Quick Look: Benefit's The Big Easy

Benefit's new foundation, The Big Easy, came out a few months ago and, after reading some pre- reviews of the project, I was so eager to try it. The reviews for this "Better Than BB" product promised good coverage that felt lightweight on your skin. One of the unique innovations with this product is a 'liquid to powder' formula that was supposed to be especially nice for oily skin. I personally do have oilier skin, and I feel like a lot of foundations are good for dry skin, but few that are targeted to oily skin. Benefit does claim that this foundation is good for all skin types, though. I quickly purchased it and have been trying it out for the past few weeks. Here are my thoughts.

The application of this product is relatively easy. It's one of the few foundations I feel comfortable using my fingers to apply it, but it also yields a very nice application with a foundation brush and with my beauty blender. It's really quite user friendly.

The Big Easy really does sink into my skin well and feels incredibly lightweight. However, I think that it feeling lightweight logically means that it will be lightweight. I would say that this coverage is light to medium. It's great for me if I'm having a relatively good skin day, but sometimes I prefer a fuller coverage alternative. I'm not saying that this doesn't cover things nicely, but I struggle to build it up to full coverage. Here is a picture of this foundation on my skin not blended (left) and blended (right). I don't even detect it on my skin once blended out.


The Big Easy has an SPF of 35, which I was really excited about, as I love protecting my skin. I have five other foundations with SPF, and they are all 15 or lower. SPF 35 is very significant, and I know that this is going to give me great protection, which will definitely be beneficial in the long run. I know some people do shy away from SPF in your foundation, as it tends to have a "white out" effect on your face when you take pictures. I was aware of this, so I made sure to test this out for The Big Easy. I took a picture of it with flash, and I was very pleased to see that it didn't seem to blanch my skin. However, because of the SPF, there is a detectible "sunscreen" fragrance. It's extremely mild, and I didn't notice it until I actually consciously smelled it, but it could be something to keep in mind if you're sensitive to smells.

enjoying the sun with The Big Easy!

This product hasn't broken me out, and I find that I can wear it all day and my skin doesn't get as oily. I don't feel that I need to set the foundation with powder, as the liquid does change to powder, so that saves me a step on rushed mornings. Overall, I do really enjoy this product. I will admit, it's not my holy grail, as I do like a foundation that I can build up to fuller coverage easily. I would recommend this product for anyone with oily skin who doesn't struggle too much with blemishes or dark spots. This is an excellent foundation to have during the summer when SPF and oiliness are even larger concerns, so I do look forward to continued use.

What's your holy grail foundation?

Xx Kate