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Judith puts on a new face for the New Year

There have been so many new foundations on the market this this year, that it's hard to pick just one favorite! I've already written about some of my finds, but I have some new goodies to share with you, both drugstore and high end products.

Oil of Olay, when it came in only the original version of bottled pink lotion, was the first moisturizer I ever used on a regular basis. That was before Olay expanded into a multitude of other products. I'm a big fan of tinted moisturizers and have reviewed several over the past few years. Olay Complete Plus Ultra Rich Tinted Moisture - Extra Dry Skin was a big disappointment. For starters, it only comes in one color and has no SPF factor. While it does look very dark in the tube, it does smooth only sheerly and doesn't look dark on my skin - but it didn't even up my skintone either. That's not the worst part. It is highly perfumed with an unpleasant flowery scent that would be a big problem for many who have problems with scented products. $9.99 at walgreens.com, but don't waste your money!

On the other hand, if you're looking for a more economical way to go, Cover Girl has teamed up with Olay to bring us Cover Girl Advanced Radiance Age-Defying Makeup in both compact and pump bottle in #110 Classic Ivory. I find that many of the foundations which are geared for mature skin have heavy coverage and look powdery by the end of the day. Cover Girl's new entry comes in a pump bottle, has an SPF of 10 and can be layered for the amount of coverage you want. Olay Regenerist ingredients include Vitamin E, Pro-vitamin B5 and Pro-vitamin B3. It truly makes my face look flawless, even after a 10 hour day at work! My one complaint is that the drugstore display does not make it easy to choose the right color. After trial and error, I've ended up with #110 Classic Ivory and am absolutely delighted with the choice! This one is truly a keeper! The pump bottle version is brand new and not actually supposed to hit the stores until February, but I found it recently at my local Rite-Aid for just under $12, but it is also available from Harmondiscount.com for $9.11.

Another new product which has just hit my local CVS is Almay Smart Shade Makeup. With so many companies introducing products that adjust to match your own skin tone, Almay has presented a product which is somewhat different from Cover Girl's Trublend Liquid Makeup or Max Factor's Colour Adapt in that it is a lightweight white cream in the tube, which automatically adjusts to your skin tone once it touches your face. I opted for Light 100 and after application thought it felt like a very sheer tinted moisturizer. With an SPF of 15, it's a great lightweight moisturizer that won't strain your makeup budget. Under $14 at CVS.

To go from one extreme to the other, another tinted moisturizer I have recently tried is Teint de Jour Tinted Matte Moisturizer by Yves Saint Laurent. It's nice to find a tinted moisturizer that does't leave your face shiny. This one is great at evening out my skintone while looking almost invisible! I chose #2 Golden Beige. This also looks darker in the tube than it does on the face. Lightly scented, as opposed to the overly perfumed Olay Complete Plus Ultra Rich Tinted Moisture, it's an elegant product to use for those who want very sheer coverage with no shine. $38 at nordstrom.com and saks.com.

It's been a long time since I've tried a foundation from Estee Lauder, but I've read such glowing reports about Estee Lauder Individualist Natural Finish Makeup that I had to give it a try! One of the most natural foundations I've tried in a long time, it comes in 24 colors. The SA colorprinted my face; 2N1 Vellum is a great winter shade for me. Estee Lauder's Ideal Match technology features a unique blend of pigments in a reflective base, similar to Cover Girl's Color Blend and Max Factor's Colour Adapt. I found Individualist to be much sheerer and easier to layer naturally than the other two. Despite the lack of any SPF, it's truly an elegant and natural looking product. $32 at gloss.com or your local Estee Lauder counter.

Happy Shopping!

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Posted January 4, 2006

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