This New Foundation Can Be Custom-Made to Your Exact Skin Tone—Here's My Review

For me, finding the perfect foundation has always been a bit of a task. Putting the questionable shade ranges aside, I seem to have another requirement that not many brands want to fulfil—I like sheer-coverage foundations but without an overly dewy finish. While I'd describe my skin as pretty low-maintenance, I have a super-oily T-zone, so I’m always seeking a light foundation formulation that will both even out my skin tone and mattify the oily bits—but without making my face look 2D. Trying to satisfy these needs at the same time as having to seek out a foundation range that caters well to deeper skin tones is challenging to say the least.

That is until I discovered Dcypher. A truly disruptive new brand on the beauty block, Dcypher is bringing custom foundations to the masses by uniquely creating a foundation for every individual. As soon as I heard about it, I was intrigued, but I don’t always trust custom skincare and makeup, as everyone's opinion on what makes a "good" product can vary so dramatically. 

However, in the name of research, I put my reservations to one side and delved headfirst into the world of Dcypher's customisable experience in the quest for my perfect foundation. And I have to say, I think the resulting formula is pretty close.

Dcypher was founded by husband-and-wife duo Adam and Claire, a British biochemist and a consumer scientist. After years of experience in the beauty industry, they decided to venture into the new space of personalisation after seeing a huge gap in the market. "Our research shows that only 45% of female customers regularly use foundation," says Adam. "We believe they have given up on the category as they failed to find a product that works for them. We plan to change that. Our mission is to disrupt the beauty industry by making personalisation the norm. Giving the customer exactly what they want, with infinite shades, finishes and formulations." 

I was worried that custom might equal confusing, but the Dcypher website is super easy to navigate. To help the team decipher (see what they did there?) your unique skin colour and undertone, you're required to take three images of your face using your phone or computer camera. As I was on my laptop, I moved around the room in different lights, which I think helped to get me such a spot-on colour match.

Keeks Reid before applying the Dcypher Custom Foundation.

Next up, you answer a few questions covering things like your skin type, your desired coverage, and what finish you like in a foundation. I selected oily skin, opted for the sheerest coverage with a matte finish and waited for my custom foundation to arrive. Before they make you a full bottle, you’re sent a small sample pot to test and ensure that the colour match is good. Then, if you’re satisfied, your custom bottle is sent out.

Keeks Reid after applying the Dcypher Custom Foundation.

While I am a fan of hyperbole, I promise you I’m not exaggerating when I tell you this is the best foundation that I have ever tried in terms of colour match. The varying tones across my face are evened out—but not totally masked—and the neutral undertone is spot-on, which the system correctly detected. As for the formula, the sheerness along with the matte finish gives me a healthy glow and controls my oil without cakiness or leaving me looking 2D, as some other matte finishes can do.

At £28 a pop, this is definitely moving into the more luxury end of foundation pricing, but for your own bespoke colour and formula, this foundation will totally stop you from having to second-guess your shade, mix and match colours or totally despair at the lack of shade range. In my opinion, it’s a totally worthy investment.

Shop the foundation:

Discover other foundations with an inclusive shade range: 

Brands have certainly upped the shade game over the place few years, but having a wide range of colours doesn’t necessarily mean inclusive. These foundations have the biggest shade ranges across the skin tone spectrum, hands down.