Review: Estée Lauder Double Wear Maximum Cover

I am always on the search for the newest and greatest full-coverage foundation.  There are some days that I just want a lighter face, with just enough coverage to even out my scarring and discoloration.  And other days that I want to my face to look picture-perfect.

Here are the claims of this foundation (from Estée Lauder):

"12-hour wear. Natural-looking. Long-wearing.

This soothing liquid-creme makeup is designed to camouflage all skin imperfections, including surgical and acne scars, tattoos, birthmarks, sun spots and varicose veins. Helps protect with SPF 15."

Price: Retails for $37 for 1 oz.

Packaging: Classic Estée Lauder vibe.  Comes in a sturdy dark blue squeeze tube with gold screw on cap.

Application: As with most thicker, heavier foundations, using a damp Beauty Blender works well to create a flawless canvas.  Because this foundation dries quickly, you really need the extra moisture from a damp Beauty Blender in order to apply evenly.

Finish: The finish for this foundation is absolutely matte.  It dries after just a few seconds, so you must work quickly when applying this foundation.

Color: I picked up the shade 2W2 Rattan for my NC25 skin.  I find it to be a shade or two too dark even for my slightly tanned skin at the moment, but it was the closest match because of its strong yellow undertone.  The shade one step lighter is neutral-toned instead of warm-toned, which comes out too pink/grey on my skin.  Had the formula been easier to blend, the color would have been more workable.  However, there are only 8 shades to choose from, so I can imagine that many people will have a hard time finding their perfect color match.

2W2 Rattan on NC25 skin

 Coverage: I have tried foundations that claim to be "full-coverage," but I have yet to find one that does what it claims.  Until now.  This foundation is truly maximum coverage.  It will hide anything that you need to conceal - acne, scars, uneven skin tone, veins, etc.

Final thoughts: I am quite pleased with this foundation for the most part.  The coverage is outstanding and really does cover beautifully.  However, due to the limited shade selection, this is a foundation that I can only use as a color-correcting product, or to add extra coverage to existing foundations that I already have that match my skin color better. Had there been a better color match, I would be much more inclined to reach for this more regularly as a stand-alone product.