Powder foundations really grew on me in the past couple years. Ever since I used up my Fenty Beauty powder foundation I've been looking for a more affordable replacement. Will this one be it?
The Maybelline SuperStay Hybrid Powder Foundation is one of the newest base products from Maybelline. It promises 24 hours of weartime with a soft matte finish. It's a hybrid in the sense that is has the longevity of a liquid with the comfort of a powder. I am here for that. It should be super lightweight, sweat-resistent, water-resistent and transfer-resistent. It comes in 16 shades, I have the shade 03 but from what I can tell the shades are different in EU and US. You get 9g of product in the compact. It retails for around $14,99.
The compact is plastic but feels good quality and isn't too thick so it isn't difficult to store. It contains the product, a mirror and a sponge applicator which I honestly never use for powder foundations anymore because it just packs on too much and gets disgusting too fast. The foundation should give you medium to full coverage and I fully agree with that. It does seem very buildable as well and it is surprisingly lightweight formula which is hard to find in powder foundations. The finish is matte but the powder itself is not too dry so it doesn't emphasise any dry patches on the face and overall it seems to give a very smooth finish.
I didn't find if this foundation focuses on a particular skin type but in my experience it can be used by any skin type if primed properly. I cannot really speak for extremely dry skin but I think that with enough hydrating prep it could work as well as the formula really isn't drying or too chalky and powdery.
What I love about powder foundations is their convinience and the possibility to have your base done in a couple seconds. This holds very much for this foundation as well but since the coverage is pretty high, make sure that the shade really fits you because it's everything but sheer. That brings me to the shade range which is quite balanced (at least the US one) but I feels like if you're hyping up a product this much it should be available for everyone and I hope that Maybelline will expand the shade range in the future.
Wear test
When I wear a powder foundation I like to double prime as well as use a concealer first. I chose a gripping primer with natural finish and a very basic porefiller. Then I applied my concealer and set it with a very lightweight powder as I don't like to put powder foundations under my eyes because they are usually too heavy. Then I applied the powder foundation to the rest of my face and added more products on top. I did not use any creams with this foundation and all the powder ones worked great. I applied the powder foundation with my Blendiful as I usually do and the coverage was high medium and buildable for sure. The finish is satin matte but not too dry and it didn't make me look or feel chalky.
List of used products
Catrice The Perfector Poreless Primer
Essence Fix & Last Primer
Maybelline SuperStay Concealer, 10
Maybelline SuperStay Hybrid Powder Foundation, 03
No7 Airbrush Away Finishing Powder, Translucent
Huda Beauty #bombbrows Full N' Fluffy, 5 Medium Brown
Nars Tinted Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, Light
e.l.f. Bite-size Eyeshadow Palette, Mint to Be
e.l.f. Mintmelt No Budge Eyeshadow Stick, Mint For You
Revolution x Clueless Eyeliner
Rimmel Thrillseeker Mascara
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit - Sculpture, Natural Bronze Light and Mood Exposude Blush
Rare Beauty Highlighter, Enlighten
Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb, Fu$$y
Milani Make It Last Setting Spray
Wear time 11 hours
I did not touch up through the day at all and I was actually very surprised with the end of the day result. I was looking a little shiny but that is to be expected because it was a long and sweaty day. The foundation was rubbed off somewhere but overall my complexion looks even and consistent. Nothing is patchy, nothing is separating. My skin got a little oily as the day went on which is fine and the oils did not break appart the foundation at all. I was actually surprised how matte but still natural it looked and how nice and lightweight it felt on the skin the whole day.
I did a little touch up at the very end of the day but did not document it. I touched up with a powder puff similar to the Blendiful. I applied more of the product to the area around my nose where parts of the foundation were missing due to my glasses and touching my face. It is better but you could still see that there are places missing. I also applied a little bit on the shiniest places of my face which worked really well without messing up my base. I look pretty good and matte again without caking or looking heavy.
Final thoughts
Overall, I feel like this foundation is a very good product and even though the pricepoint seems a little steep to me for a drugstore powder...I think it's worth it. I've bought many powder foundation over last couple months and ever since I got the SuperStay one I've been using only that. I cannot wait to take it on vacation with me and actually see how it holds up in a very hot and humid weather.
Until then though, it wears really well through regular and very long sweaty days and it looks great. You can even touch up with it very easily without looking cakey or heavy. I like that it gives you enough coverage to look really glam if you want (applied with a powder puff) or you can take a fluffy brush and really make it subtle and low-medium coverage if you want so it is very versatile and to me this is probably the best Maybelline launch in the past couple years. Nothing beats the convinience of a good powder foundation for me. So yeah, this one is a big win and I would even go as far as to say that this is a great dupe for the Fenty Beauty powder foundation.
Do you have any favorite powder foundations? Let me know in the comments below and thanks for reading!