After buying the Chanel Perfection Lumiere, this is the only foundation I wanted to try. I was a little hesitant as most people find this matte...it's really not and I have dry skin. It looks ABSOLUTELY AMAZING in broad daylight/direct sunlight...even 3 layers worth (I've been experimenting). The coverage is really nice, medium-ish but buildable to full but it doesn't look heavy or masky.
Application: I've read and watched the videos.. It is like applying tineted water, it's very wateery yet has great coverage.The best way to apply for me and to make it last until it's washed off is to apply by pressing it in with my fingers, not rubbing, and then going over it with a sponge, pressing the sponge which also dabs off any additional product so it doesn't leave it cakey. I have layered and layered and layered this foundation and it never looks bad. I've set it with powder, I've not set it...it looks good both ways. It goes on semi-matte but settles into what looks like skin. It is really a beautiful foundation. I LOVE IT! I wore it on a poker run the first time I tried it, on the back of a motorcycle, no face shield, we rode more than 10 hours that day. It didn't budge. It looked as good 15 hours later as it did freshly applied although I do have to blot once during the day but it didn't remove any foundation and it didn't cake up around my nose at all. Also, I do prefer this over a primer, not for lasting power because this foundtion isn't going anywhere...just a personal preference.
Color selection: Not the best but considering it's Japanese and maybe they just don't cater to every skin tone? I don't know. I'm roughly an NW25-NW30 in summer, Chanel Perfection Lumiere in BR 52 which is the darkest of the BR and too light when I'm self-tanning so in this, and I've tried it several ways, is to apply SP60 and then go over it with SP70 rather than mix them. I'm positive I'll wear SP70 alone in the summer when I'm really self-tanning consistently but SP70 is the darkest shade. I imagine it would work with slightly darker skin tones as well.
Removing at night: Cleansing oil or Philosophy's Purity, clarisonic...It's a heavy duty sunscreen with a tint. Sunscreen is hard to remove, this is no exception but I don't mind at all. I know there have been numerous complaints about this breaking people out, it does have to be removed properly at night. It is a UVA/UVB (PA+++ for UVA), on the bike, I got absolutely ZERO color, no tan, no burn. Other days I've used it over their SPF60 sunscreen which is also very watery, which I love, and they work very well together. Some suncreens can be a little thick or greasy, Shiseido's is not.
Now I have my perfect color match for winter in Chanel, my perfect summer foundation in Shiseido! I'm SO happy!

This has become my HG foundation. It looks like skin but better! I always get complimented on how nice my skin looks, they don't even think I have makeup on when I'm wearing this. It last longer then MUFE HD and Chanel Vital Lumiere Aqua; it gives the same effect but better, less dewy more natural looking. I would say to exfoliate and moisturizer if you have dryer skin it clings a bit to that. I love the fact that it has SPF in it already, another step in my skincare that I can skip when I use this. Even thought it has SPF I find that it looks amazing in pictures regardless.

I really wanted to like this foundation, unfortunately it was not the best on my slightly dry skin. While it did provide a lovely natural matte finish, it also clung to a few dry areas and acccentuated them slightly. It has a very liquidy texture which blends well on the skin and provides very good medium to full coverage. It also has the added bonus of a high, physical sunblock which would be perfect for summer as long as you are not planning to have photos taken. I got the lightest shade, sp10, and it was too dark and orange toned for me. For reference, the best shade match I have found is MUFE HD 110 pink porcelain or l'oreal true match c1. I think this would work well for ladies with normal to oily skin.

Does not budge! Great foundation. Very light yet buildable to fuller coverage foundation. I love it has spf in it. The range of colors is terrible, so far the only real downside to this product, but luckily I'm in it. The definitely need to add more shades. Very happy with this foundation and I will be buying it in the future.

HG for life!!! I have a ton of foundations and powders on my makeup shelf but I always reach for this one, here's a breakdown :


Shade: 4/5
Goes from Sp10 (lightest) to Sp70 (darkest). The range is a little limited and very similar to one another but I like it because I can get away with wearing 1-2 ranges above & below my true match. I wear sp50 (light medium) but can also wear sp60 (medium) and probably sp40 as well.


Packaging: 5/5
I've always been a fan of the famous chic, sleek and minimalistic blue shiseido packaging. This foundation has a very sanitary dropper opening so you can squeeze just the right amount of product out without spilling any extra out.


Application: 5/5
Absolutely my favorite application of all the foundations I've tried. It goes on like butter and covers immediately all blemishes and flaws. It's medium coverage that can be build up more to full coverage. I love this formula because it only takes me about 15 seconds to apply to my entire face using my fingers. Also dries almost instantly (no wait time for setting with powder!)


Sunscreen protection: 5/5
Probably has the highest spf I've seen in a foundation, though I still prefer to wear a sunscreen underneath this


Lasting factor: 5/5

I once went on an overnight flight wearing this and it lasted through the night to the next morning! (4pm to ~8am the next day) Little to no smudges or fading whatsoever. I was floored :o


Comedogenic factor:

I have acne-prone skin and this has not broken me out since I had started using it last March


Bottom Line: The price is on the medium-high range for foundation ($34) but this is soo worth it and I'll definitely keep restocking and hope they never discontinue this product!
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Initially, I had VERY high expectations for this foundation. I usually do a pretty decent amount of research before purchasing a foundation, especially a more expensive one. Pretty much every review I found on youtube (which is where I get most of my research) was glowing. Everyone said it lasted all day, never got oily, great coverage, etc. I needed a summer foundation to replace the Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua that's a tad oily for more humid weather, so I figured I'd try this one. I'm definitely returning it.

My main complaint of this foundation is that it broke me out horribly. I have pretty acne-prone skin but it has been clear for a while with all the treatments I have been using. I didn't think such a high-end product would break me out. Maybe it's all the SPF in it? I'm sure many people would not have the reaction I did, but if you have acne-prone or sensitive skin, I would get a sample of this before purchasing. After just 1-2 uses, I had painful cystic acne all over my chin, which I haven't had in years. After stopping use of the foundation, it went away.

Another complaint is that it didn't even stay matte for very long. I did enjoy the coverage and the finish when I initially applied it. However, after just a couple of hours my skin looked very oily and felt really gross and cakey. I just wanted to take it off. I had to blot as much as when i use my Chanel foundation, which doesn't even claim to be long-wearing or matte. By the way, my skin is combination, not full-fledged oily. I tried using the foundation with and without a primer, and it didn't really matter either way.

Overall, I found the foundation just didn't do what it claimed to do, other than protect my skin from the sun. That plus the fact that my skin reacted horribly to it will lead me to get my money back.

I have wanted to try this foundation for the longest time, and for some reason after researching and loving the rave reviews people have said about this product. But for the longest time, I kept chickening out everytime I go to the counter and swatching it because I was afraid that it wasn't worth all that money for just 30ml.
A few weeks ago, I finally sucked it up and bought this in SP50. Where I'm from, this is the darkest shade, but I heard that in other places, the shade range goes all up to SP70. I wasn't disappointed but this did come tad bit too light on my skin, considering that I'm somewhere between an NC25-30 on MAC foundations.
Now off to the product. You might think that you get a small amount of product given the price of this baby, but I tell you, not only is it good quality, and long lasting (no touch ups needed throughout the day), but it gives you medium to buildable full coverage which can be sheered out by moisturizer or in my case a darker foundation.
I actually just wore this the whole day (7am-12am) and it looked as pristine as the moment I put it on that morning. Even though I had relatively dry skin, the hot and humid weather and my busy and hectic 17-hour days would force me to touch up even with just a translucent powder, but baby not with this foundation. It is budgeproof as it says it is, and the SPF (in Asia it's SPF43 PA+++, but I find it differs on location and how they test their SPFs) doesn't hurt, even though I put SPF prior to putting this on as well.
Speaking of SPFs I know this wouldn't photograph as well, but since I also put SPF all over my body, it doesn't look noticeable and ghostly when I take photos with this on, but to each their own.
It's quite early to crown this as my HG foundation, but who cares, it has out performed all of my other foundations, even more than the other higher end brands that cost more than this. I love this and I guess that being said, this is an HG for me now.

I loved, loved this product. It was HG status; did what it promised, def waterproof, great SPF protection, good coverage ( but still light feeling), suitable shades ( I am a NC 25-35 in summer and NC 20-25 in winter for reference), I used the sp 40 in winter and sp 50-60 in summer. It made my acne prone, rosacea skin look so perfect:)

I wear foundation all the time, usually EL DW or Mac Studio sculpt or prolong wear, but wanted to try this out. It was so perfect until it broke me out like never before, I think I went from grade I acne to grade II. Sooo sad. I relctuantly quit using it and eventually the acne went away. I personally believe it was the the high levels of titanium dioxode that caused the acne.

BUT, Do Not let this turn you off of at least trying it. If it doesn't break you out, you will love it!!

I am in love with this foundation. For years, i have been the woman in the search of the perfect foundation, and this one is so far, the best i have ever tried. I have almost all types of mac foundations, estee lauder two of them, drugstore brands, american beauty, clinique, and much more... this is the best!
Love the fact that comes with spf 40. It has a light texture, almost like watery, but covers really good and is buildable; the yellow undertone suits my skin color. If you like double wear by estee lauder, you will loooove this one, the finish is a bit similar, but much better texture, color, and glow finish plus spf40 make this foundation ideal for summer time.
recommend it.

Im very pleased with this foundation so far. I only bought it a month ago so I cannot comment on how it holds up in the summer heat but I will see that next year. I also have not testet waterproofness of it yet. Will add this in summer.
Pros:
- very smooth application
- thin formula but still covers very well
- therefore looks undetectable but still covers
- high SPF
- packaging: very travel friendly, light, plastic squeeze bottle
Cons:
- Poor shade selection (I use the darkest one, SP70, and I am about a NC40 in MAC. Also, the shades are not yellow enough for me, I have to mix in color correctors)
- Gives white cast in flash photography but I have a separate foundation for evenings when I plan on taking pictures with flash (MUFE HD)
- maybe also packaging: because you cant see how much is left in the bottle
BUT all in all I love it!!