Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty is well underway at this point, so I won’t go too much into that. But, if you by chance have never heard of the sale, during the sale you can get select high end beauty products for 50% off. Since it will be $18.00 on March 31, 2022, I wanted to share my experience with the MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body Foundation.

I honestly have had a hard time getting my thoughts together on this foundation. It is so well loved that I really wanted to love it too. I guess it is not so much that I don’t like the product as much as it doesn’t suit my preferences. There has been some debate on whether or not this shade expansion is also a reformulation. The brand has stated that this formula is the same as the original Face and Body. I did try Face and Body back in 2014, and regardless of a change in formula, I didn’t like that one either. Since it was so long ago, I can’t directly compare them, but my thoughts are the same on both. This formula is so sheer, I don’t understand the point of taking the time to put it on.

When I hear people talk about the MAC Face and Body Foundation, the phrase “skin-like” always comes up, and I can absolutely agree on that point. When I apply this with a brush I get the promised radiant finish and it does, in fact, look like skin. The problem for me is that I just want more coverage. When building the coverage, I get a light coverage at best. The brand claims this is a sheer buildable formula, so I can’t say that it doesn’t perform as intended. I did try applying this formula with my hands as is commonly suggested for more coverage. This didn’t work for me at all. Oddly enough, using fingers resulted in the formula setting to a matte finish on me. I do have dry skin, but other than that, I can’t explain it. 🤷🏽‍♀️

Another downside for some may be the scent. The formula doesn’t technically contain fragrance, but it does have some essential oil ingredients (Fusanus Spicatus Wood Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Farnesol). This does give it a slight scent, but I find it more noticeable when I apply it with a brush than my fingers. I did not notice the scent throughout wear.

What I do like about the formula is that although it is radiant it doesn’t accentuate texture. I didn’t need to set this with powder and all of my powder products still blended fine. I also like that it has very minimal transfer. Lastly, for such light coverage, it does hold that coverage throughout wear. If you are someone who likes sheer to light coverage, I can understand why this would be a great find.

Update July 6, 2022: Since I have done a full post on this foundation (you can check that out here), I’m not going to get too in-depth on this one. The formula of Mac Face and Body falls somewhere in between skin tint and a tinted moisturizer in my opinion. As the name suggests, it has a sheer to light coverage, helping it to fall into that skin tint category. But while it’s not drying, it doesn’t provide enough moisturizing to be categorized as a tinted moisturizer. Keep in mind that I have dry skin, so this might be different if you have normal or oily skin. However, the radiance it provides just doesn’t feel like a moisturizer in my opinion. This formula does feel lightweight, but it does have a tacky feel that reminds you it is sitting on your skin. Setting it with powder will solve that issue if you don’t like that tacky feeling, but I’d use a glowy powder (E.g. Laura Mercier Candleglow Powder) if you want to stay close to the same finish.

As I mentioned in my original review, Mac Face and Body is just not enough coverage for me personally. I can see how someone with redness or unevenness in overall skin tone would benefit more from this formula than I am experiencing. It does even out the tone of my skin and disguises minor spots, but I just want a little more coverage without having to do a lot of spot concealing for my darkest spots. No matter how much building you do, it is still light coverage. I’d advise against trying to build the formula up too much. If you layer it too much, it doesn’t completely set/dry down, which makes it much less transfer-resistant. Plus, you’ll end up wasting product because it will still be a light coverage.

The last thing I want to quickly mention, in case you didn’t read my previous review, is that the Mac Face and Body foundation really looks like skin. It doesn’t look like you have product sitting on top of the skin and it doesn’t pool in pores or sink into fine lines. It also sits nicely over a textured spot of eczema that I have currently. Again I will warn you against building this up too much because I think it starts to look more like makeup. However, even when built up, it seems more natural and skin-like than any other foundation I’ve ever tried.

MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body C5, $18.00 ($36.00 regular price)

C5 is described as a peachy beige with a neutral golden undertone for medium skin.

Comparison Swatch with Estee Lauder Double Wear 4W4

Obviously, these are totally different types of foundation, but it is the shade I have that is most comparable.

The MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body Foundation comes in 30 shades and normally retails for $36.00. If you are hoping to buy this foundation for $18.00, remember, that deal is only available at Ulta on March 31, 2022.

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