The MACdaddy of all foundations.

Sorry, I couldn't resist with the title.

So foundation has always been a tricky one for me to figure out. Until someone told me you could have combination skin, I just assumed mine was whacked out. Some days it was oily, other days it was bone dry, one day my forehead would be greasy, next it would be my nose. And while there are a handful of quality products the drugstore brands provide, more often than not the formulas I experimented with would fade by the day's end, give mediocre coverage, and rarely match-up to my skin color. Ring any bells? Cue MAC Matchmaster.

So essentially, the brainiacs over at MAC have somehow managed to bottle magic. When applying , I use about 1 pump and it does a beautiful job of hiding any acne scarring or uneven skin coloring without looking cakey or turning me orange. Being a neutral foundation, MAC has created a product with more leeway in regards to matching. In the past, I've found the NC's to be very yellow and the NW's too pink. This one here is 5.0 and would suite NC40-42 just fine. It honestly blends with my skin so nicely and dries a soft matte leaving it looking delicate and natural. The design of the pump is especially wonderful because you don't waste as much product as you might otherwise. The consistency of the formula is not too thick and not too watery and does well when applied with either a brush (any generic one will do) or a sponge.

The only other thing to say is that it works better when applied with a primer (L'oreal Studio Secrets is a good one) and then set with a powder. Otherwise it moves a little throughout the day however I still get 8+ hours of wear with this and if I'm carrying on through the evening, a little powder freshens it up just fine. Here is the skinfish I've been wearing with it:

Here is a little before, during, and after action (click to enlarge!)

Looking a little worse for wear: dark circles, blemishes, uneven skin tone, frazzled hair; Applying Mac Matchmaster with rando Eco Tools brush; Dust on some Skinfinish/powder; End result: geeking out sans outstanding dark circles, noticable blemishes and overall happy about an evened out skin tone. Unkempt hair solution TBD.

At the end of the day, I couldn't be happier with this find. It did cost a pretty penny, but when it comes to something like foundation I recommend saving and then treating yourself to a quality product. If you're like me and you will be using it most days without fail, then it will be a pretty penny well spent.

Hang ten!