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Best Matte Foundations

January 23, 2018 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hello all of you! Matte foundations have been gaining a lot of popularity lately. Every brand has its own version of matte or soft matte foundations, it’s kinda hard to choose which one would suit you. Even when the weather is dry, it seems like there are no hints of matte makeup products going away. If you have the oily skin type, you’re definitely gonna need at least a few of these mattifiers, but at the same time, you don’t wanna risk buying anything that will ghost on you, or cake at least. Personally, I find matte foundations to be quite a challenge to use with. They just kinda make my face look flat, undefined and kinda aged.

I’ve been testing a few mattifying foundations lately and most of you may have heard their names/brands already. I narrowed down my choices to the top 5, or should I say, the best 5 matte/mattifying/soft matte foundations according to my test and experience with them. I’d like to say that they’re all really great matte foundations, but some are much better than the others.

5 Milk Makeup Blur Liquid Matte Foundation in Medium Light (1 oz: $40) – A water-based, weightless, oil-free, silicon-free, full-coverage mattifying foundation. It has a fruity smell in an easy lightweight packaging. This formula doesn’t need to be applied a lot because even though it’s water-based, it’s still very pigmented. The matte effect is on the soft side, so it still gives a natural look, and it does a great job of hiding imperfections. However, after 4 hours of being into it, this foundation started to break apart and it was kinda sliding. It also settled into the pores and crease lines, so wearing this for long hours is not a good idea. I suggest using this only for a couple of hours, like running errands.

4 Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation in 210 (1.08 oz: $34) – Another oil-free foundation that’s meant to be lightweight, buildable, with a medium to full coverage. It doesn’t have any strong scents, and it’s one of those true soft matte foundations I’ve even tried. I like that it feels really light on my skin and it blends into it easily. I also notice that it’s really good at resisting sweat and humidity. Though I wish that it had an added Spf, I still like the fact that it doesn’t break on the skin after hours and hours of wear, so I didn’t have any caking issues with it. This foundation’s effect is a soft natural matte, which still allows for facial definition with complete skin coverage. It might have kinda settled on my pore’s hours later, but only very slightly and it decreases the shine on my face for a long time. On top of that, there’s a whole lotta shade range in this line, so for sure, you will find that right tone for your skin.

3 Yves Saint Laurent All Hours Full Coverage Matte Foundation in B30 (0.84 oz: $58) – Here’s a high-end full-coverage mattifying foundation that is also oil-free, noncomedogenic, and infused with black tea antioxidant. This has a soapy-floral scent that is kinda not my cup of tea. When I first tried this, I didn’t really like it. The formula feels too thick and too creamy, so I could feel it kinda sitting on top of my skin. Also, this slides and moves a lot, but I realize that it takes quite a while for it to settle on the face. It has a soft matte effect but you cannot go overboard with this because it’s so pigmented that it almost feels like a concealer. I was gonna put this at my top four, with the Fenty Pro Filt’r as my top three, in fact, I was really torn, but what I like about this is that it didn’t settle on my pores at all, not even on my fine lines. Several hours into the wear, and this foundation seems to keep getting better and better. It didn’t dry my skin, no caking, and it gave me a soft natural glow. Also, love that it comes in Spf 20.

2 Laura Mercier Flawless Fusion Ultra-Longwear Foundation in 2N2 Linen (1 oz: $48) – Oil-free, long-wearing, matte with a medium to full coverage foundation. I really like that this formulation has no detectable scent. It feels really lightweight on my skin and I love that soft matte effect while covering all my redness and blemishes. It’s also sweat/water resistant and you also don’t need to apply a lot. It’s pretty well-pigmented being a lightweight matte foundation, so too much of this can give you that cakey foundation look if you’re not careful. This just gives me a nice no caking coverage. I’m a long time fan of Laura Mercier foundations, especially the Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation (reviewed HERE), and I feel like this particular foundation is a good matte alternative. I just wish it came with an SPF and more range of shades. Sigh…

1 Dior Diorskin Forever Perfect Foundation Broad Spectrum Spf 35 in 034 Almond Beige (1 oz: $52) – My first honor in all matte foundations so far. Never knew I could love a matte foundation this much, and frankly, I didn’t really expect much from this foundation. I’ve never owned a lot of Dior foundations before, and I was never really a fan. But this 16-hour medium-coverage luminous matte foundation deserves its Allure Best of Beauty Award. Something is really nice about this foundation. It’s mattifying but it doesn’t cake, it doesn’t settle into fine lines or creases, and it has a natural matte effect that just doesn’t make your face look flat. The formula is the lightest I’ve tried, not too creamy, not too watery, it just melts right into your skin without moving around, and it sets fast yet you still have enough time to blend. No need for finishing powders or some extra exorcisms, just spread and go. LOL, my kind of foundation. It takes away the shines off my face while feeling really comfortable with it all day long. Somehow, it reminds me of Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet (reviewed HERE), but with more pigment and coverage to it. It’s almost perfect, even the strong floral scent is a delight and it doesn’t bother me, but it does tend to oxidize slightly on me, but it’s hardly noticeable, so not a problem at all. However, I wish there will be more shades to choose from this range in the future, but anyways, I highly recommend this.

There’s goes my top 5 favorite matte foundations. I like them all and they’re all good but they’re not all the same. If you’re looking for a good almost all-around matte foundation that is not super high-end, I think Fenty’s Pro Filt’r is a good choice, but it doesn’t have any Spf though. If you’re into fancy schmancy matte foundations complete with Spf, gorgeous scent, medium to full coverage that lasts a long time, then go for Dior Forever Perfect Foundation.

Hmmm, I’m currently eyeing the newly-released Diorskin Forever Undercover Foundation which is a water-based, 24-hour, full-coverage foundation. We’ll see how it fares with the Dior Forever Perfect Foundation. Updates soon…

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Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint Broad Spectrum Spf 30 Review

May 10, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Summer’s getting really close so it’s time to gear up and grab your best mattifying beauty products ASAP. Even if you don’t have an oily-prone skin, it’s still better to have something that keeps the shine away, unless you’re vying for that super dewy look, which isn’t bad at all. But with all the heat and humidity that summer brings, it’s good to be always prepared.

Almost all of us are probably familiar with the fan-favorite Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint, which is the velvety-textured sister of the Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer (reviewed HERE). This product wasn’t a love at first sight for me because I thought I was already contented and really in love with the Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer. I also didn’t like the somewhat thick consistency of the formula when I swatched it on my arm during my usual ramblings at Sephora. When I finally decided to give it a try, because you’ll never know until you take the plunge, right? Boy I was wrong. This Velvet Matte Skin Tint from Nars is now my ultimate upcoming summer vibe.

The ingredients are pretty much like the Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer and even the scent is somewhat similar (perhaps has a bit more spf-ish), but the texture is velvety-matte. It may feel kinda feel thick at the beginning, but it goes and blends smoothly. You don’t even need to put a lot, just emphasize on the areas that are prone to shine. I really like that this has Spf since it protects the skin while nourishing it with Vitamins C and E. Apart from the difference in texture, this Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint has a slimmer and more elongated packaging than the Tinted Moisturizer, so it’s easy to identify which is which among the two. Once applied, it feels very lightweight and could last for 6-8 hours on me. Of course, I may still have to blot the shine once, but most of the time, my face doesn’t look extremely oily.

Here’s two of my preferred shades:

Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint in Groenland – Light-Medium with Neutral Pink/Peach Undertone. This is my ideal shade since it fits really close to my skin tone. I love how it looks like I’m not wearing anything heavy on my face. The effect is very natural despite its mattifying effect.

Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint in St. Moritz – Medium with Neutral Yellow Undertone. My preferred shade when I want to look a tad bit tanned, though it has quite a bit of yellow undertone for me, but it’s not so obvious. I like to wear this a lot during the summer.

Apart from its mattifying effect, I noticed that this particular moisturizer also has good concealing ability. You can layer a bit of product on your blemishes or acne marks and it does an excellent job of hiding it. Ain’t it cool? I swear, if you don’t have this product right now, you should go ahead and try it.

The Nars Velvet Matte Skin Tint Broad Spectrum Spf 30 is available in the following stores: Sephora, Barneys NY, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Net-A-Porter, Ulta and Nars.com

What’s your favorite mattifier this year?

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Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet Vs Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua

April 6, 2016 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Bonjour! Today, let’s talk about two of my holiest grail foundations. I bet they’re everyone’s favorite foundations too. They’re both made by Chanel. The Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet (now known as Ultra Le Teint Velvet) and the Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua. Such complicated names, but with such amazing quality. They’re both “lighter versions” of Chanel’s two best-selling makeup foundation and both have SPF 15.

What’s the difference between the two? In some sense, they’re both really similar, even the ingredients are similar, but they’re made for different purposes.

Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet (Ultra Le Teint Velvet) – This gives a soft velvety matte finish, that is very lightweight and oil-free. Supposed to be a “tint version” of Chanel’s long-wear fluid sunscreen foundation, the Perfection Lumiere. So expect this one to be also long-lasting like its predecessor. This one also gives full coverage, but not as full and thick as Chanel’s Perfection Lumiere. I consider this as my go-to foundation if I want to completely “change face”, ha! well, not completely, but good enough to make my face look blemish-free and anew. What I love about this is that you don’t need to put a lot on your face to get that full coverage. You don’t even need a special brush for this. Your fingertips will work just fine. Also, most matte foundations tend to make your face look flat, but this one doesn’t. It still gives your face definition while smoothing and covering the dark spots. A slight drawback is that you’re going be needing a lot of cotton balls or cotton pads to erase this product off your face. Even though it’s liquid and lightweight. It seems to be packed on pigments. When it comes to scent, this foundation has a slightly soapy scent compared to Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua. Overall, I think this is the best matte makeup foundation that will still make your face look natural, and they last around 12 hours on my face without looking oily. As someone with somewhat oily skin, this one is definitely heaven-sent.

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua – The lighter version of Chanel’s original and well-loved Vitalumiere. This is supposed to give a very light tint with a water-like texture. Although, I find that this formulation is very similar to Perfection Lumiere Velvet. They’re both very watery and have very similar scents. Perhaps this Vitalumiere Aqua has a little bit more of a floral scent. I prefer this foundation’s scent better than the one mentioned above. When it comes to coverage, at first I didn’t notice any difference. However, after a few hours, I noticed that my skin started to look oily compared to the one applied with Chanel’s Perfection Lumiere Velvet. For me, they last about 6 hours until I start to notice the oiliness. But I really like the look on my skin with this particular foundation. It kind of makes my skin look dewy or slightly luminous. So, if you’re going for that kind of look, try this foundation.

Overall, if you want a matte finish foundation without looking dull and flat, plus long-wearing and has exceptional oil-control, try the Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet. If you want a more natural, dewy, strobing kind of look, and has average to really good oil control, try Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua.