LA Girl HD Pro Coverage Illuminating Foundation | Review

I’ve reviewed this foundation in 2017 and thought I would update the post since it has become my favorite drugstore foundation for 2 years in a row! Keep reading to find out why.

Unlike the very first LA Girl foundation (that had those black lids) this one is housed in a transparent, light weight plastic bottle. It’s a little bit bulky compared to the matte version in this range but I think it’s quite sleek. I mean sure, it’s no Dior packaging but for a drugstore brand, it looks and feels pretty good. The packaging reminds me of the Makeup Forever Ultra HD Foundation. 

It has a pump dispenser which is great and makes life less messy. I had a foundation from the Maybelline Fit Me range (has since been discontinued) that you had to open and literally throw out onto the back of your hand/mixing plate. It was always such a mess, so when I purchase foundations and find they have pump dispensers such as this one from LA Girl, I sure get excited! Like all – or most – foundations, it has all the ingredients as well as shade names at the back of the bottle.

The formula is quite liquidy and runny but I enjoy formulas like these. It’s not thick and gloopy at all so it’s easy to blend and work with. It smells a bit iffy to me though – it’s not a chemical smell or anything like that, I just don’t like the scent – but it doesn’t linger so I don’t mind it. I have combination skin and when I apply this – with or without primer – it gives a subtle dewy effect which I love. It’s dewy without looking shiny. It melts into my skin and spreads out beautifully. It has a light – medium coverage and feels lightweight. In fact, it kind of feels like a BB cream or tinted moisturizer. It does feel a little sticky after application and takes some time to “set”. When I apply it with my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush it does give more coverage but I don’t like the end result that much as I personally love a lighter coverage for everyday. I prefer applying it with a blender or a stippling brush. Sure, with a stippling brush you have to blend a bit more to prevent streaks but I don’t mind. The formula is so thin it blends easily and doesn’t dry down fast like some other foundations, so you have time to really blend/buff it into your skin

You can definitely build up application to a more medium coverage, however, there’s only so much foundation you want to “build” onto your face before it turns into a cakey mess. I would suggest you conceal/color correct your imperfections before applying the foundation. I concealed my under eye circles and applied this foundation on top, and the result was a beautiful ‘my skin but better’ effect. I dusted a layer of sheer translucent powder overtop and it gave me a semi-matte finish which I loved!

The staying power is not the best. Even with powder and setting spray, I noticed the foundation started fading around my nose area (which is the oiliest part of my face). When used over primer and set with powder it lasted around 5 hours on me. The fading around my nose area started around the 3 hour mark, but it isn’t very noticeable because I use a light layer of product. I touched up with some powder and I was good to go. It isn’t completely transfer proof even though I set it with powder. I had stains on my hijab but to me that’s not a deal breaker because at end of the day my face looked healthy and radiant. And the best part? It didn’t oxidize on me. Not even once. I also took some pictures to see how the foundation looks on camera and it was flawless. No flash back whatsoever, though if you are going to use a powder that has flash back then obviously there will be some. Keep that in mind if you are going to be photographed and plan to wear this foundation.

I think this foundation would fare well for dry/combination skin. If you are oilier, I would suggest you use a mattifying primer as well as a really good setting powder to keep everything in place. I also think you will need to blot throughout the day, but that all depends on how oily you are. I would suggest the next time you need to run errands at the mall, go to a Dis-chem first and apply some of the foundation on your face. Finish all of your errands then when you are done, check how well the foundation lasted and if you like how it wore on your face. If you’re happy with the results, definitely pick it up.

Like I said, it’s so light weight and has a beautiful dewy finish that looks like skin. I am completely smitten and have been for the past 2+ years. I’ve not found a single drugstore foundation that can compete with this one. It’s definitely such a holy grail for me!

It come in 16 shades. It also has 1 white mixer that can be used to custom mix any of the other colors. I picked up the white one as well, to lighten my foundation in Winter. I have the shade Tan which is a great match but in Winter it’s a tad too dark, so I mix in the white shade to lighten it.

You can purchase these from Dis-Chem in store and online. They retail for R179 each which is not the cheapest but for the performance of the product it’s totally worth it!

Tip: if you cannot find your exact shade and the color you have is a bit off, use a concealer to highlight under your eyes, forehead and chin and it will sort of balance everything out. Bare in mind though, this tip might not work on everyone. It worked on my sister, so I thought it was worth a mention. 

If you have any other questions regarding this foundation fee free to comment below.