37F Looking for routine/foundation advice for maturing skin because it just ain’t working out for me right now.

Hi everyone—would really appreciate some advice from others with dry, maturing skin.

I’m lucky that I actually have pretty great skin for my age (people usually think I’m younger), but I am dealing with dryness and fine lines like anyone else in their late 30s. Lately, my makeup just isn’t sitting right anymore.

It looks good initially, but after a few hours I get patchiness, texture, and settling into fine lines.

Skin type / concerns:

- Dry + dehydrated

- Fine lines becoming more noticeable

- Redness in cheeks (prefer medium or buildable coverage, not full coverage)

- Fair, cool-to-neutral undertone

Foundations I’ve tried:

- Purito Cica Clearing BB Cream (used to love, but shade range + formula change issues)

- Dior Forever Skin Glow (0CR)

- Chanel Les Beiges (B00)

- Estée Lauder Futurist Hydra Rescue (1N0 Porcelain)

- NARS Light Reflecting Foundation (Yulong)

- Milk Makeup Skin Tint (1)

I’m currently using the Milk Makeup Skin Tint—it’s the least patchy on me, but after a few hours it starts to look kind of “powdery.”

All of these look decent at first but don’t wear well throughout the day.

Primer:

- Milk Makeup Hydro Grip (no noticeable difference vs no primer)

Application:

- Pat in with fingers first, then blend with a sponge

Powder + setting:

- Laura Mercier setting powder (beautiful, but takes away too much glow for me)

- TIRTIR Mask Fit 24hr Fixer

- I’ve also tried spraying setting spray between layers

Skin prep:

- Micellar water cleanse (sometimes skip AM cleanse if no-makeup day)

- HA peptide serum

- Purito Oat-In Gel Cream

- Sunscreen (usually water-based)

- Wait at least 5+ minutes before makeup

Actives (PM):

- Sunday Riley Good Genes

- Tretinoin 0.025% (alternate nights)

I tend to get the most dryness on the apples of my cheeks and between my eyebrows, so at night I’ve started dabbing a little cold-pressed rosehip oil in those areas as a final step.

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What I’m trying to figure out:

- What skin prep actually helps makeup sit better on dry/maturing skin?

- Are there changes I should make to my skincare (hydration vs exfoliation balance, etc.)?

- Foundations/skin tints that don’t cling to dryness or settle into lines

- Whether primer is even necessary

- If powder is worth using at all (and how to keep a glowy finish if I do)

- Application techniques that help with texture

I feel like I’ve tried a lot of “hydrating/glowy” products, but I’m still not getting that smooth, skin-like finish.

I also tend to get pilling if I mix water-based and silicone-based products—even when I wait between layers—but I’m open to any suggestions.

If you’ve gone through this and found something that works, I’d really love to hear what helped you. Thank you so much 💛