Lancome Teint Miracle

Even without the beautiful face of Julia Roberts adorning their promotional campaigns, Lancome is a well recognized and respected name in premium skincare.  Their expertise stems from over 70 years experience and the combined collaboration of their research centers in the US, France and Japan. With this kind of backing, the launch of Lancome’s Teint Miracle foundation aroused much interest and may well be the foundation women have spent years searching for.

Teint Miracle boasts it is the first to make use of the way skin absorbs the light. It accomplishes this feat with its ‘perfection through light: Aura-Inside technology’ which improves the way skin absorbs and reflects light.

As well as a super high water concentration providing 18 hours of continuous hydration, it includes less of the powdery fillers used by most foundation products. Therefore, it smoothes easily over your skin like a tinted moisturizer yet provides the full coverage of a foundation while staying put for up to 12 hours of wear. All this and it’s oil free, suitable for sensitive skin and contains an SPF of 15.

Lancome’s Teint Miracle comes in 20 different shades so there should be something to suit most skin colors. However, you may not find all shades available everywhere. Since I purchased my bottle from the Lancome counter in-store, I was advised by the cosmetics lady which shade was best suited for me. This is one of the benefits of purchasing a premium product with its own counter and sales advisor!

The product comes in a 30ml, 1 fl. oz. slim, rectangular glass bottle and is packed inside a smart reflective silver box. The bottle fits nicely in your hand with a weighty, solid feel to it. The foundation is dispensed through a small pump top and the tiny nozzle is prevented from clogging by the clear plastic lid.

There are no instructions for use, only that it must be shaken first. You have complete control over how much dispenses at a time and you barely need to press down on the nozzle. The consistency is slightly runny but it won’t dribble off your fingers unless you overload it, so it’s easy to dot around your face before blending.

It has a lovely texture and glides over your skin without drying before you’ve had a chance to properly blend it in. And this part works even better if you apply it straight after your moisturizer. As long as you’ve chosen the correct color, there is no telltale tide mark around the jaw-line. However, as I tend to find with most foundations, it does sink into areas with larger pores, particularly around the nose and mouth, so a little more blending is required here. And once it’s on, it dries to give a lovely smooth, matt and even finish.

Close up it’s hard to notice any great advantage over my regular foundation. While it does a good job of covering uneven skin tone, not all blemishes are disguised, with darker marks needing some extra help from a concealer or cover up stick.

However, once I step back and look at my reflection in a larger mirror I am amazed. The results are fantastic. My skin tone looks even and my ‘flaws’ seem to have disappeared into obscurity. I imagine this must be something to do with Lancome’s light reflecting technology. It really works. It lasts well on my skin throughout the day, even through rain showers and after sweltering inside stiflingly hot public transport.

Overall, Lancome’s Teint Miracle is as close to a miracle foundation as I've yet discovered. And being a premium brand, it more than delivers on its promise. The light reflecting technology is extremely convincing and the foundation’s texture and coverage is lightweight but rich enough to cover most flaws. It is also the first foundation I have used that has attracted compliments about my skin. And the price isn’t that bad at around $37 in the US or £25 in the UK. A small price for a miracle.