Monday, January 21, 2013

YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat Foundation (BD50)




I got my bottle of YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation when it came out last summer. This means that I've spent about six months now testing and comparing it to other light foundations I keep around. It's more than enough time to make up my mind about it, so I'll start with the bottom line:

As beautiful as the finish of YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation, I will not repurchase it when I run out.

Here's why:
Now that it's winter, Le Teint stays put and maintains its finish for around 4 hours. Back in the summer the foundation faded much more quickly, taking with it any other makeup I applied over it. My skin is dry, so it's not a matter of hyper oiliness. Also, I've tried every primer I own or had a sample and none of them made any difference. So while YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation is beautiful  and looks naturally dewy, it's just not the right product for someone who expects their base makeup to last.

Now that we have that out of the way I can tell you that all the other YSL promises are pretty much spot on. The foundation gives a light coverage, evens out the skin, provides for a youthful appearance and has a subtle pleasant glow. I'm not sure what's with the odd number of SPF 19, but that's always a nice little bonus for those of us who like to pile on their sun protection. YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation is east to apply with any tool from fingers to a damp sponge for building coverage (up to a point). The foundation needs to be buffed and blended into the skin, or it looks like a thick coat of a too dark paint (see swatches. I left it unblended so you can see the actual color, but take note of the texture difference between YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat and Chanel Vitalumiere that melts into the skin upon contact). It's a great base if you only need to wear foundation for a photo session or short event, but I need my face to last more than that. Do take note that the foundation is scented with something "fresh" (a citrus-cucumber?). The fragrance fades almost upon contact, but if you're sensitive this might be a concern.



Now for color matching. The very helpful SA at my local Bloomingdale's gave me samples of a few shades, even though we were both fairly certain that my match was BD50. I tried them in several light situation and it was, indeed, a good fit. I don't have a real match in MAC, and I've been described as anywhere between NC 25 to 35, so it's open to various interpretations. My undertones are fairly neutral with an unhealthy leaning towards ashy green, if that helps you any. As I'm looking at BD50 in gray winter light I do wonder if it's too dark or too peachy, so as you can see, even my own mileage can vary. The last swatch photo should give you a good idea why in real life I always mix and blend my foundation. Straight out of the bottle individual shades simply look off. Take into account, though, that none of the swatches were blended (and the amount of Guerlain Lingerie de Peau I accidentally used should have been enough for a full face, so it appears thicker and darker than it should be).

YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat Foundation ($55) is available at the counters, Sephora and on yslbeautyus.com.

5 comments:

  1. I must admit, I wasn't particularly impressed with this formulation. I have dry skin that is in excellent condition (except for an occasional mild rosacea flareup) and favor light to medium coverage foundations. YSL's latest offering looked lovely when first applied, but simply didn't last. I tried my sample with a few different finishing powders (Chanel, Chantecaille, LMdB) , but it didn't seem to make an appreciable difference in the longevity. I want to be able to apply foundation in the morning and then not have to worry about it for the rest of the day. This particular one didn't fulfill that need. I'd put this foundation in the ranks of special occasion products rather than daily wear.

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    Replies
    1. Exactly. I tried with all of the powders you mentioned, as well as Dior, Laura Mercier and NARS with the same results. I don't reach for this foundation if I'm planning to be out of the house for more than a couple of hours.

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  2. Gaia and Eileen, I recommend that you try the YSL Long Tenue Foundation, which I found while searching for more of a glowing one but found them all too slippery with silicones. Instead I tried everything without regard to the descriptions and the Long Tenue has the same great application ease, excellent coverage without using a lot of product, and lasts! Happy new year! Qwendy

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  3. Gaia, quick question on a tangent, how much product of the Lingerie de Peau is pictured, that you said is enough for a full face? I'm using a pump and a smidgen (since I think there's something off with the mechanism I press and then only on the second press the full pump comes out) for a while and have been noticing that, while it's enough for my face, I'm going through it so quickly! I'd love to hear you out for comparison's sake here.

    Thank you very much for your time.

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  4. Gaia, quick question on a tangent, how much of your Lingerie de Peau is enough for a full face? I've been using a pump and a smidgen (since there's a slight malfunction on the mechanism I end up always having to pump twice, but the product only comes out properly on the second pump) and while that's enough for me, I've been going through it so quickly! I'd love to hear you out for comparison's sake here.


    Thank you.

    ReplyDelete

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