Maybelline Dream Urban Cover Foundation

Are you ready for a new drugstore foundation? One that has everyone talking? Because supposedly this new Maybelline Dream Urban Cover foundation is the drugstore dupe for the IT Cosmetics CC cream. And you know: if us makeup lovers can get a great product for a cheaper price, then we will go after it. So this foundation has everyone talking and I already got my hands on it. What do I think of the new Maybelline Dream Urban Cover foundation?

Maybelline Dream Urban Cover Foundation | Full Coverage, Lightweight, SPF 50 | 095 Fair Porcelain

So I found this at a Boots in Knightsbridge, close to Harrod’s when I was in London. This foundation may be difficult to find if you are not in the UK: the UK got the exclusive first release, with Maybelline rolling out the release of the product around the globe in April and May (according to Trendmood). So this is coming your way very very soon. At Boots, this retails for £10.99, which is a reasonable price point for a drugstore foundation.

The Packaging

The actual packaging of this foundation is super simple: it comes in a plastic squeezy tube. Simple, yet effective, because this make the foundation easy to throw into a makeup bag when travelling and the shade you see in the tube, is the shade of the foundation. The comparison with the IT Cosmetics CC Cream is evident straight away: the packaging is heavily inspired by the more expensive version, yet that comes with a pump rather than just a tube. This foundation also boasts anti-pollution and better for your skin ingredients with even an SPF of 50 built in.

The Swatch

Let’s just get to the nitty gritty and main questions that I know you will want to have an answer to: this is NOT a dupe for the IT Cosmetics CC Cream. The product is most definitely inspired by the IT Cosmetics one, but these are miles apart in terms of how they function. The IT Cosmetics CC cream is much thicker and much more hydrating than the Maybelline Dream Urban Cover. The Maybelline Dream Urban Cover is more full coverage and has a much larger shade range: this comes in 20 shades instead of 12 and the Maybelline also goes much lighter (and I think darker too) than the It Cosmetics.

Because these aren’t dupes, I didn’t do side by side swatches of these as I feel the products are too different and it just wouldn’t be fair to the review of this new Maybelline foundation. If you want to see my review of the IT Cosmetics CC Cream though, then please click here. So I decided to review it on its own merit.

The texture of this foundation is quite thin: for a full coverage foundation, you do not need much to get a good effect. It blends into the skin so so evenly: even though it blocks out pretty much everything, this still looks like skin. It has a satin finish: it starts looking quite glowy, but once blended into the skin it looks more soft focus, but never too matte.

The Shade Match

095 Fair Porcelain is the lightest shade this foundation comes in and I think it is a touch too light for me. It matches well with my neck, but full face it makes me look a bit like a ghost. I probably could have gone up a shade or two, but the next shade up looked to be quite yellow and I like how this has a pink undertone, which I feel is more flattering on me. With a bit of bronzer and other face products, I feel I can still make this product work. The picture above is one where I have not blended the foundation down my neck and you can barely see where I have applied the product and where I haven’t. So I do feel that this still works for me.

The Application

Of course I need to show you what the Maybelline Dream Urban Cover foundation looks like full face. My preferred application method is with a sponge as I feel it blends in the product more evenly and make it look more natural. I only use a little bit of product as I don’t like that full, full coverage look, but I feel that with another layer this would definitely block out anything on my face. I’d say I use roughly an amount similar to the size of 2 peas.

In terms of coverage I think this is the kind of effect I still like, but it can do more if you need it to. I have a fair bit of redness and discoloration in my face and this foundation evens it out like it is nobody’s business. It covers everything I need to cover and definitely can look a bit mask like if you don’t go in with enough blush, bronzer and highlight to bring back some life to the face.

But the best part about this foundation? How it wears! This is a great foundation in terms of wear time. I wore this every day for a week straight. On workdays, this survives a full day easily. It doesn’t crease, even after 4 hours of teaching (and with that lots of talking!). It doesn’t look cakey, even when setting it with powder, adding on concealer and wearing it all day. It breaks up a little bit around my nose and chin, but that is not the fault of the foundation: I rubbed my nose a lot as hayfever season has hit us full force and it is still cool enough to need scarf for part of the day. In fact, I wore this for more than 15 hours on most days and even at the end, the foundation still looked acceptable and was not in need of a touch up.

The Conclusion

Would I recommend the new Maybelline Dream Urban Cover foundation? A wholehearted yes! This foundation is great. It may not be an exact dupe for the IT Cosmetics CC cream, but it is still a great foundation. It wears well, does not look dry and cakey on my dry/ combo skin and the shade range is spot on. Application is quick and easy and once blended in this foundation looks like skin. Coverage is also on point. In short, all I can say is: what’s not to love?

Would you like to try the Maybelline Dream Urban Cover foundation?