Maybelline Dream Velvet Soft Matte Hydrating Foundation is brand new for Spring 2016 and is my highest requested review at the moment! It claims to be a gel-whipped formula with a soft, velvety matte finish. While most matte foundations feel drying on the skin, this one promises to be a hydrating matte formula. All I can say is Thank YOU Maybelline! I've never found a matte foundation that I can wear because I have really dry skin, so when I saw this at Bed, Bath & Beyond, it was like the heavens opened up and the angels started singing. And if you have oily skin, have no fear because the moisture in this formula won't clog you up.
So is this as comfortable to wear as it claims to be? Keep on reading to find out...
I found this at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $8.99 but the price can vary depending on which store you go to. BBB is usually the cheapest, followed by Walmart and Target, and then the drugstores. Ulta Beauty has it for $10.99. I'm sure at some point it'll go on sale somewhere, if you're willing to hold out for a little while.
I ended up purchasing the Dream Blender sponge that goes along with this (and is sold separately) at CVS for $8.99. I was kicking myself because I believe it was between $5 and $6 at Bed, Bath & Beyond.
Looking at the ingredient list, the formula appears to be mostly water, followed by silicones and glycerin which is a humectant that pulls water from the air and draws it to your skin, locking in moisture. The tube is pretty small at only 1 fl oz, but I really like the packaging...it's a lot better than a glass bottle!
The Dream Blender sponge is similar to a Beauty Blender, except it has a little handle to hold which is pretty genius. It can be used dry for heavier coverage or damp for sheer coverage. It feels denser and more firm than the Beauty Blender or the Real Techniques Complexion Sponge and I find that it gives a really nice, smooth finish. You can blend larger areas of your face with the sides of the sponge, and the tip is meant to get into smaller spaces around the nose and under the eyes. I think it does a really nice job of applying and blending all types of foundation!
The texture is like a whipped mousse...it's soft, velvety and blends into the skin beautifully, giving a soft, airbrushed appearance. Oddly, despite the blurring effect, it seems to actually accentuate the pores on my cheeks and around my nose. Thankfully, applying a primer and a pore treatment like Benefit's The Porefessional underneath this seems to fix the issue for me.
I would say the coverage is medium and the finish is definitely a "soft matte" meaning there's no sheen at all, but it also doesn't look dry, dull or flat. It didn't cling to any dry patches or flakes at all, which was really impressive, considering mousse foundations almost always do that to me. It felt comfortable all day and wore for about 7-8 hours on me. Oily skin types may see less wear time unless you set it with powder (I didn't set it with anything).
![]() |
Maybelline Dream Velvet Foundation in Creamy Natural #50 |
You can find Maybelline Dream Velvet at drugstores or at Ulta.com.