Review: NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation

Hello Princesses!

Today I'm going to be reviewing the NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation in Siberia! I picked up this beauty in Taipei after careful deliberation, while it was on a joint offer with  the NARS Soft Velvet Loose Powder!

I already own NARS's Sheer Glow in Siberia, but I find the formula a little difficult to work with (after over a year of experimenting) so I was quite hesitant to purchase this foundation as well. I read so many positive reviews and so little negative reviews that I was swayed (and weakened by sales) to purchase it anyway and take a chance on a newer and better formula.

The official description is pretty impressive, claiming to neutralize redness and dullness, while reducing the appearance of discoloration or more even, uniform skin. It even claims to reveal brighter, more even skin over time!

"NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation offers you full, natural-looking coverage with 16 hours of weightless wear. Highly pigmented and perfectly balanced, the breakthrough formula builds and blends effortlessly with just one drop. It features advanced flexible polymers that move with your skin, providing extraordinary breathability and comfort. Even Tone Technology is designed to instantly neutralize redness and dullness while working long-term to reduce the appearance of discoloration for more even, uniform skin. Gold and green pigments in a perfect four-to-one ratio optically manipulate how light reflects off skin's surface, evening out the complexion for instant luminosity. Green pigments negate redness on contact while gold combat dullness. Scarlet spidering root extract helps reduce the appearance of discoloration and reveal brighter, more even skin over time.

How to use: Shake well. Apply one pump of the foundation into your palm. Start by warming the foundation in your hands. Then, working with your fingers, apply a small amount in the center of the face and begin pressing onto the skin working outward in sections. To achieve the most natural result, start with a minimal amount of product and gradually build to desired coverage. Work quickly to blend product, as it perfects and sets in moments.

Ingredients

Aqua, Triethylhexanoin, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Phenyl Trimethicone, Dipropylene Glycol, Silica, Talc, Dimethicone, Peg-5 Glyceryl Stearate, Isostearic Acid, Bentonite, Stearic Acid, Behenic Acid, 1-Methylhydantoin-2-Imide, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Batyl Alcohol, Behenyl Alcohol, Aminomethyl Propanol, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Potassium Hydroxide, Ethylparaben, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Tocopheryl Acetate, Curcuma Longa, Glucosyl Hesperidin, Serralysin, Sodium Hexametaphosphate, Trisodium Edta, Ascorbyl Glucoside. [+/- (May Contain/Peut Contenir): Ci 77891/Titanium Dioxide, Ci 77491/Iron Oxides, Ci 77492/Iron Oxides, Ci 77499/Iron Oxides]. "(1)

The foundation comes housed in an elegant frosted bottle with it's very own pump! One of the things I disliked about Sheer Glow is that you have to purchase your own pump, and that you can only use the pump or the full lid, which makes traveling irritating and messy.

I purchased the shade Siberia, which is the lightest shade. Interestingly enough, this shade is supposed to be lightest neutral beige for fair skin with neutral undertones. I have always considered this foundation to be quite yellow toned, especially since a lot of my fellow pale beauties on the cool side find this way, way too warm toned to even think about using.

The Luminous Weightless foundation is very runny, and if not shaken a little before pumping it will come come out separated. It's quite pigmented, so a little goes a long way! I find that it oxidises a little, but it's not too bad.

If you're curious as to the colour similarities to Sheer Glow in Siberia and Luminous Weightless in Siberia, I am here to satisfy that curiosity! They are very similar in colour, however since the Luminous Weightless foundation is much more pigmented it does mess with the colour perception a little! The initial Luminous Weightless swatch looks much more orange than the Sheer Glow swatch, but after a couple of minutes settling on the skin they look very similar.

In a direct sunlight photo you can clearly see the textural difference between the two foundations. I find the new All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation to be slightly darker than Sheer Glow.

I have average skin at the moment. It's not incredibly blemished, but it's also not beautifully clear so you can actually see how well this foundation covers redness and uneven skintone (because I sure have a lot of that going around) and it really irks me when people with gorgeous skin tell me how much foundations or concealers cover when they aren't covering anything!

I love the finish of this foundation. It's a gorgeous satin-matte finish, even when powdered lightly! But let's talk about the claims of this foudnation again.

Even Tone Technology is designed to instantly neutralize redness and dullness while working long-term to reduce the appearance of discoloration for more even, uniform skin. Gold and green pigments in a perfect four-to-one ratio optically manipulate how light reflects off skin's surface, evening out the complexion for instant luminosity. Green pigments negate redness on contact while gold combat dullness.

My redness was not really neutralized more than normal by this foundation, and while I don't really have dull skin, I don't think this was really combated by the gold pigments

This foundation, just like Sheer Glow, does not wear particularly well on my skin! I get quite oily throughout my T-Zone, and the foundation on my chin cracks really oddly, almost as if it sits on my skin and then starts to crack and flake off throughout the day. I don't actually need to use a powder while wearing this foundation (apart from on my chin for flute related reasons) which is great!

What I Love

- Gorgeous, satin-matte finish
- Doesn't need to be set with translucent powder
- Can be applied with fingers, brushes or sponges

- Massive shade range

What I Don't Love

- Quite pricey ($76NZD from Mecca Cosmetica)

- Doesn't last too well on my T-Zone
- Oxidizes a little

Final Thoughts

Just like Sheer Glow, I have mixed feelings about this foundation. I'm a little annoyed that it's slightly darker than Sheer Glow, it doesn't last well on my T-Zone and it's very pricey. But, it has a gorgeous finish, doesn't need to be set with a translucent powder and it's quick and easy to apply! If I'm diligent about touching up this foundation looks great, and I think I like it a little more than Sheer Glow, even though it ends up looking a little darker.

Have you tried the new NARS Foundation? How did it work for your skin?