Sheer Luminous Fluid Foundation

Honestly I feel like you could find a much cheaper alternative to this. It is very pricy because of the name, not necessarily the product. I have had it for a few months now and I never find myself grabbing for it anymore. If anything I prefer the Buxom illuminators over these.

I absolutely LOVE this foundation. LOVE. I could throw away the rest of the foundations I own and use this forever.

This is a sheer foundation that has a wonderful texture that is a bit thicker than most liquid foundations I've used and that melts into the skin in such a way that it looks extremely natural.

Even though it's called sheer though, and it's definitely not full coverage, it beautifully softens the skin's natural texture and gives a very flawless look without looking like you've got the fake plastic face a lot of full coverage foundations will give you. It doesn't cover real blemishes though, but a few dabs of concealer will take care of that.

What I love most about this foundation is the soft, satin look it gives you, and the staying power. I live in an area that frequently hits 110* or more in the summer, and I have very oily skin, and where most foundations would just melt off halfway through the day (or sooner), this holds up perfectly with just occasional blotting. It doesn't make me *more* oily by any means, and a lot of foundations do!

The last thing I want to say about this foundation is that even without a primer, it DOESN'T OXIDIZE! SO many high-end ones do, even with all the primer in the world - by the time I get to work and look in the mirror, I'm pink :( But with this one, it keeps its color all day no matter how oily I get, and for that alone, I'm never using anything else.

As a final detail, be careful selecting a color, and try it on in person if you can. I have extremely pale skin (MAC NW10) with strong pink undertones, and Trench 1 is wayyyyyyy too pink for me. It's extremely pink. I ended up with Trench 2, so keep that in mind if you're like me and just automatically select the shade listed as the lightest.

After my experience with Chanel Perfection Lumiere (PL), in which I learned that my complexion can fall between shades, I decided to test a couple of samples of Burberry Sheer Luminous Fluid Foundation, (1 oz., $52) before buying. Because the weather is much cooler than when I tested PL, and because this formula is supposed to hydrate, I prepped my skin with a light-weight moisturizer with SPF, but no primer, before applying Trench No.9, then Trench No.8, the two darkest colors. I wore each for two days.

I applied the foundation with a kabuki brush, switching to a foundation brush for under eye application. It has a moderately strong, but pleasant scent that dissipates quickly. Though it is sheer, the foundation is buildable, and nicely covered slightly dark areas, including under my eyes, in lieu of a concealer. It dried down quickly into a natural skin-like finish neither dewy, nor matte. It lasted the eight hours that I wore it, without any signs of fading.

Trench No. 9, the darkest shade, seemed to be the best color match when applied to my jaw, so I tested it first. For reference, I match MAC NC45, Chanel PL Beige Amber 44 and Beige 60, and Le Métier Flawless Finish Foundation #10. It darkened a half-shade after drying down (if that's possible) than my neck, but was the same shade as my hands. I only needed light blotting in the T zone by noon, which, for me, is par for the course. Thumbs up!

Trench No.8 was a tad too light on application, but darkened to my natural shade and blended nicely from the jaw line into my neck. Perfect!