Bobbi Brown’s new beauty brand, Jones Road, launched during the pandemic with the goal of creating clean, high-performance makeup that’s easy to wear. “It’s a clean and simple makeup for every skin type and skin tone and you don’t need to be a makeup artist to wear it,” says the founder and makeup artist.
Brown is one of the beauty industry greats—she pioneered the “no makeup makeup” look before it became a trend and has been helping people feel empowered by enhancing their natural beauty for decades. My mom has been a devotee of her eponymous makeup line (which Brown sold in 1995 and retired in 2016) since I was born, so I grew up seeing Brown’s name on the blush compacts stacked on her dresser or in the tubes of lip gloss. thrown in her bag. Now, with the virality of Jones Road beauty, Brown is reaching new audiences, still in the same spirit of creating less is more makeup looks that make you feel comfortable and confident.
@trevorbarrett
This base has received so much hate! 👀 That’s why I like it! ❤️ #jonesroadbeauty #foundation #jonesroad #bobbibrown #stitch #makeupreview
♬ Night Fishing – CYGN
“Jones Road is for anyone who loves a natural, luminescent look that makes you look like yourself on your best day,” says Brown. “Most women don’t want to be overly made up, they want to wear makeup to look better. And most women don’t want to look trendy—they want beauty products that are clean, easy to apply, and basically work. Jones Road stays true to that ideal. That sheer, naturally beautiful look feels more modern right now than a full face of makeup.”
I tried five of Jones Road’s best-selling new makeup products, from TikTok-famous What the Foundation to a surprisingly good clean mascara.
$38 at Jones Road and Credo
Jones Road’s best-seller, Miracle Balm, is the ultimate combination of skincare and makeup. The emollient-rich balm, made with jojoba seed oil, argan oil and vitamin E, melts on the face to form a transparent layer of hydration and colour. “It’s my favorite product because when I put it on, I instantly look better,” says Brown. “Add a soft-focus moisture wash to enhance your skin. It also reflects light, so it adds a touch of shine where you need it – cheeks, eyelids or lips.”
Of the nine shades that Miracle Balm comes in, I tried it in Flushed (pink tint), Magic Hour (shimmering bronze), and Au Naturel (sheer). The latter is more of a skin enhancer than anything else, as it gives you a glowing glow. For just a hint of a blush shade, Flushed delivers the purest rosy color. My favorite of the bunch is Magic Hour, which I use as a highlighter after applying What the Foundation and The Best Blush. It blends beautifully with the foundation and has a luminous finish that gives the effect of a natural reflection. I can see why Miracle Balm is a favorite multi-use makeup product – the color is so sheer, you can apply it wherever you want and wear it alone or layer over foundation. Just remember to break the surface of the balm, with your finger or a beauty spatula, when you first use it. This helps you get to the smoothest part of the formula which you can then warm up with your fingers before applying.
$44 at Jones Road and Credo
What the Foundation is the featured product that captivated me the most. It provided really natural looking light coverage that evened out my complexion and dare I say it gave me the dolphin skin effect with just one product. I usually don’t wear a foundation, most days I just wear a little concealer under my eyes, and even when I try them out for work, they end up at the bottom of a big makeup pile. This product, however, has found a permanent place in my makeup bag. I tried two shades and found that Beige worked as a perfect base shade for me, but with my summer tan, a couple of swipes of Medium helped add some warmth. For application, I opt to use my fingers to blend it out, but a thick makeup brush or makeup sponge works as well. The creamy base looks like a tinted moisturizer and feels rich on the skin, thanks to a host of natural oils and hydrating ingredients like sodium hyaluronate.
$25 at Jones Road and Creed
The Face Pencil is another great example of Jones Road’s versatility. It is a practical concealer pencil that covers redness, dark circles and spots. Brown says it’s a favorite among makeup artists, who love the 25-shade range and its blendability. I love it to cover under the eyes and hide redness around the nose. I tried four shades (7, 8, 9, and 10) and found it quite helpful to have a couple of shades on hand. I use 7 (light with neutral undertones) to brighten the under-eye area and even out redness around the nose, and 8 (light/medium with peach undertones) as a true blend of colors to cover blemishes.
$28 at Jones Road and Credo
A new release this fall, The Best Blush was created by Brown because she’s always had a great powder blush in her back pocket. “Powder blush is what I grew up with,” he shares. “A hint of pink has always been my go-to as a makeup artist, and it’s been just as important in my own beauty routine. Even on days when I’m not wearing makeup, you’ll find pink on my cheeks…even if it’s just a hint to mimic a natural flush. It is the easiest way to lift and enhance the skin.”
Available in five pink shades, the talc-free formula is lightweight and looks super natural, but can also be built up for more color. The squalane-infused powder can be used on bare skin without looking chalky, or layered with Miracle Balm (“for added luminosity,” according to Brown). Rosy and Sandy were the shades that worked best for me, and I used Jones Road’s Blush Brush for an effortless application. I also like to swipe a bit on my ring finger and dab the color on my lids for an easy, monochrome makeup look.
$26 at Jones Road and Creed
Brown says The Mascara is another MUA favorite. “It’s really hard to do a clean black mascara, but we seem to have it down,” he says. To tell you the truth, I didn’t expect The Mascara to like it as much as I did. With my stubborn, straight lashes, a high-performance mascara is needed to keep them up all day. The mascara’s large curved applicator helps generously coat my lashes in one swipe, and the conditioning formula easily holds them and adds length. It wasn’t smudge-proof for me though, so I found that the best way to get a long-lasting curl is to apply a first coat of The Mascara followed by a coat of my favorite smudge-proof mascara, Twenty / Twenty Beauty Clean Sweep Mascara.
Using the products above, plus honorable mention The Lip Tint in Nude Rose, as well as my favorite brow products, I was able to do my makeup in less than 10 minutes. The resulting look has certainly become my default makeup ever since I first tried the products, and I’ve recreated it for work events and date nights alike.
While I did not experience any issues that prevented me from purchasing any of Jones Road’s products, there are a couple of things you should be aware of before trying it yourself. The light “no makeup makeup” look the line achieves doesn’t exactly reflect how the products feel on the skin. The Miracle Balm and What the Foundation specifically feel rich and heavy (some reviewers have noted a “sticky” feel), as their formulas have emollient ingredients. I think I’ll appreciate feeling that extra layer of moisture in the cold winter months, but it takes some getting used to. There have also been reviews noting a grainy texture in What the Foundation – I experienced this in the Beige jar but not the Medium. I think this has to do with the way the ingredients sit in the container, but I was able to massage the product in with no problem and the little bits of formula blended together without a trace. It would also be nice to see SPF in the What the Foundation formula, as similar products that act as a tinted moisturizer (like Ilia’s Super Skin Tint) have that benefit.
Makeup enthusiasts who like the minimalist aesthetic and easy-to-wear products from Ilia, Merit, Saie, and Glossier will love the versatility of Jones Road. The foundation products, The Face Pencil, What the Foundation and Miracle Balm, are really what make Jones Road shine. They provide a perfect base for the barely-there makeup look, and work well not only with other Jones Road products, but with makeup from the aforementioned brands as well.
While Jones Road is priced slightly higher than the other makeup-loving no-makeup brands, their products feel like professional makeup tools, thanks to Brown’s expertise. A clean beauty brand (the brand avoids 2,700 potentially harmful ingredients) with a focus on performance, the products first and foremost feel like the makeup you’d find in a professional MUA kit—because that’s what they were made for. Brown created Jones Road to fill a gap in his own kit, and the result is quality cosmetics that professionals and beginners alike can benefit from.
And while we didn’t test it for this story, Jones Road also has a line of skincare products, so if you like being brand loyal in your beauty routine, it has everything you could possibly need.
It’s clear that Brown has been intent on creating high-performance cosmetics that work for everyone. Whether you’re shopping for your teen, yourself, or your mom, Jones Road suits any age, skin type, or beauty routine. Best for those who love a natural look, you but better, the products are great for building confidence in your makeup skills and yourself.
Source: news.google.com