Product Review -- NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation

Back in the day, NARS Sheer Glow was one of my very favorite foundations.

It had a nice medium coverage, had a really natural finish on the skin, and always looked really smooth and flawless even on my less than perfect skin.

I didn't fall out of love with the foundation or anything like that -- I just used up the bottle I had, and because I'm a makeup junkie, I decided to try some new foundations rather than replace the Sheer Glow.

So when NARS came out with the All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation a year or so ago, I was pretty excited to try it out.

The foundation comes in a heavy glass bottle with a pump dispenser (that was the one flaw of the Sheer Glow, in my mind. It didn't come with a pump -- you had to pay extra for it).

NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation in Siberia

NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation in Siberia

The foundation isn't watery, but it does have a thin texture. It blends into the skin easily, but because of its thin texture, it doesn't apply very well with a sponge, which tends to absorb too much of the product (even a damp sponge, in my experience). A brush or clean fingers are the best way to apply it.

NARS bills this as a full coverage foundation, but I would call it medium. It doesn't cover everything in my opinion, but it can even out the skin tone and hide minor imperfections very well.

I would also like to point out that despite the foundation's name, there is nothing remotely luminous about its finish. I would classify it much closer to matte, though I wouldn't say it's totally flat.

Now, I've had this foundation since early spring, but I held off on reviewing it because I thought that it might not be the best match for my skin when it was on the drier side.

So I've been testing it out for most of the summer, when my skin has tended to be more normal and even a little oily.

Unfortunately, the verdict is the same -- I'm just not a fan.

No matter how I apply it, with my fingers or a brush, it completely settles in the pores on my cheeks on either side of my nose. Now, admittedly, my pores are an issue for me in that area, but usually if I use a primer -- and any primer typically works, not just the pore-filling formulas. Even my usual hydrating or illuminating primers do the trick -- I don't have any issue with foundation collecting in my pores and emphasizing their size.

The All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation does that big time.

It also emphasizes any dry or patchy spots that you might have, so I'd definitely advise against this for dry skin.

But I wouldn't really recommend it for oily skin either because oily skin and large pores often go hand in hand, and this foundation doesn't play well with pores.

I'm also not the biggest fan of the shade I purchased. I chose the lightest shade, Light 1 Siberia, which is supposed to be a neutral shade with a balance of pink and yellow undertones, and yet, it's definitely more yellow-toned on me.

NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation in Siberia

When you consider that the foundation retails for $48, I just don't think the product is worth the price.

It's available at Sephora, on the NARS website, and anywhere you can purchase NARS products.

Have you tried the NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation? Are you a fan?