medium-tan honey which I thought was the closest match out of the limited shade range. The packaging is the same as the concealer which I guess makes sense to keep the packing the same.
The foundation has the same huge applicator as its matching concealer however it didn't have a thick consistency as the concealer. As you can see, the claim that the foundation is hydrating is definitely true and left my skin feeling like skin and not powdery which I liked. However, the foundation was definitely NOT full coverage as it claimed on the bottle which was a let down considering it's something claimed. The product blended really well with my beauty blender even if it was slightly lighter than what I would have wanted. This product also contains collagen and hyaluronic acid which helps plump the skin and helps retain moisture in the skin.
There was no flashback seen however my skin looked really dewy, maybe more than my usual liking especially my T-zone and this was taken after 3 hours which knocks their 12-hour claim. I felt like I had to touch up my skin with a blotting powder to reduce the shiny effect on my skin. You can definitely see that this is not a full coverage foundation but is a light to medium coverage but I liked how it still looked like skin.
So my final verdict? After wearing it for 6 hours I felt like I had to touch up my skin with powder and I've got dry-combination skin so this foundation will not work for someone with oily skin. The matte foundation will be perfect for someone with oily skin and with the same coverage and the concealer. Overall, I liked how easy it was to apply, no flashback and the dewy look it gave (until 6 hours). The cons are the limited shade range and the wearing power.
I hope Tarte realise that their consumers include tan-deeper shades and that inclusion matters.
