Browsing in CVS with Extrabucks in hand back in the early spring, I saw Physicians Formula Youthful Wear Foundation on sale. As a brand, Physicians Formula intrigues me. They have cute blushes and bronzers with beads or embossed pans that really get my attention. They have an organic mascara. The Youthful Wear Foundation caught me because of the foundation brush that was included in the package and because of the “10 years younger” claim on the package. In addition, on the front of the pack, it said “velvet feel” in addition to “flawless coverage”. I’m a sucker for anything that’s supposed to feel like velvet.
So I bought the Physicians Formula Youthful Wear Foundation. And it sat in the packaging in the CVS bag for about 4 months. BB cream has got me completely spoiled. I love the fact that I don’t have to apply primer. Saving that one step seems to make all the difference to me.
A couple of weeks ago, I finally tried it. I put on moisturizer. I put on primer. The foundation comes in a tube. I squeezed some out and I applied the creamy foundation with a brush, as directed. As much as I like the idea of a foundation brush, I’m not sure I needed to apply this product with a brush rather than my fingers. The brush was nice to have, but I wish it had black, rather than white, bristles that become a bit stained with the foundation unless you scrub with soap.
In spite of the fact that the brush was one of the hooks for me, I applied the Physicans Formula Youthful Wear Foundation this morning with my fingers instead, and I like the foundation sooooo much better.
The foundation provided medium coverage when applied with the brush but full coverage when applied with my fingers. It covered most of my dark spots completely. Because I could see the shadow of my two darkest spots, I put a dab more on them and they disappeared. Nice.
Product Benefits and Claims
In addition to the claims on the front of the pack, there are more benefits listed on the back:
- Breakthrough perfecting formula that melts into skin, instantly evening out texture and skintone
- Ultra-luxurious and ulta-lightweight foundation glides on and blends effortlessly delivering flawless coverage with a smooth velvety finish that lasts all day
- High-performance formula helps treat the visible signs of aging, restoring firmness & elasticity and improving skin’s appearance instantly and long-term.
Also, it made claims about instant visible results:
- 100% saw less deep wrinkles and fine lines instantly
- 94% saw lifted & firmer-looking skin after 3 weeks
- 100% of women would use Youthful Wear as an alternative to a cosmetic procedure.
Finally, the product is supposed to wear for 12 hours. And it is:
- hypoallergenic
- fragrance-free
- paraben-free
- gluten-free
- dermatologist approved
- non-comedogenic
- clinically tested by a panel of women (I assume by the company).
It has SPF 15 via a physical barrier that I prefer, zinc oxide. But it didn’t give me “ghost face” like some products with zinc oxide do.
OK, let’s go through the claims.
Did it feel like velvet? Yes, it did! I loved the feeling of this foundation. I kept touching my face (not a good thing to do) because it felt so soft and smooth.
Did it make me look 10 years younger? No, it didn’t. This is my key disappointment with the foundation. 🙁 Unfortunately, it emphasizes the wrinkles around my eyes. I will try to apply more primer around my eyes next time, and see if it’ll help.
Did it last throughout the day? Yes, it did.
I haven’t used Physicians Formula Youthful Wear consistently and long enough to know if it provides any anti-aging benefits. Frankly, I use serums and anti-aging moisturizers for those benefits…but if a foundation wants to pitch in and help, that’s fine with me.
Would I use this as an alternative to a cosmetic procedure? Well, I guess I would because I can’t afford a cosmetic procedure and I’m not sure I want one, lol (and what do they mean by that? Botox? A facelift??). Dumb question and dumb statistic to put on the package.
Overall Impression
My assessment is that Physicians Formula Youthful Wear is a good quality, affordable foundation. Is it an “instant facelift”? No.
If you haven’t been spoiled rotten by BB, CC and DD creams and if you still wear foundation, this is a good foundation at a good price. I think it’s for mature women with good skin and younger women who like a medium-full coverage foundation. The age range might be from youngish to middle-aged women, age 35-60ish, who have skin without a lot of wrinkles. If you’re on the older end of the range, make sure you apply a lot of good primer first. (I used Hourglass Mineral Primer, a great primer, but I didn’t apply it to my eye area. Mistake.)
What I love about this product is the incredibly velvety feel of my skin. They didn’t exaggerate on that claim! And the just-about full coverage is another benefit for me.
Physicians Formula Youthful Wear is available in fair, light and medium (I bought light and it’s a pretty good match for my slightly sun-tanned skin). It is 1.0 oz./29 grams. it’s made in the U.S. It’s available at drugstores, supermarkets, mass merchandisers, and Ulta as well as a variety of websites. The price varies from about $13 to $14.99, depending on the retailer. I definitely got a deal at CVS when it was on sale for less than $10.
Great review, Allison, thank you!!! I have purchased (or stayed away from) several things based on your recommendations and you are always right on target! My take on foundation is that I haven’t used one since I got started on the BB creams. My skin is so dry that no matter how expensive and rich the foundation is (I recently threw out ones from Chanel and Dior, it killed me LOL), it always makes my skin look flaky and dry, even with primer. It’s good to know about a decent, more reasonable product just in case I ever have to get really dolled up and need more coverage.
Thanks so much, Sybille, and thanks for commenting on the blog. I’m trying to figure out how to get more people to comment since Google takes that into consideration on ranking. I bought liquid foundation from Estee Lauder back in May when I got the Lilly Pulitzer tote from Macy’s because I skin purchase was required. I don’t know why I didn’t get BB cream because I still haven’t even opened the foundation. I may see if they’ll exchange it for me but I fear too much time has passed. BB cream is sooo much easier to apply than foundation, I am just spoiled! That said, I love the feel of the PF foundation, but if more primer doesn’t help with the way the wrinkles around my eyes looked, I don’t think I’ll be using too often. I’d go back to the lighter coverage Almay that didn’t make me look so old, lol!
I love my CVS bucks! That’s my fav part of shopping CVS .. at least they give you something back.
I do like Physician Formula products .. they are really cute and the packaging is adorable. I haven’t tried the Youthful Wear, but I do like that it comes with a brush which is quite clever and a good selling point.
Monica.
Monica P recently posted…Appetite Suppressant that works and New ASICS GEL Cushioning Athletic Shoes
The CVS bucks (and the convenient locations) are the only reason to shop at CVS since everything is so much more expensive than shopping at WalMart lol. I love feeling like I’m getting something for free or at a discount — I ignore the fact that I’ve already paid for it in higher prices! I really liked the PF foundation, but unless using more primer around my eyes will do the trick, I’ll have to give up on it in spite of my love for the velvety feel. I’m too vain to allow my crow’s feet to stand out like that 😉