So Catrice has extended their Clean ID line. I had totally missed the memo at first, but then I spotted some products online and I saw they were doing a foundation now too. I tried the BB Cream in this line last year and I really liked it, so when I spotted this foundation I was lowkey intrigued. However, the foundation didn’t really sound like something I would like. I mean, me and matte foundations, we are usually not the best of friends. That being said, I have been wearing this daily for two weeks now and I have to say: I am pretty impressed.
Review: Catrice Clean ID High Cover Luminous Matt vegan foundation 004 Light Almond
That Catrice does some lovely base products is no secret. However, they don’t always get it right. Last fall they launched the True Skin line and it just wasn’t working for me. Despite it being labelled as hydrating, I felt it moved around too much and got into fine lines and after just a few hours I looked about 10 years older whenever I wore that. So when they launched this one, I was skeptical, because it’s called matte. But at €6.99 for 30 mls of product, I was intrigued enough to buy this and whack it on my face to see if I like it.
What does this foundation have to offer?
First of all, this foundation is part of Catrice’s Clean ID line. This line boasts a lack of silicones, mineral oils and other ‘bad things’. The line is also vegan and this particular product consists of 98% natural ingredients. It promises a light to medium formula but still with enough coverage that is buildable. It should give a matt finish with a soft glow. Looking at the ingredient list this actually has quite a few hydrating ingredients high up the list such a glycerin and squalane. The foundation comes in only three shades for now, but I hope the brand chooses to release more because the shade is the one thing I am not loving about this.
What does this foundation swatch like?
A luminous matt foundation? I wasn’t sure what to expect. What I got was a super thin foundation that packs a lot of pigment in just a little drop. With this I feel that less is definitely more and I only need a tiny bit for it to cover my entire face. The foundation blends out beautifully and once blended out it does have a bit of a glow but it isn’t too strong. Once blended into the skin you can really make this look seamless and once on it truly looks like skin. I was very surprised about this when I used it for the first time.
What does this foundation look like on?
Here you can see the difference this foundation makes: on the left you can see my bare face. On the right I have applied just a bit of this foundation. As you can see, my redness has virtually disappeared, but my skin doesn’t look overly matte and very skin line. I only need a bit of concealer to make this look seamless and flawless. The only problem? The shade. You can see it here (and the mustard shirt isn’t doing me any favors either) but this looks very peachy. So while the depth of the shade is okay for me to make it work, on my cool to neutral undertone this isn’t the best shade match. I wish the brand would extend the shade range to include deeper as well as lighter shades in multiple undertones like they did for the True Skin. Why release a foundation in only 3 shades?
How does this foundation wear?
However, where this foundation stands out for me and why I still would recommend you try this foundation is the wear time. The pictures you see here are close ups of my face after almost 12 hours of wear on a day where I had been teaching and I wore a face mask for 2 – 3 hours out of the 12 hours. I applied this foundation at 7 AM and took these pictures around 6.30 PM. As you can see, the foundation has really only disappeared on my nose where my face mask rubbed off the product. And where most foundations really cake up around my nose, this foundation only does that a little bit. The thin formula makes this comfortable to wear all day and I barely notice I am wearing makeup.
I took these pictures on different days but I felt it would be good to include a before and after. To the left is the foundation full face with the rest of my makeup applied when the makeup has first gone onto my face. On the right you can seem my full face after a full day of wear, including smudgy mascara lolz. As you can see, I am super impressed. Full face, this pretty much looks like it first went on. And that is why I am impressed by this foundation.
My final thoughts
The Catrice Clean ID foundation is one that I didn’t expect to love as the claims on it just aren’t really up my alley. But in the end I am very impressed with how this applies, sits on the skin and of course that wear time. It is a very thin foundation that still gives quite a bit of coverage. This isn’t necessarily a full coverage foundation but it certainly is more a medium one and a little goes a long way. I love how natural this looks and it’s been everything I want to wear in terms of foundation lately. If only it came in more shades! Because this shade definitely isn’t perfect.
Would I recommend the Catrice Clean ID Luminous Matt foundation?
This foundation is not going to be for everyone. Not because of the finish or the formula but because of the limiting shade range. If you can find your shade: get this, because it is good. However, if your shade isn’t here then don’t go for it. Yes it has a lovely formula and it one of the best long-wearing foundations I have found in a long time, but this will only really work if more shades are released. Even for me, I feel I can get away with this shade, but in some pictures I took recently where I hadn’t been super careful with blending this out around my ears/ neck, and I ended up with a obvious foundation line. So while I love this, I will have to stop using this, simply because of the shade. I am hoping I can go back to this post summer when I hopefully am a little bit darker.