Back in 2012 I went on my first trip to the MAC store to get myself matched up to a foundation. I was accompanied by my friend who also wanted to get matched up and equally shared my interest in makeup. I'd never bought or worn foundation before this, so I was literally a foundation Virgin. As I sat in the chair I explained to the MAC Assisstant (MA) my issues about finding and wearing a good foundation, especially with my hyperpigmentation issues. She asked me my skin type and what kind of coverage I wanted, to which I replied: prone to dryness and medium coverage. She trotted off and came back with a couple of tubes of foundation which I later learnt was the Studio Sculpt. 

She explained to me that it was a gel based foundation and was hydrating for dry skins and had buildable coverage. She applied one shade to one side and the other shade to the other side and let me examine my face in a mirror, I looked at both sides and thought it looked equally nice, I looked at my friend and asked her what she thought, to which she replied "That side looks fine but the other side looks really dark" I looked back into the mirror and understood what she was saying but I still couldn't decide which shade I preferred because the yellow lighting made both sides look nice. The MA said that the darker shade matched my hyperpigmentation so it masks the grey shadow that I get around my mouth. Since I couldn't decide which shade, I asked for a sample of each shade to test out at home under normal lighting. 

I was given the shades NC40 and NC42. They were rather generous samples and I got to play around with it a lot. There seems to be quite a jump between these shades. I could see how NC42 was too dark for me, but NC40 just didn't sit right either. I didn't really like them that much at first because I applied it with my fingers and they just looked cakey and weird. 

During this time I bought the Beauty Blender dupe from eBay and boy oh boy was that a game changer for me. I tried the NC40 with the damp beauty blender and it was like pure magic on my skin, just blended in effortlessly and kept my skin looking glowy and natural. No cakey fake mess. I was super impressed with the miracle sponge. I got so many uses out of the sample and kept it for only special occasions. I would always receive compliments from people. By this time I was very happy with Studio Sculpt and was impressed with MAC as well, it wasn't bad for my first high end foundation trial and the colour was half decent. 

It gave my skin a glowy natural finish and was very moisturising. It masked my imperfections quite well, I used minimum around my mouth to avoid the grey shadow. I also loved mixing in a liquid highlighter to make it look more glowy. I did tend to get a little oily in my tzone and felt like it didn't last super long on me but I couldn't fault it to be honest, I really liked this foundation and what it did for me compared to the constant fails I would get with drugstore foundations.  

Eventually I finished the sample but never bought the full size, I was literally too busy trying out every other foundation in the market and collecting samples. In that time I fell for the hype and bought the Nars Sheer Glow in Stromboli, but something was just not right with that foundation, I seemed to have a love/like/hate relationship with Nars SG (see review), I had to go to a wedding and I needed to make sure I had a perfect foundation for that day, I remembered how well Studio Sculpt in NC40 worked for me and decided to buy a full size tube to wear to the wedding instead of SG.

A few days before the wedding I decided to play around with some makeup and decide what look I was going for for the wedding, so I used the Studio Sculpt to get the full picture. I applied the foundation and realised that something wasn't right, it just wasn't doing the same "magic" I remembered it did a couple of years ago. It was like the colour wasn't right or something, it wasn't mimicking the yellow in my skin like the Nars did. It just looked a bit peachy orange. I was so confused! 

So I swatched Nars (top) and Studio Sculpt (bottom) side by side and saw the big difference, the Nars was so yellow in comparison, I was using the Nars Stromboli all these days and I'd gotten used to how nicely it mimicked the yellow olive in my skin so the MAC simply wasn't yellow enough, who would've thought? Definitely not me, I thought no one could beat MAC for their yellow undertones. Studio Sculpt was the first high end foundation that I'd ever tried and it was probably the closest to my skintone compared to the rest of the drugstore crap I'd tried. But I didn't have any other high end to compare it to and held it in very high esteem. I can easily get away with this shade and it isn't drastically different to my skin but it doesn't beat Stromboli, Nars Barcelona comes very close to the Studio Sculpt in NC40. I may try NC35 to see if it's closer to my skintone.

Stromboli (Top) NC40 (Bottom)

Comes in a plastic tube, easy to squeeze out nozzle and the amount is controllable. 40ml size tube so it's 10ml more than the average foundation and retails for £25.

  

Here's what MAC have to say:

A creamy, luxurious, gel-based foundation that provides medium buildable to high coverage with a natural satin finish. Hydrating, instantly revitalizes the skin while keeping it looking smooth, soft and plush. Long-wearing, water-resistant.

I agree with this 100%. I think foundation technology has evolved since then so there are better foundations out there than this one but I have heard mixed reviews about this foundation. Some people find it really thick and cakey, I think it's amount and application method that determines this. If you're going to use a thumb size amount and paint it on your face, you'll probably get a thick cakey finish. I am anti cake, believe me, I would not let another human being set there eyes upon me nor would I step out the house with obvious cakey foundation on. I use around a pea sized amount and use a damp beauty blender to apply it onto well exfoliated and moisturised skin. 

My shade matching issues aside, I personally think this foundation is very good and works well for people who have dry skin or normal skin. You can get very high coverage with this and a little definitely goes a long way. It's an emollient and creamy foundation so it's easy to work with. It has a natural satin finish on me and leaves my skin feeling soft and nourished. It could do with setting as even on my combination dry skin, it does get a little oily and doesn't last very long. I don't think this is for everyone and I personally wouldn't say it's the best foundation out there because I have fallen for better formulations which feel lighter on the skin (YSL Touché Eclat) but everyone's skin is different, what works with one person will not necessarily work for others. 

I have been slightly disappointed with MAC recently because of the difference in shades, it's not their fault, I'm quite fussy with my base. I'm yellow olive so I've been finding them a bit peachy orange (Mineralize Moisture) or too jaundicey yellow (Pro Longwear NC42) so I've drifted away from their foundations a little. I do want to try some NC35 foundations and see if they are less orangey peachy. If you can get your hands on some samples of the Studio Sculpt do so and give it a try. Hope this review was helpful guys. Peace X