Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra 24H Foundation 045 Sable Beige Review

Photo Credit +Lancome USA 

Hey lovelies! I'm reviewing the Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra Foundation today which the lovely Sal at Ummbaby Beauty was kind enough to give me a sample of a while back. I've used it a good few times and am ready to share my thoughts. I'm also going to try and downsize the length of my review, keep it short-ish and sweet but cover all the areas that need to be covered. So without any further ado lets get started!

What Lancôme say:

Our first 24 hour* liquid foundation gives you an even, flawless looking complexion. No need for touch ups. With a blendable fresh texture and a smooth finish. This long-lasting foundation provides the perfect coverage. Foundation can be layered to create a heavier coverage look.

Available in 22 shades.

*Self-assessment by 109 women.

Benefits

Long lasting wear, flawless complexion

How to apply Teint Idole Ultra 24h

Dab a small amount of Teint Idole Ultra 24H to well-moisturised skin, starting on your T-zone, then moving to your forehead, sides of the nose, cheeks and chin. Using a foundation brush or your fingertips, blend the foundation out towards your hair and jaw line to achieve a natural, flawless look.

Packaging

I obviously don't have the full size but I've seen it plenty of times, the foundation comes housed in a sleek, black capped, frosted glass bottle and certainly exudes the elegance of the luxury french brand. Also comes with a pump which is always appreciated. The bottle has recently been renamed and redesigned but still looks very similar to the original. One thing I need to mention is the scent of the Teint Idole, it smells absolutely beautiful, if I were to describe it I'd say it smells of a delicate, slightly floral, fancy french perfume with a hint of TCP :D :D :D (who else likes the smell of TCP?). I love the fragrance of this foundation and would happily bottle this scent and wear it! I find it really comforting.

Shade & Oxidisation

The shade 045 Sable Beige is unfortunately the complete wrong undertone and shade for me, it's quite pinky beige toned and really clashes with my skin, which I'm not too surprised about as french brands tend to have a lack of yellow shades in their ranges and are mostly pink or beige undertoned. It also oxidises on me into a pinky peach tone, it's rather fascinating as I can see the colour change on me. If it stayed pinky beige I could've possibly made it work but the odd match really shows on me and it's one I can't get away with. This is one of those type of shades that actually make my hyper pigmentation look absolutely horrid even if I've colour corrected. (UPDATE: New shade 050 Beige Ambre now swatched HERE)

The swatches are pulling more beige neutral which it is but on my "turmeric" yellow skin it looks more peachy pink

A point to mention is the difference between the shades and shade numbering in the UK and US websites, the US seem to have a lot more shades and they're named and numbered completely differently. Also the UK website mentions the availability of 22 shades but only 8 options are given. With the recent packaging and name relaunch the US have supposedly have launched more shades and now have a total of 40. Will the UK follow pursuit? I hope so, it's all so confusing as the UK website is still the same, I do hope they have a better shade for me as I actually really like the formula.

Nars All Day Luminous Weightless Stromboli, 03 Beige Diaphane, 045 Sable Beige, 05 Beige Noisette
Need I mention the obvious lack of yellow/olive in the Lancôme shades?

In the swatches it looks like 045 Sable Beige could possibly work for me but it actually doesn't, Stromboli's olive/ yellow meshes with my skin a lot better.

Texture

The Teint Idole is a creamy liquid texture, it'll run down slowly on the back of your hand. I find it's quite a lightweight and comfortable formula on the skin as described. It blends in effortlessly and sinks into the skin beautifully. This is a formula that sets and dries to a velvety soft powder finish, so you do have to work a little faster than usual, but it's not a difficult formula to work with whatsoever. I've used both brushes and sponges and it works well with both but the sponge does absorb quite a bit of product as this is a thin-ish formula, so I tend to go for the brush most of the time to avoid wasting product. This is a comfortable matte foundation so I would say it's best for combination to oily to slightly dry skin types. It's a very easy hassle free formula to work with and works rather well with my skin but I need to make sure I've prepped appropriately.

Finish

This has a natural matte finish on the skin, not a flat matte. Even though it dries to a soft powder finish it still exudes a soft subtle skin like glow. These formulas work with the moisture on the skin so the luminosity is adjustable with how you prep your skin. It's very skin like and you can easily achieve an undetectable finish. This is good for combination skin and can easily be altered to suit both ends of the skin type spectrum though those with really dry skin may find this not emollient or radiant enough, it may catch on to dry flakes and skin texture as well as sink into any fine lines and give an overall flat dull appearance to the skin.

On my dehydrated combination skin I just need to prep well (like usual) and set lightly with some powder. This gives the skin a soft matte finish and fills in pores just enough. I like the smooth radiant glow when my skin lets out its oils after a few hours, it looks so pretty. My skin has been behaving lately so this formula hasn't been highlighting too much texture but I can imagine it not working too well for those with dry skin fine lines or a lot of texture. This formula is similar to the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation but less glowy and more soft powder matte.

Feel

The Teint Idole is a very lightweight formula, you can barely feel it on the skin, it's really really comfortable and you can easily forget you have anything on. Even though it sets to a powder soft matte finish it doesn't feel drying. Even after a few hours when my oils start coming out it still feels really light. I think this is because the formula isn't very emollient so it doesn't weigh the skin down.

Coverage

The Teint Idole Ultra offers a medium to full coverage. I use 4 to 5 flat dots and get a medium to full coverage finish, I can easily get it to full coverage as I don't have a lot to cover. Those with stubborn or dark marks may need to use a concealer. I personally wouldn't cake layers of this foundation on because I love and appreciate the natural soft matte finish and how even it makes the skin look. I would definitely colour correct around my mouth though and perhaps go in with a few touches of concealer too for my hyper pigmentation if I wanted a more fuller flawless coverage. Like the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk it offers medium to medium full coverage with a moderately small amount but it's not a highly pigmented formula like the Nars All Day Luminous Weightless or the Too Faced Born This Way where a little goes a very long way.

Build-ability

This blends effortlessly into the skin, it also builds pretty decently with a sponge even though it sets to a powder finish it doesn't get cakey or patchy. But I'd recommend you work quickly when using a brush or it might get a little bit patchy as it dries.

Longevity

Now I haven't worn this for 24 Hours so I can't confirm whether this holds up for that long but I have worn this for over 8 hours. Like I mentioned earlier my oils start to come out after a few hours but I like the glow it gives to my skin. I don't think this is a super long lasting foundation -unlike the Estee Lauder Double Wear which adheres superbly to the skin- but it does seem to stay together and doesn't disintegrate or fade anywhere. I wouldn't say it's completely transfer proof either, I'd definitely recommend to set with some powder and also use a primer if your skin type allows you to prime as well as powder. Setting with only powder works fine for me but if I wanted to make it last longer I would use a teeny bit of primer too only in specific areas.

Overall Thoughts

I do like this formula, it's so easy to use and really really comfortable on the skin, I love how lightweight it is, you seriously can't feel any product on the skin. It's rather reminiscent of my beloved Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation. I've come to adore its' soft velvety glow on the skin. Unfortunately it's a case of lovely formula and an imperfect shade. I really hope the new shade launch includes some yellow olive shades as I really like the formula and adore it's lovely scent. I wouldn't say I absolutely love this foundation but I really truly can't fault it either, it was an absolute pleasure to sample. As usual I hope you found this review helpful.

Pros

- Lightweight and comfortable

- Ideal for combination skin types

- Undetectable skin like finish

- Soft matte finish

- Medium to medium full coverage

- Smells lovely

Cons

- Shade 045 is the wrong shade for me

- Oxidises

- Not ideal for very dry skin

- US and UK shade charts/ranges are confusing