New trend alert! It seems like every brand is racing to release their own foundation stick… again. About a decade ago, foundation sticks were the go-to for easy swipe-on coverage but fell out of favor for a classic liquid formula. Typically having creamier, thicker consistencies, it can be tricky finding a foundation stick that works with your own skin type and texture. The new Milani Blur Out Skin Tint Stick checks nearly all the right boxes for me, though.
The Milani Blur Out Skin Tint is about $17 and available in 25 shades with cool, warm, neutral and olive undertone options. The creamy formula is infused with moisturizing Murumuru Butter, Guava Fruit Extract for Vitamin C, and antioxidant Vitamin E. It’s supposed to blur lines and even tone with light-to-medium coverage in a soft-matte second skin finish.
Milani definitely earns points for this shade range. Not only do I feel like it covers a large spectrum, but the intervals at each shade fill in a lot of gaps other foundations leave wide open. As someone with more neutral undertones, I usually have to settle for close enough, but shade 7 is one of the best shade matches I’ve found… not just at the drugstore, but in general.
The consistency is a thinner creamy texture that easily glides on and melts into the skin– no tugging at all– and a little goes a long way. If you’re truly trying to only achieve a tint, you only need a couple swipes or dots. But in reality, the Skin Tint Stick outperforms its claims in coverage.
Here I’ve applied several swipes on my face as demonstrated in the video at the top of the page. As you can see, I experience acne, hyperpigmentation, as well as texture around my face due to blemishes, scarring and dryness. Frankly, I feel like I achieved medium-to-full coverage with this formula! It greatly reduced the appearance of even my darkest spots, and is certainly enough to serve as a foundation for a full face of makeup.
As for my texture, the Skin Tint Stick really smooths over inconsistencies to look nearly airbrushed. I was shocked to see texture almost completely disappear under this. It is a silicone formula, though doesn’t feel or look heavy at all. On top of that, it didn’t accentuate any dry patches I have around my chin and cheeks. I found that brush application was the best method for smooth blending and maintaining as much coverage as possible, and recommend the Real Techniques Bubble Blending Brush for streak-free buffing,
I tested the Blur Out Skin Tint Stick several ways to figure out how to make it look best for my combo skin. Above, you can see my wear test applied half over the Milani Blur Out Smoothing Primer, half over my bare skin. To be honest, it performed pretty well on its own but did end up separating in my oiliest areas like around my nostrils. Primer kept the foundation more intact in these areas with excess oil, and helped my pores stay blurred longer. You can definitely that the pores to the side of my nose became more visible at 10 hours of wear on the “without primer” side.
However, both sides surprised me in terms of coverage. Even at 10 hours, I didn’t experience too much fading— even in my oily areas like my forehead. Additionally, the foundation did a great job staying out of my expression lines with zero creasing on the primed side, and only a little wear in my laugh lines on the side without primer.
The only real downside was how shiny I got in my t-zone. It definitely went past glowy and went firmly into greasy territory. Blotting definitely helped throughout the day and using a regular Kleenex, I could pick up excess oil and the coverage remained even.
In a separate wear test, I tried the Skin Tint Stick over the L’Oreal 24 Hour Setter Matte Setter Primer. This created a more balanced look from the get-go, and controlled shine all day. However, I do feel like it took away from the natural finish and made the formula look heavier, sitting more on top of my skin versus melting into it. Personally, I would prefer going with the blotting method because the natural look is one of the main draws of this product for me.
I think those with combo/dry skin will love this product as much as I did, but people with oily skin may struggle with the hydrating formula creating more shine. Come summer, I do wonder how it would hold up throwing sweat in the mix. But if you are looking for a quick and easy one-step for coverage and texture blurring, this could be it!
You can find the Milani Blur Out Skin Tint Stick at Ulta, and Target.
– Miranda
