Beautycounter Skin Twin Foundation Review

Beautycounter has been discontinued! Read about what happened to Beautycounter (and when it might come back) here. In the meantime, I have recommendations for Beautycounter product swaps linked in this post. Also, be sure to join my email list so you can be the first to know when your Beautycounter favorites come back.

These are my top 3 picks for foundation while Skin Twin is unavailable:

• ILIA True Skin Medium Coverage Foundation – This looks and feels the most similar and is what I was using instead of Skin Twin even before BC closed since it’s more hydrating. I wear shade SF2.5 Molokai. I have a full review of the ILIA foundation here.
• Crunchi Flawless Foundation—This is the cleanest option since Crunchi does extensive testing, just like Beautycounter. I don’t love the way it applies, but after it’s on my skin for a bit, it feels fine and looks great. It has slightly more coverage than Skin Twin. I have shade 2.5.
• Tarte Maracuja Juicy Glow Tint – My personal favorite, but not as clean as the other two. I wear shade 24N.

I have a couple other options linked in this Lightweight Foundation roundup if you prefer lighter coverage.

The Skin Twin foundation’s coverage is much more buildable than the previous Beautycounter foundation, Tint Skin.

You can see in my YouTube video about lightweight foundations where I apply Skin Twin (the first one shown) so you can see how it blends and the amount of coverage.

Beautycounter Skin Twin Foundation Review

Ingredients

Hyaluronic Acid

First, let’s discuss its anti-aging benefits. It contains Hyaluronic Acid, a popular anti-aging ingredient and moisture magnet often used in skincare. It helps skin glow and appear plumper immediately and even more with continued use. Skin Twin contains 10x more Hyaluronic Acid than Tint Skin.

Jojoba Esters

These are derived from the desert-dwelling jojoba plant and help moisturize, soothe, and soften skin.

Hydrophobic Pigments

These pigments provide long-wearing, buildable, second-skin coverage. These types of pigments are what help make it feel and look so natural!

Safer Ingredients

Skin Twin does not contain mineral oils, cyclic silicones, or synthetic film formers, all of which are common in foundations and may be linked to harmful effects to human health. You can read more about Beautycounter’s “Never List” here and use it to check your current foundation.

Stringent Screening & Safety Testing

Each batch is tested for heavy metals to ensure it meets Beautycounter’s strict safety measures. Beautycounter is super selective when it comes to pigments; out of the 65 cosmetic colorants allowed in the U.S., Beautycounter prohibits the vast majority—only using 18 colorants in their color cosmetics. (Read more about Beautycounter’s safety efforts.)

It’s also tested for peanut, soy and gluten allergens and contains no added fragrance or masking agents.

Beautycounter Skin Twin Colors and Shade Finder

Another benefit of Skin Twin is the shade range. Skin Twin has 27 shades versus Tint Skin’s 10. For years, I’d been sort of “in-between” colors with Tint Skin, and had to mix two shades together. I’m SO happy I don’t have to do that anymore. I mean check this out! It’s a perfect match!!

Before

After

To use it, you’ll just add 2-3 pumps to the palm of your hand and then use your fingertips, a foundation brush or damp beauty blender to blend it into skin. Continue to apply until you have the coverage you want. I usually need just 2 pumps and then maybe a little extra around my nose! Oh, and be sure to shake well before you use it.

I’m wearing shade 340. You can see all the makeup I use on this page and my makeup tutorial here. If you want a more in-depth makeup tutorial, get that here! (And here’s the skincare line I use.)

You can use Beautycounter’s Shade Finder here.

Another thing I love is that that this foundation comes in a glass bottle. Glass has a higher recovery rate, creating a better chance your empty bottle will be recycled into a new product in the future. Moving Skin Twin into glass (vs. Tint Skin’s non-recyclable tube) avoids an estimated 235k plastic tubes from entering landfills and waterways in just one year. And since the new glass bottle is sourced from North America, the packaging travels an estimated 5,000 fewer miles to get filled.

How to save money

Buy Skin Twin as part of Flawless in Five

Flawless in Five is Beautycounter’s makeup set and it’s a great option if you’re looking to get a simple, complete makeup set. The set comes with Skin Twin or Dew Skin, blush, brow gel or pencil, mascara, and lip gloss. You get to choose all your shades, and you save $30 when you buy the products as the set instead of buying each product separately.

Note: Dew Skin is a sheer, tinted moisturizer that I was obsessed with for YEARS before I turned into a foundation addict. (Here’s my review of Dew Skin – it was my first-ever Beautycounter product!).

Sign up for Band of Beauty

Sign up for Band of Beauty when you make a Beautycounter purchase. Band of Beauty is their VIP membership, kind of like Sephora Rewards or Nordstrom Rewards. You can read more about it here.

Get Skin Twin here! 

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