Jones Road Review & Swatches – Low Visual Weight Makeup Staples
After departing from her namesake brand, Bobbi Brown embarked on a new venture with a line of minimalist beauty products aimed to enhance your natural beauty in Bobbi’s signature “less is more” way. Founded on a notion that the world doesn’t need more beauty products, it needs better ones, Jones Road provides clean, strategic, easy-to-use, high-grade formulations that work on every skin type and tone, and we’re here for it! I had the opportunity to try several pieces that went viral in the recent years, and after using them for a while, I’m excited to share my thoughts on each one. Also, thanks to TikTok I discovered that I have low visual weight features, meaning soft natural makeup looks better on me than full glam, and Jones Road is all about those subtle looks.
Jones Road What The Foundation in Porcelain ($44) – Perhaps, the most viral product in this post, this foundation caused quite a stir in the beauty community when it first launched, and now it’s finally time to add my take to the pot. I think it’s interesting that the reviews were so polarizing – some people absolutely loathed everything about it, from the formula to the packaging, while others swore it’s their new HG. I’d been testing What The Foundation for about two months prior to writing this post, and had the chance to use it in several different ways.
First things first, yes, the fact that it comes in a pot can be a bit of a turn off. The formula is thick and contains nourishing granules that dissolve on contact with skin, so putting it in a pump bottle wouldn’t make sense – it would get clogged right away and become unusable. Pressed compact or cushion wouldn’t work either, again, because of the granules. Which leaves us with pot being the only viable option, so I can understand the choice, even if it’s not my preferred type of container to use for base makeup. Jones Road is using thick glass pots that feel sturdy and luxurious, they’re nice enough to repurpose for something else once you run out of the foundation.
The coverage can be described as “light”, as this is more of a tinted moisturizer than a foundation. You can build it up to almost medium by using more product, but I would only recommend it if you have dry skin. If you have any skin discolorations that you prefer to correct, I would recommend using a different product, like a concealer or a corrector, in addition to the foundation. Despite its light coverage, What The Foundation does a great job at making the skin tone look more even, radiant, and glowy.
I found my shade match in Porcelain, which is the lightest shade in the range. It has neutral undertones and because the coverage is so sheer, anyone with cool, neutral, warm, or olive undertones can use it.
The consistency is very rich and has the look of a thick moisturizer – it doesn’t drip at all if you scoop some with your finger and flip it upside down. Thanks to the natural oils, it feels nourishing and moisturizing. I have combination skin and I could skip moisturizer on the days when I applied a thicker layer of What The Foundation. This helped reduce excessive shine in the t-zone without having to blot and powder all the time. I think this foundation will work best for people with normal to dry skin types, because it does a great job at moisturizing those dry areas and doesn’t cling to dry flakes. I’m not sure it can work for someone with oily skin just because this formula itself is quite oily and will only make it worse. If you have combination skin, mixing this foundation with your moisturizer or skipping the moisturizer all together is the best way to get good results.
Let’s talk longevity. On my combo skin, the foundation tends to partially dissolve in the t-zone toward the end of the day, although overall my skin still looks nice and you wouldn’t really notice much of a difference. Still, I’d say this is more of a leisure day foundation or if you are just someone who doesn’t use foundation much, because at most it will make your skin tone look more even without really covering anything. If you need a long-lasting formula with medium to full coverage that will stay all day and won’t budge, What The Foundation is the opposite of that.
What The Foundation does not contain added fragrance but I wouldn’t call it unscented. Due to some of the natural oils in the formula, it smells like ginger and rosemary.
Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propanediol, Polyglyceryl-3 Caprate, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Caprylic/Capric/Succinic Triglyceride, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stearalkonium Hectorite, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate, Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide, Polyglyceryl-6 Polyricinoleate, Polyhydroxystearic Acid, Polyglyceryl-2 Stearate, Disodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Pelargonium Graveolens Oil, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Oil, Xanthan Gum, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Lecithin, Stearyl Alcohol, Dilinoleic Acid/Butanediol Copolymer, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Castor Oil/Ipdi Copolymer, Dilinoleic Acid/Glycol Copolymer Silica Silylate, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Phenoxyethanol. May Contain [+/-]: CI 77491 – CI 77492 – CI 77499 (Iron Oxides), CI 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), Mica.
Jones Road Miracle Balm in Flushed ($38) – This is another viral Jones Road product, and I swear I’ve seen more videos of this balm on my Instagram feed than all other Jones Road makeup combined. It also comes in a pretty large pot, but this one is made of plastic instead of glass. You get a massive amount of product and a little goes a long way.
Miracle Balm can be used in many different ways, but typically I use it as blush and as a lip balm. When used as blush, it actually replaces the highlighter as well, because it leaves the skin with a dewy look. True to the name, it has the consistency of a solid, thick balm that melts on contact with warm skin. Miracle Balm comes in many different shades, some of which work better as bronzers, some are more obvious highlighters, and others are really pretty blushes in various shades of pink, berry, and red. I chose Flushed because it seemed like the most versatile option, but now I’m thinking I need to try a deeper color so it shows up better on the lips.
Flushed is described as “cool pink with a subtle sheen,” and the description is pretty spot on. It’s like a peony pink with subtle silver, pink, and violet microshimmers, but the sheen you get on the skin is more from the natural oils in the formula than from the actual mica powder. The pigmentation is buildable and can go from light to medium opacity. Miracle Balm never fully dries and stays balmy on your face all day, something to keep in mind if you’re not into that. If you’re trying to use the smallest amount to reduce shine but show enough color and keep it dewy, my advice would be to pick a shade darker than you think you need – the formula sheers out beautifully.
Miracle Balm does not contain added fragrance, but just like the foundation, it has a prominent ginger aroma from natural oils in the formula.
Ingredients: Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Cera Alba/Beeswax/Cire d’abeille, Castor Isostearate Succinate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Diisostearyl Malate, Caprylic/Capric/Myristic/Stearic Triglyceride, Coconut Alkanes, Mica, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Brassica Campestris/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel Oil, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Oil, Citrus Grandis (Grapefruit) Peel Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Hippophae Rhamnoides (Sea Buckthorn) Fruit Oil, Rosmarinus Officianlis (Rosemary) Leaf Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Oil, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Phenoxyethanol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Silica, Tocopherol, May Contain +/-: Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Iron Oxides/CI 77491/CI 77499/CI 77492, CI 77163/Bismuth Oxychloride, CI 77891/Titanium Dioxide, CI 77861/Tin Oxide, CI 45410/Red 28 Lake
Jones Road The Overachiever Lip and Cheek Stick in Mauve Rose ($34) – Last but not least, I actually haven’t heard much about this multistick, but it instantly stood out to me as the kind of product I would love to have in my arsenal for convenience. I like the stick format because it doesn’t take up much room, and the fact that it can be used on lips and cheeks makes it twice as good. The main problem with cheek & lip products is that a lot of them tend to look great on the cheeks, and not so great on the lips, or the other way around. The Overachiever is completely different and exceeded all my expectation because it looks absolutely stunning on the cheeks and wears like an actual lipstick on the lips. In fact, if they took this formula and repackaged it into lipsticks, no one would even notice, that’s how good it is.
Because it’s a blush, the formula contains more gritty & grippy particles that stick to the skin, but it’s emollient enough to feel good on the lips. It’s that “sandy” feel that I dislike in most lip & cheek products, but it’s totally absent in The Overachiever. I love the twist-up applicator, so you don’t need to sharpen anything or dip your fingers in a pot, especially on the go. No brush? No problem! Swipe it on the cheeks and diffuse with a few taps of the back of your hand – a trick I learned from a NARS pro-MUA on Instagram.
If Miracle Balm feels more like skincare with the benefit of makeup, The Overachiever is the opposite, and wears more like makeup with added skincare benefits. It’s a blush that feels like blush, and also a lipstick that feels like lipstick. On my combo cheeks, The Overachiever stays put all day, and on the lips it wears just like any other creamy lipstick – about 3 to 4 hours before I need to touch up.
Currently, there are eight shades available, and I chose to try Mauve Rose because it looked like a perfect natural-looking plummy pink. Jones Road described it as “a dusty mauve”, and I suppose that’s pretty accurate? It’s like a warm-toned, muted, almost grayish mauve that looks like real blushed cheeks and a realistic lip color. There is no shimmer in the formula, only pure color pigments and the waxes to hold the stick together.
The Overachiever does not contain any added fragrance, and unlike the previous two, smells literally like nothing at all.
Ingredients: Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Octyldodecanol, Synthetic Wax, VP/Eicosene Copolymer, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax , Isopropyl Titanium Triisostearate, MAY CONTAIN +/-: CI 77891/Titanium Dioxide, CI 19140/Yellow 5 Lake, CI 15850/Red 6 Lake, CI 15850/Red 7 Lake, CI 42090/Blue 1 Lake, CI 77491/CI77492/CI77499/Iron Oxides, CI 45410/Red 28 Lake
Have you tried Jones Road makeup or skincare products? What do you think about these three?
