Back to Basics - Estee Lauder Invisible Fluid Makeup

Continuing with the Foundation Week theme, it's time to discuss what is the newest addition to my little* foundation family, Estee Lauder's Invisible Fluid makeup.  We're not allowed to call it "foundation", apparently, as it's specially formulated to be foundation for people who don't like foundation.

Personally, I don't understand this "not liking foundation" business, but that's probably because my ugly blotchy red mug regularly makes small children cry, nonetheless, I thought I'd give this a go anyway.

Packaging

Cute plastic bottle, with shiny, shiny blurple lid.  A little on the large size for carrying around with you, but it won't shatter if you drop it.

Formula

An exceptionally thin, runny liquid.  This is light, light, light!  The formula is both oil and emulsifier-free, meaning you need to shake the heck out of it when you first buy it (at least three minutes worth) in order to mix the pigment with the binding ingredients.  After the first use, you won't need to shake near as much to get the ingredients to blend, but this will need shaking every time you use it.  Again, this product contains a blend of silicones to get the pigment to meld with your skin.  This is virtually undetectable on the skin, either visually or physically.  It spreads easily, either with fingers or a brush.  I prefer fingers.

Shade Selection

 This is shade 2CN2.  There are sixteen shades in the range, arrayed into six colour groupings (1 = palest, 6 = darkest), and C = Cool, N= Neutral and W = Warm.  This should, in a perfect world, all make sense,  so my shade is second palest group, with both cool and neutral undertones, but not the palest shade in the group - that would be 2CN1.  I think.  It's great to see a brand like Lauder catering to a large range of skintones at last.  As a Lauder foundation-wearer of many years standing, I've often found it difficult to match my skin tone owing to the limited shades on offer, and it's great to see them expanding the range in both directions.

Coverage

Coverage is, as you might expect, on the light side.  Here's Maurice the Control Mole for our visual demonstration:

Coverage is light to medium, as you can see from the above, it won't hide blemishes completely, it will even out your skintone, and at least disguise the worst of your blotchiness.  The coverage is very buildable, and if you have stubborn redness, you can just add another layer or two over the worst affected areas, without it looking cakey.  As it's oil-free, it's great for oilier skins, if you're prone to dry patches, this will cling to them slightly, but keeping on top of your exfoliating will help.

Finish

Finish is matte, but not flat.  You can powder over this, but it will kind of defeat the whole "invisible" nature of the makeup.  I find using an illuminating primer underneath will give your skin a glow, but again, it's not necessary.


Wear

I've been very impressed with the wear of this.  I expected such a light formulation to wear off very very quickly, but this has stood up to even the hardest of wear over the last week or two, and I've not really noticed any problems with fading or needing reapplications during the day. I'd say I get about 8-10 hours before needing to touch up.
 
Price

Currently exclusively available from John Lewis, this costs £27 for 30ml.
 
Ingredients

Overall Thoughts

Wonderfully light on the skin, with buildable coverage which is virtually undetectable on the skin during  wear, in a great range of colours, this is a total win as far as I'm concerned.  I'm surprised at how much I like it, considering my redness problems, but since this turned up, I've found myself reaching for it over and over.  

 * Ha ha!


The Fine Print: PR Sample.


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