Laura Mercier Real Flawless Weightless Perfecting Foundation

Where I got it

Ever since my last purchase from Mecca in March for a Rose Inc cream highlighter, I haven’t bought much of anything anywhere else. I’m at peace with most of my makeup and skin products at the moment, only making way for my favorite brands like Chanel and Dior. Furthermore, the Mecca price increase this year really put me off quite a bit. However, come the end of June, both the beauty loop box and my birthday gift made me do a quick purchase. I knew the LM has launched a new foundation, but know little about it and, true to my impulse-buying fashion, I tried on some shades in store, walked around with the swatch on the back of my hand, and was really impressed with how lightweight and how smooth it felt on my hand. I’m finding it hard to describe, but it really blew me away so I grabbed it and tried it on for a whole week without putting it down. I couldn’t even wait for product shots to be taken!

Before I get into the nitty-gritty, just some information about the product. This is currently available at Mecca.co.nz for $87. There is a total of 30 shades on the LM website, but only 29 shades available at Mecca. We are clearly missing some shades in the deeper range, but we also had additional lighter shades. I picked up one of the shades that were not available on the LM website – 2N2 Linen. So I am light with a neutral undertone. I would say the difference between 2N1 and 2N2 is that 2N2 is slightly deeper.

What I got

This is the Laura Mercier Real Flawless Weightless Perfecting Foundation in shade 2N2 Linen (30ml). Re-define perfecting coverage with this multifunctional foundation to reveal a healthier-looking complexion. Featuring the Perfecting Color Technology to lift sallowness and dullness for cake-free, color-true wear. The Auto-Balancing Technology instantly hydrates for smoother skin and helps reduce shine throughout the day. This long-wearing foundation blurs the line between makeup and skin to reveal a healthier-looking complexion. The skin-loving formula provides perfecting medium buildable coverage so weightless, you’ll forget you’re wearing anything at all. 

Ingredients: ISODODECANE, ISODECYL NEOPENTANOATE, HYDROGENATED POLYISOBUTENE, HYDROGENATED POLYCYCLOPENTADIENE, HYDROGENATED DIDECENE, SILICA, POLYGLYCERYL-3 DIISOSTEARATE, HYDROGENATED STYRENE/ISOPRENE COPOLYMER, DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE, DISTEARDIMONIUM HECTORITE, CELLULOSE, LAURYL PCA, THEOBROMA CACAO (COCOA) SEED EXTRACT, HYDROGENATED LECITHIN, CAMELLIA OLEIFERA SEED OIL, AQUA/WATER/EAU, PENTAERYTHRITYL TETRA-DI-T-BUTYL HYDROXYHYDROCINNAMATE, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, BUTYLENE GLYCOL. MAY CONTAIN/PEUT CONTENIR/(+/-): IRON OXIDES (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), TITANIUM DIOXIDE (CI 77891).  

How I find it

The foundation comes in a frosted glass bottle with a plastic lid. It has a pump and this pump dispenses a small amount of product each time and there is a reason. You don’t need a lot of products each time. I use a total of 2 pumps for my entire face and that’s layered – meaning I apply 1 pump first, then another pump to increase coverage. The directions on the box recommend using their foundation brush and an LM primer to achieve the effects you desire. For example, you can use an illuminating primer for a glowy look, or you could use a blurring primer for a more perfect look. The foundation brush they recommend is the Real Flawless Foundation Brush, which is an angled domed brush. I don’t have that brush, so I have been using the Hourglass Vanish foundation brush, which also works.

I have tried a few different ways to use this foundation, but let’s go through how this applies and performs without any primers. Usually, I would apply my sunscreen and wait for a few minutes to let it sit. If I needed any concealing, I would do that first. Then I pump once on the back of my hand, and I dot it around my face using my fingertips. Starting from the cheeks, then the nose, the chin, and then the forehead. I start from where I want more coverage and then my forehead is always last.

The foundation is super lightweight with an almost dry-oil texture. It is thin, but not runny which is very interesting. The foundation is easy to blend and leaves no streaks. It dries down beautifully thin and light. I mean there is pigment, but a very very thin layer and it is not obvious. However, it did feel a little dry on my cheeks and chin area but did not get caught in my pores.

Here comes one of the cons of this foundation. Once the foundation dried down, it obviously oxidized. It was darker than it looks in the frosted bottle and darker than what it looked like when I first pumped it out. It was a little disappointing. However, since the foundation is so seamless on the skin, it still looks acceptable, unless you are way off with shade-matching. That’s why you MUST go into a store to try out the shades ON YOU FACE and let it sit for a few minutes while you browse around the store and check back to see if the shade looks good on you.

From these two images above and below, the shade actually matches my neck, but it is slightly deeper than I usually like. It has a more summery sort of tanned look on my face, I would surely love a shade lighter when my skin is less tanned. But besides the oxidizing, my skin looks smooth and soft.

As for the longevity of the foundation, I tried this with and without powder, not because I needed mattifying, but because I wanted to see if it would make the foundation last longer. It still rubbed off on tissues and fingers regardless. Usually, mattifying foundations would last longer on me compared to moisturising foundations. However, this one faded gracefully without looking patchy or blotchy which I am very impressed with as well. Overall, you can tell I am loving this foundation!

Overall

Extremely glad that this impulse purchase turned out to be an amazing purchase. I am so happy with the finish, the cover, and how the foundation wears on my skin. My combination skin has been on the dry side during the winter season, so I do like to use a moisturising base under this to help keep the dryness at bay. However, I can tell I will absolutely love this during the summer season because it is perfecting, lightweight, and fades gracefully. I was also pleased with how easily my cream blush and highlighter went over the foundation without removing the coverage. My blush and highlighter blended seamlessly and almost transformed into the same texture of the foundation – sorcery much?

I would say this foundation is probably more suitable for people with normal to slightly oilier skin. Even though the texture feels silicone-like (super smooth), it is far from oily or greasy. It’s not drying or dehydrating, but it sure is not giving me any extra hydration. Personally, a single layer is all I like to apply to keep it looking ultra-lightweight and seamless-looking. Also, one important thing to look out for is the oxidation of this foundation. Test it out if you can because it will darken as it dries down and looks different from the bottle. Try it on your jawline instead of on the back of your hand.