Laura Geller Makeup Review: What's Worth Buying and What's Not

Before I get into my Laura Geller makeup review, here’s a fun flashback. I actually met Laura herself many years ago when I worked as an Assistant Beauty Editor at Family Circle magazine. We were filming a Facebook Live (remember those!?) with her while she demonstrated applying her eponymous makeup line on my face. 

Fast forward seven years later, and I am just now getting into her products. I like that her brand is relatively affordable while using high-quality ingredients. She is all about using products that are safe enough for sensitive skin, which is something I definitely appreciate when it comes to makeup. 

Laura Geller’s makeup line has been around for a long time (since 1997, to be exact). She’s built a beauty empire, and you can find her products in discount stores across the country, as well as on QVC. 

Maybe it’s because the line has been around for so long, but I noticed that her customer base seems to be mostly older women with mature skin. That said, I have seen a few TikTok videos pop up on my feed of younger-looking women using the line. Obviously, you don’t need to be a specific age to use the Laura Geller makeup line! If we were to categorize the customer base at all, I would recommend this brand for folks with sensitive, easily-irritated skin—regardless of age. 

Laura Geller Makeup Ingredients

A lot of the baked products in the Laura Geller makeup line contain the typical ingredients you’d find in other powder products. You can expect to see ingredients like mica, talc, dimethicone, centella asiatica extract, jojoba seed oil, titanium dioxide, iron oxides, and more. 

It’s important to note that Laura Geller makeup is not really considered a “clean” makeup line, according to EWG Skin Deep. However, that won’t stop me from using this makeup line. 

QUICK LINKS—Looking for some Laura Geller Kits & Palettes to make your selection easier? The below are the ones I would recommend, based on the products that I’ve tested from the brand!

• Baked Starter Kit ($63)
• The New Icons Kit ($69)
• Laura’s Must-Haves ($45)
• Basics & Beyond Kit ($93)
• Own Your Age Kit ($63)

Best Laura Geller Makeup

Laura Geller Baked Balance-N-Brighten Color Correcting Foundation 

This is probably Laura Geller’s most popular makeup product. The Baked Balance-N-Brighten Color Correcting Foundation works to hide imperfections and offer a natural foundation look (read: not exactly full coverage). The product offers light-to-medium coverage, and is buildable with each layer (similar to the Magic Minerals Airbrush Foundation). 

This foundation feels nice on the skin, and I also like that it is really lightweight and offers light coverage. I don’t like a foundation with heavy coverage, so this pick really fits the bill for me. I also like that it is in a pressed formula, which makes it easier to apply than my beloved Alima Pure Foundation, which is a loose powder. 

Another thing I liked about this pick is that it didn’t seem to settle into my fine lines and wrinkles (which, admittedly, are pretty minimal since I’m only 31). Sometimes I notice that my fine lines and acne scars are more pronounced when I use a liquid foundation. I liked that this formula didn’t feel dry when I applied it to my skin.

The formula lasted really well on my skin throughout the day. I tried it with both just my moisturizer underneath, and also the Spackle Primer that the kit came with. Both times, the foundation lasted throughout the day.    

The biggest issue I have with this foundation is the shades.

When I was in the process of purchasing the kit, I did some research to see what folks were saying about the shades. A lot of people said that they recommended you go one shade lighter than what you normally would choose, as the shades appear darker when applied to the skin. 

Because of that, I decided to choose the shade “Fair,” instead of the shade “Light” that I would normally choose. What’s wild is that I almost wish I had chosen one two shades lighter than what I thought I would be! I think that the shade “Porcelain” would have matched my skin tone a bit more than “Fair.” When I wore this foundation on my skin, my fiance said that I “looked tan,” which I think means that my foundation shade didn’t match the rest of my body. 

That said, I think once I get a bit of a real tan this summer, the “Fair” foundation will match my skin a bit better. My advice would be to go one or two shades lighter than what you think you might be in this foundation, as the brown colors in the baked formula can make this foundation appear darker. (Plus, it contains propylene glycol—which is a synthetic alcohol that helps condition the skin. However, it may be irritating to sensitive or dry skin.)

Laura Geller Jelly Balm Hydrating Lip Color 

Okay, I’m obsessed with these jelly balms! I think they are super underrated and they’re probably my favorite Laura Geller product from the lot. I have the shades “Figger Than Life” and “In The Buff.” Both of these flatter my skin tone so well, and I love that this formula is more on the balm side, rather than a lipstick. That being said, don’t discount the amount of color that these balms can impart—they add the perfect amount of color to my lips. 

I love that they don’t feel heavy, and I super love that they aren’t matte, either. I hate matte lipsticks and I urge folks to opt for the more hydrating formulas, rather than drying, matte formulas. This lip color comes in eight shades, and I’ll probably add more to my collection soon because I love them so much. 

Laura Geller The Best of The Best Baked Full Face Basics

I love most of the products in this face palette, but I’m actually obsessed with the three eye shadows. I’ve used them multiple times for nights out, and the way they make my eyes pop is insane. I wish the three eye shadows came in their own kit so that I could travel with them. I also like the “Pink Buttercream” Blush and the “Portofino Highlighter” in this kit. The “Tahitian Glow Baked Body Frosting” is nice, but I wouldn’t use it together with the blush and the highlighter because that’s gonna be way too much shimmer. I don’t care for the “French Vanilla Highlighter.”   

Laura Geller Baked Blush-N-Brighten Marbleized Blush

So I have this blush in four different shades. For a powder blush, I think these are really nice. I typically prefer cream blush, but I like using this option when I’m in the mood for a powder finish. This pick comes in a bunch of different shades, and also comes in a few different finishes—natural, matte, and satin. 

The four shades that I have are “Pink Buttercream” (natural finish), “Pink Grapefruit” (satin finish), “Tropic Hues” (satin finish), and “Tropical Peach” (matte finish). I prefer the natural and satin finishes over the matte finish, so “Tropical Peach” is not my favorite. The blushes with the satin finish have a bit more iridescence to them than the natural finish blushes. I like applying the satin finish blushes without adding highlighter to my cheekbones, as I think it’s too much shimmer if I use both. I’d say “Pink Buttercream” and “Tropic Hues” are my favorite blush shades from the ones I’ve tried.

Laura Geller Quench-n-Tint Hydrating Foundation 

Is this my favorite foundation in the world? No, but it’s definitely my favorite amongst the Laura Geller foundations. Personally, I’ve always preferred a sheer coverage foundation, and then I will use a concealer to cover up any imperfections and blemishes on my skin on top of the foundation. This is a nice formula that blends into my skin pretty well and the color match is pretty perfect (I am shade “Light”). I like that it’s hydrating and doesn’t irritate my skin, either. I definitely think this is one of the more underrated Laura Geller products and I highly recommend this one!

Laura Geller Kajal Longwear Eyeliner 

I love this formula and I think this is a really versatile product. You can use this as an eyeliner to get a chunky liner look, or you can swipe it across your eyelids to use as an easy eyeshadow. It comes with a sharpener at the end to sharpen the formula when you need a more pointed tip. It comes in a ton of colors (I only have “Dark Brown Kohl”), and it lasts all day if you apply an eyeshadow primer underneath. 

Laura Geller Serum Blush Cheek Tint

So the brand sent me these Cheek Tints a while ago for editorial consideration in the various media outlets I write for. At first, I didn’t really love them, but the more I use them, the more they grow on me. The biggest issue I originally had with these Cheek Tints was that the coverage was so sheer. Like when I applied some of the shades to my cheeks, you could barely see any color, and the color wouldn’t last very long during the day, either. 

I decided to try out some of the darker shades and I’m happy to report that I like them a lot. I like to dab this only on my cheeks and then blend it out a bit with my fingers. I think they are perfect to use with a cream highlighter. The formula of this blush is definitely more liquidy than creamy. It doesn’t contain any sort of shimmer or iridescence, but it’s definitely not matte either. I’d say it gives a natural-looking finish.   

Laura Geller Modern Classic Cream Lipstick

I’ve tried three shades of the Modern Classic Cream Lipstick—one I love, and the other two I don’t really like. This product comes in six shades, and I think the formula is true to its name. It’s relatively creamy, but not as hydrating as the Jelly Balms. And it’s not matte or drying either, so that’s a plus. I have shades “Mauve Majesty,” “Berry Bliss,” and “Divine.” The “Mauve Majesty” shade is a little too brown for my liking, but I think it might flatter a different skin tone than mine. The shade “Divine” feels too grandma-esque on my skin tone. “Berry Bliss,” on the other hand, is stunning and I love it. The shade is like a deep hot pink, and it flatters my skin tone beautifully. I definitely recommend it to those who want a pop of color. 

Laura Geller Sculpt-n-Stay Waterproof Brow Pencil & Gel 

I have no complaints about this pick. I have the shade “Dark Brown” and I think it matches my brows pretty well. It’s hard for me to say if it’s “waterproof,” but I’ve used it while trekking around hot, humid NYC in the middle of the summer and it didn’t budge, so I’d say that’s a good sign. I like that it has an angled tip. The strokes of the liner really mimic the hairs of your brows. 

Laura Geller Italian Marble Lipstick

I love the idea of the Italian Marble Lipstick, but the delivery is a bit tricky. The lipsticks definitely look cool in the packaging, since they are marbleized, but figuring out what the actual shade is makes it that much more difficult. And that goes for all the marbleized products from Laura Geller. I’ve tried three of the Italian Marble Lipstick shades, including “Strawberry Toffee,” “Honey Bun,” and “Al Fresco.” I love the “Strawberry Toffee” shade—it reminds me a lot of a Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick that I used to wear often called “Blushed.” It’s like a soft pink with a slight, pearly shimmer. 

The other two shades I tried out, “Honey Balm” and “Al Fresco,” were terrible. “Al Fresco” is like a light purple that surprisingly washed me out (I typically love purple-toned lipsticks and find them flattering). “Honey Bun” is a gross light pink that makes me look ill. I wasn’t a fan of either. I think that some folks might find “Al Fresco” to be flattering on them, but I’d be surprised to find anyone who loves “Honey Bun.”  

Laura Geller Bravo Brows Soft Pencil + Brush 

This is another brow pencil that I have no complaints about. I think this formula is “softer” and easier to apply to your eyebrows compared to the Sculpt-n-Stay Waterproof Brow Pencil & Gel. However, the strokes of this pencil won’t be as precise as the strokes that you get from the Sculpt-n-Stay Waterproof Brow Pencil & Gel. That being said, they are pretty similar to me and I don’t think you could go wrong with either choice. 

Laura Geller INKcredible Waterproof Gel Eyeliner Pencil 

When I first ordered this eyeliner, I bought the shade “Brown Eyed Girl” and was horrified by how poorly made the formula was. And what I mean by this is that the “shimmer” in the formula just looked terrible, not natural, and is not something I would ever apply to my eyelids. The base color was a rich chocolate brown, while the shimmer specks in the formula were like a silver shade. They just did not look good and the shimmery specks for that specific shade seemed really dated and not advanced to me. 

Fast forward to when I ordered another shade, “Brown Sugar,” and loved it! I think this is a great gel eyeliner formula and I love that it lasts all day and doesn’t really smudge. If you like a more precise liner look, I would opt for the INKcredible Waterproof Gel Eyeliner Pencil over the Kajal Longwear Eyeliner. If you’re going to order the INKcredible Waterproof Gel Eyeliner Pencil, I would avoid any of the shimmery shades. 

Laura Geller Spackle Skin Perfecting Primer: Hydrate

I was pleasantly surprised by this primer. It does a great job of hydrating skin while keeping your makeup in place throughout the day. I like that it has a ton of moisturizing ingredients like glycerin, jojoba seed oil, sunflower seed oil, and more. Also, it’s important to note that the ingredient list on the bottle I received is very different from the ingredient list on Laura Geller’s website. I’m not totally sure what that’s about. 

I didn’t notice that this product causes any breakouts, but it does contain shea butter, which some might find cloggy. I also love that it’s such a large bottle—you don’t typically find a primer that comes in this size. I’d recommend this primer if you have dry or sensitive skin and need some added moisture before makeup application. 

Laura Geller Retractable Angled Kabuki Brush

I love this brush! It’s perfect for applying the foundation and you can determine how much foundation coverage you want based on how much you retract the brush. So for example, if you want a light coverage of the foundation, you would retract the brush all the way down so that the bristles are more fluffy. If you want a more full-coverage look, you can retract the brush only a little bit so that the bristles are stiffer and will pick up more product. 

I love how soft the bristles are on this brush. I can see myself using it for a bunch of different products. However, I probably wouldn’t use this on any liquid formulas, and I don’t think the bristles are stiff enough. 

Available at Laura Geller Beauty ($13)

Laura Geller Products I Didn’t Love

Laura Geller Serum Bronzing Cheek Lift

Like I mentioned previously, I liked the formula of these serum tints from Laura Geller, but I think the shades in the Bronzing Cheek Lift are off. I tried the shade “Soft Sunshine” and felt that it was too orangey for me.  

Available at Laura Geller Beauty

Laura Geller The Ideal Fix Concealer

Again, these shades are just off. I couldn’t even really dive into the formula because I couldn’t find a shade match for me. I tried both “Light” and “Medium.” The “Light” shade was way too light for my skin, and the “Medium” shade was way too yellow for my skin tone. 

Available at Laura Geller Beauty

Laura Geller Baked Natural Glow Highlighter in French Vanilla

This highlighter came with a set that I purchased from Laura Geller a while ago. I don’t like it and I never find myself wearing it. It’s too white and doesn’t add any type of glow to your skin, in my opinion. Laura needs to work on her highlighter selection in her line because it’s lacking.  

Available at Laura Geller Beauty

Laura Geller Italian Marble Blush Stick and Marble Bronzer Stick

I wanted to love these, but I was really disappointed by them. They are a cream formula, but the formula is hard to blend and not very creamy. I bought the Italian Marble Blush Sticks in shades “Dolce Vino” and “Apricot Spritz,” and the Marble Bronzer Stick in “D’oro Glow.” I love the color of “Apricot Spritz,” but I don’t wear it very often because it doesn’t blend well. I don’t like the shade “Dolce Vino,” and I thought “D’oro Glow” was too orangey for me. If you’re on the hunt for a great cream blush, bronzer, and highlighter trio, check out these Ogee makeup sticks.

Available at Laura Geller Beauty

Laura Geller Double Take Liquid Foundation

I ordered the “Medium” shade in this foundation because all of the lighter shades were sold out. Unsurprisingly, the “Medium” is too dark for me (I’m typically a light shade). I was going to try and order the “Light” shade, but then I realized that I don’t really like this formula, so I just chose to skip testing it out. I think the formula is too heavy and too full-coverage for my liking. I much prefer the Quench-n-Tint Hydrating Foundation to this one.  

Available at Laura Geller Beauty

Is Laura Geller Makeup Good?

Yes, I think that Laura Geller makeup is good. That said, I think some products are better than others. And I’ve gone into depth above about which ones I think are worth purchasing and which ones aren’t.

Laura Geller has been in the beauty industry for a long time. I feel like she really knows her shit. I also think that the Laura Geller brand is geared more towards folks with mature skin. However, that won’t stop me from using the products I purchased regularly. 

Where To Buy Laura Geller Makeup

Laura Geller Makeup Tutorial

Here is a brief Laura Geller makeup tutorial using the products I got in my Cult Classics Full Face Kit. 

Step 1 – Apply the Laura Geller Spackle Skin Perfecting Primer: Hydrate

Pump some of the primer onto your fingers and blend it into your face. I like to let it sit for a minute or two to soak into my skin before applying the foundation. 

Step 2 – Buff Laura Geller Baked Balance-N-Brighten Color Correcting Foundation into skin

Use the retractable kabuki brush to blend the product into your skin. You can apply the product with light, medium, or heavier coverage, depending on how much you retract the brush. I like to swirl the brush around on the foundation and buff it into my skin. 

Step 3 – Add Laura Geller Baked Natural Glow Highlighter in French Vanilla on cheekbones

Then, I like to apply the highlighter on top of my cheekbones. The reason I prefer adding highlighter before the blush is that I like the highlight to give a lit-from-within glow. You can also add this on your brow bone, on the inside corner of your eyes, and even on the tip of your nose. 

Step 4 – Add Laura Geller Baked Blush-N-Brighten Marbleized Blush on apples of cheeks

After you’ve applied the highlighter, you can apply a light layer of blush on the apples of your cheeks. Be careful with this blush, as it’s super pigmented! A little goes a long way. 

Step 5 – Add Laura Geller Modern Classic Lipstick in Divine to your lips

FAQs About Laura Geller Makeup

Is Laura Geller makeup toxic?

While there are certainly a lot of questionable ingredients in Laura Geller makeup, it might be a bit of a stretch to call the brand toxic—to humans, at least. It’s actually fair to say that Laura Geller is toxic to wildlife and the environment, as it contains ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate. Also, there are a number of synthetic ingredients—including phenoxyethanol, a preservative, and chromium oxide green, a colorant.

Does Laura Geller makeup have SPF?

Most Laura Geller makeup does not have SPF—including their lipsticks and the brighten foundation. There is one Laura Geller product, though, that can be used to protect your skin from harmful UV rays. That’s the Better than Bare Tinted Moisturizer, which contains SPF 50+. Think of it as a super lightweight Laura Geller foundation.

Is Laura Geller makeup cruelty-free?

According to Laura Geller Beauty’s Customer Service page, the brand does not test on animals. However, I wouldn’t go as far as to say that the makeup is cruelty-free because, as the brand admits, some of their “products may contain animal by-products.” If you’re worried about a specific product, I’d suggest reaching out directly to the brand to ask if it’s truly cruelty-free.

Is Laura Geller makeup hypoallergenic?

Similar to how some Laura Geller products contain SPF and others don’t, so, too, are some products hypoallergenic and others not so much. The baked foundation is great for sensitive skin, reported KTTV of Colorado.

Does Laura Geller makeup have parabens?

In case you didn’t know, parabens are chemicals used as preservatives in cosmetics—meaning they make your products last longer. Per the Laura Geller Beauty Customer Service page, many of the brand’s products are paraben-free. However, there are some that aren’t. You can check which ones are paraben-free and which aren’t on the individual product pages.  

Does Laura Geller makeup have talc?

While most Laura Geller products are paraben-free, they are not necessarily talc-free. In fact, because a lot of these cosmetics are in powder form, you’ll likely find talc in those formulas.