Review: Make Up For Ever Duo Mat Powder Foundation

I am currently on a spree of trying out different foundations. No, nothing is wrong with my NARS Sheer Glow Foundation, I just thought to give some other foundations a try and moreover, I am hunting a good powder foundation so that I can apply it whenever I want (yes i do find applying liquid foundation can be a bit too much time consuming when I am feeling extra ordinarily lazy, that is most of the times). Make Up For Ever Duo Mat Powder Foundation is so highly raved that I wanted this particular one to be the first powder foundation I should try (after MAC Studio Fix, I gave up using it as it broke me out, weird!).

It is USD 34 and I got mine from Sephora, and Sephora is the exclusive beauty retailer for this product.

How  Sephora describes this powder as:
What it is:
A long-lasting, oil-free mattifying powder foundation for normal to combination skin types.

What it is formulated to do:
Provides a shine-free finish that covers blemishes and other imperfections and perfectly evens out the skintone.

-A testing panel composed of twenty-two adults (via 24 patch test) showed this product to be non-irritating. 

As you know residing in a hot humid country and having a super oily skin isn't a very great background for make up. Specially when it comes to foundation, nothing can hold my oil mines from producing gallons of oil! So I am always on a hunt of getting my hands on some products that will keep my oil away, but haven't come across anything yet.

The shade I use is 205 which is Medium Beige. For reference, I am in between Barcelona and Syracuse in NARS Sheer Glow Foundation, and in between NC 35 to 40 in MAC Studio Fix Powder, NC35/NC37 in MAC Mineralize Cream Foundation, C4 in MAC Face and Body Foundation, Medium 54 in Kat Von D Lock It Tattoo Foundation.

The packaging of this powder is very slick and classy, and reminds me of MAC Studio Fix and Mineralize Cream Foundation. But unlike MAC's above mentioned foundations, it comes with a half mirror, which I find is a bit weird. It comes with a sponge and has a separate compartment for it.

The shade is a bit lighter than my skin tone and isn't too yellow based, but has rather a beige undertone to it. The pigmentation of this powder is awesome and looks really natural right after I apply it.

I apply this powder with a big powder brush, or a blush brush for a light to medium coverage. If I want a bit more than medium coverage I apply it with Sigma F80 (review here). It applies ok when used with the sponge it comes with, I just have to be very careful while applying with the sponge as the sponge can leave streaks behind. I also apply it wet, I dampen the sponge with water and dab it on the foundation and apply it. This way I get the maximum coverage from this foundation, but I have to be REALLY careful about the blending as sponges leave cakey strokes of application behind. The following two photos are from my before and after application of MUFE Duo Mat Powder Foundation.

The raved reviews of MUFE Duo Mat Foundation grabbed my interest as many claimed it to be really matte and having oil control power. I invested with a great hope and if you want to know my verdict, keep reading!

The powder foundation itself does NOTHING to control oil! yes, it's the word NOTHING! When applied alone, without any primer, my oil starts showing around 1 hour, that too while I am staying at indoors (no air condition), and around 2-3 hours it starts oxidizing terribly and the trace of foundation is almost gone! The following photos will describe it better. The first one was taken right after I completed my whole make up, second one was taken around an hour after I applied my make up (still indoor) and the third one was taken after I went out for a couple of hours and returned home.

I tried it with a primer. I applied Smashbox Photo Finish Oil Free primer and then applied this. The wear of this foundation prolonged for like half an hour more, but started wearing off and oxidizing right after that!

This foundation stays really put for a longer time when applied wet with the sponge. I had a wear of around 4 hours (without any primer and staying indoors only) before it started oxidizing and wearing off. But whenever I hit outdoor, it started melting and oxidizing around 3 hours (applied on primer as well).

I still have to try it during the colder and drier weather. I have to give it a try and see if it works then. So in spite of being a crazy summer loving person, I am eagerly waiting for winter this year! I hope I will have a better update then. So there will be an updated review on this around the month of December hopefully!!

Did you use MUFE Duo Mat Powder Foundation? How do you find it? Let me know in comments!

Love and regards,
Eeshita.