Clarins Tinted Oleo-Serum

Where I got it

I picked this up at Farmers during the Black Friday sale for 20% off $56.80 from $71.00. I first saw this in late October on AdoreBeauty, but it was not available on their NZ website, only on their AU website. When I visited the Clarins counter at Farmers during the black Friday weekend, I saw this as a new product (wasn’t even on proper display) along with the new Cryo-mask. I picked up shade 02 because shade 03 was quite deep and 2.5 had quite a pink undertone.

What I got

This is the Clarins Tinted Oleo-Serum (30ml) in shade 02. The first Clarins tinted skincare serum, using our expertise in plant oil. Formulated with 98% natural ingredients and 80% skincare formula, this lightweight skin tint nourishes your skin. Our skincare serum combines unique mineral pigments with the power of nourishing dry plant oils: hazelnut oil and organic jojoba oil. The perfect combination for a flawless complexion and effective skincare. Plant-derived squalane provides comfort, while the addition of ceramides strengthens the skin & barrier function and protects it from dehydration. Its fluid texture is easy to apply and melts into the face, leaving your complexion bright, naturally radiant, and shine-free. What’s more amazing, is that you will find that the quality of your natural skin improves over time, becoming more supple and luminous. Tinted Oleo Serum is suitable for all skin types, even the driest, and adapts to all skin tones with 11 shades, from lightest to darkest.

The formula contains 30% of [TRI OLEO COMPLEX] composed of nourishing dry plant oils and plant-derived squalane for comfort. Organic jojoba and hazelnut oils help nourish the skin and prevent dehydration. In addition to this nutritional concentrate, protective ceramides help strengthen the skin’s barrier function.

How I find it

First of all, I want to point out that this is an oil-based foundation and I have combination skin, being more oily during summer, and dry on the cheeks during winter. I was hopeful my skin would be able to handle the nourishing formulation without looking greasy or foundation melting. Let’s have a look at how the foundation worked for me.

The oil-based skin tint will need a good shake before using otherwise the formula will separate. Once shaken up, I used 1 drop of the skin tint to start, and then build up with another drop. Note: just A DROP, not a DROPPER. A dropper of product is way too much because a little goes a LONG way. For this type of skin tint/foundation, it is best to build up the coverage as you go instead of piling the product on and trying and work it down.

I like to put the tint on my fingertips and then dot it all over my face so the first application is sheer. The photo below is the amount I would use on the first go. I then either use my fingertips to blend it out or use a flat-top brush to blend it out. If I want more coverage around my problem areas, I would use another 2-3 dots. The tinted serum takes a while to set if you use heavy layers, but with sheer layers it does settle down to a beautiful finish.

Usually I would powder my nose and just under my eye area because if those areas are dewy, I look oily or sweaty. However, when I am wearing this for a casual day without needing to worry about my makeup lasting for hours, I would just leave it without powder. The tinted serum is not long-wearing so it WILL rub off and it WILL wear off. However, it doesn’t feel sticky to the touch and it wears off elegantly without looking patchy. I really love serum foundations for this reason.

As you can see, the tinted serum is not high coverage and does not cover the acne scarring on my cheeks, but it does even out my skin to give me a healthy glow. Not too pale and not too dark, this shade is perfect for that beautiful-skin, natural glow. One more thing with this serum is that it is moisturising from it’s oil-based formulation. It can be a hit or miss with oil-based foundations for my skin type. If it is too oily, then it will be a mess withint 2 hours of wear, but if it is a more of a dry-oil type, my skin will be dehydrated and the foundation will pool on my pores and look awful.

Overall

In summary, I like this foundation. The ideal skin type for this foundation would be all skin types with the exception for oily skin and very dry skin types. If you are looking for something that will cover light imperfections, light skin discolortations and uneven skintone, this tinted serum is great. The oil-based tint is not too greasy or thick on the skin that burdens the skin, but it provides a nice moisture barrier to prevent moisture loss. If you have dry skin or dehydrated, it would be best to apply hydrating skincare to provide hydration, and then this oil-based tinted serum to lock it in. The tinted serum is not high coverage and at most it will only provide medium coverage before it gets a little thick and obvious on the skin. Therefore light and thin layers are the way to go.

If you have a lot of texture and active breakouts, I would not recommend this. Personally if I have a cluster of breakouts, I would not use a foundation at all and let it heal before I cover up anything. I learned that the more I try to cover it up, to worse it will look and attention will be drawn to it. Once my skin is better, I could use a concealer to provide concise coverage to areas I need and then sheer coverage everywhere else.