NARS released their All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation earlier this year in Australia (late last year overseas) and it created quite a divide in the beauty community. There were two camps; you either loved it or you hated it. I picked it up on a whim but, after being pleasantly surprised, I cannot sing its praises enough!
Keep reading to find out why.
The name of this foundation says a lot about it. It says it's a long wearing formula with a luminous finish and barely there feel a combination you honestly don't see too often. When I say long wearing, I mean it. NARS claims that this foundation wears for up to 16 hours. Holy guacamole!
I have the NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation in Mont Blanc and, in a nutshell, I really love it. I think it does wonders for my combination/oily skin and the stay power is absolutely incredible.
Left: NARS All Day Weightless Luminous Foundation straight after application. Middle: 7.25 hours
later. Right: 11.5 hours later.
As I mentioned, the lasting power of this foundation is great. I get up at 5.30am every weekday. I'm out of the house by 6.30am and I get home anywhere between 5.00pm and 6.00pm. Yep, super long days. With that in mind, I need a foundation that's going to stand the test of time and this foundation far surpassed my expectations. It wears so well and the minimal shine I had get is easily blotted with powder if needed. The photos above aren't great but, as you can see, there's hardly anyway 'wear' 11.5 hours after application. These photos were taken on a 40+ degrees Celsius day in Perth, Western Australia, heat that would've had other foundations dripping off my face. Not only did it survive, it still looked flawless.
In terms of coverage, check out the before and after pictures above. The NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation provided me with fairly decent coverage on a terrible skin day (which I'm happy to report was over a month ago now - that's how long I've been needing to write this for, yep) and it evened out my general skin tone so nicely. It has a medium coverage which can be built up without looking cakey.
The NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation is super thin in consistency, quite like the L'Oreal Paris Nude Magique Eau de Teint*. It is super lightweight on the skin and, once applied, has a very 'barely there' feel to it. NARS says that one pump/drop of the product should cover the whole face but I call bullshit on that. I use two to three drops and I don't find that things look cakey. It's up to personal reference though, I guess.
My confusion with this product lies in the luminous claims suggested in the name of the product. I'd say this foundation has a matte finish, semi matte or satin at a stretch, and I cannot see the luminosity. Having oily skin, this doesn't bother me at all (in fact, I'm quite pleased) but it is something to consider. It's a borderline matte finish in my opinion, sure, but it doesn't look flat in the slightest which could be attributed to the luminosity, I suppose. The finish, however, is something to consider if you have dry skin. I've heard that this can be quite drying on dehydrated or drier skin types so buyer beware and maybe get a sample.
Lastly, let's touch on this packaging. Oh, Francois Nars, the way you toy with me. This foundation is housed in a stunning square glass bottle with a frosted finish and it feels oh so luxe. It's the first NARS foundation to come with a pump and, better still, they've finally created lids that fit over their pumps. Huzzah!
I haven't loved a foundation as much as I love the NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation and I'm so glad about it. This foundation is available from Mecca and Mecca Maxima here in Australia and, at $64.00, it's an investment but I do think it's worth it. If you're not sure about your colour match or how it'll go with your skin type, pop in to a Mecca store and grab a sample!
I REALLY want to try this, but I'm still hunting for a more hydrating foundation.
ReplyDeleteThe coverage of this looks beautiful, but not a big fan of matte finishes.
Sheri | Behind The Frames