Red, Chapped Skin Is Officially in Season—These Foundations Will Have Your Back

In the UK alone, roughly one in 10 people are currently living with rosacea, a skin disease which involves the tendency to blush or flush more easily than your average Josephine and which can spread beyond the face to the ears, chest, and back.

As the American Academy of Dermatology reports, rosacea actually has four subtypes that can result in the aforementioned flushing and visible blood vessels in addition to other frustrating symptoms like persistent redness, swelling, acne-like breakouts, bumpy texture, and more. Dryness, stinging, burning, and a scaling, flaky texture can be other not-so-fun side effects. 

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(Image credit: @emilydidonato)

Not surprisingly, all of the above make shopping for skincare and makeup hard. Many formulas are drying, irritating, or filled with icky ingredients that just won't play nicely with rosacea or skin that's prone to chapping, redness, or dehydration.

According to celebrity esthetician Renée Rouleau (who has also been my skin hero), steering clear of highly active ingredients, overexfoliation, hot water (store your skincare in the fridge!), and allergen-ridden products and embracing protective, gentle, and calming ingredients (think physical sunscreens, chamomile, white tea, etc.) is a fabulous game plan for managing rosacea. Another good idea? Opting for the best foundations that will not only help camouflage redness or other related complications like bumps and uneven texture but will also heal, soothe, and definitely not exacerbate the volatile situation. Ahead, we're highlighting 11 of the best foundations for rosacea, organised by how much you're willing to spend. Keep scrolling! 

If You Have £20 and Under to Spend…

If You Have £20 to £30 to Spend…

If You Have £30 and Over to Spend…

Beauty Director

Erin has been writing a mix of beauty and wellness content for Who What Wear for over four years. Prior to that, she spent two and half years writing for Byrdie. She now calls Santa Monica home but grew up in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and studied writing, rhetoric, and communication at University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. She studied abroad in Galway, Ireland, and spent a summer in L.A. interning with the Byrdie and Who What Wear family. After graduating from UW, she spent one year in San Francisco, where she worked as a writer for Pottery Barn Kids and PBteen before moving down to L.A. to begin her career as a beauty editor. She considers her day-to-day beauty aesthetic very low-maintenance and relies on staples like clear brow serum (from Kimiko!), Lawless's Lip Plumping Mask in Cherry Vanilla, and an eyelash curler. For special occasions or days when she's taking more meetings or has an event, she'll wear anything and everything from Charlotte Tilbury (the foundations are game-changing), some shimmer on her lids (Stila and Róen do it best), and a few coats of the best mascara-type product on earth, Surratt's Noir Lash Tint.