There’s nothing I don’t like about the brand new Benefit Hello Happy Foundation – billed as weightless, breathable, blurring and giving natural coverage – 100% yes to all of these things. On my skin, the blur was immediately apparent (I mean, we are not talking the full gauze over lens Angela Lansbury in Murder She Wrote type effect, but still..) and it literally feels like I have nothing on my face at all.
There are 12 shades in the line-up (so far) that carefully addresses all tones – super pale peeps get a look in with shade 1, while the deepest shade is 12. The middle section of foundation colours, 6, 7 and 8 are dark but yellow toned and while it’s impossible to put a match to a nationality to a skin tone because we’re all so different, I’d say they’re pointed generally towards Asian tones. I’m thinking about how difficult it must have been, back at Benefit Labs, to pull out tones that will provide something for everyone in 12 shades. There are, apparently, over 1000 different skin tones in the world. Who knew?
Coverage really is a natural finish (I’m Shade 5 while my tone is warm but will drop to a 4 in winter months) and while you could never say this is a dewy finish product, it’s not matte so doesn’t kill any glow. I’m so impressed with this base – really it’s good for all ages although marketing materials has it for a youth market. I think the brand is missing a trick if they don’t factor older women into the equation because it’s kind of ticking all our requirement boxes – natural, blur, SPF, glowy, doesn’t seep into skin creases or look dry, completely comfortable wear…. if I was making a foundation for older skin, this would more or less be it! Plus, the brand has been really straightforward in shade numbers rather than the tricky area of shade naming – we don’t need to see any skin tones given a coffee variant affiliation ever again.
In the swatch, shades from bottom to top are: 3, 8, 1, 10 and 5. Hello Happy is £25.50 HERE. If you’re not sure on your shade, go one lighter and use custom colour drops (The Body Shop) to adjust.
Non Aff HERE.
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