Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate

If you know me at all you'll know I'm obsessed with contouring and highlighting. It's a bit of a problem. I have enough highlighters and shimmer powders to adorn the faces of a small continent and my contouring product inventory is starting to reach those same epic proportions. Ergo, we have Tom Ford's Shade & Illuminate, a brilliant little compact that combines both a fabulous cream highlight as well as a cream contour, perfect for professional or personal use.

\Let me preface by saying that I think cream highlighters/contours are totally underrated in the beauty community. No matter how many powder varieties of these I try, nothing melts into the skin and creates the most natural, ethereal look than creams. Because most of us use a liquid or cream foundation it makes sense to use the same texture in contouring and highlighting products-there is no textural difference visible on the skin. In fact I personally have started to consider the art of sculpting the face a part of my foundation routine rather than a separate component altogether.

Tom Ford knows his makeup. He loves luxury, quality products- it is extremely apparent based on the design of this compact. The aesthetic is to die for, a delicious dark chocolate shell with gilded edging etched with the "Tom Ford" logo. It is weighty and feels substantial, a necessity for me when buying a higher end makeup item. Sorry, but I do in a way judge a book by its cover- I don't want my makeup to feel like I picked it up at CVS if I put a good chunk of money towards it. It arrives in a suede pouch that is so soft and fluffy I actually kept it to preserve the safety of my compact. What is inside, you ask? Well just the most perfect cream sculpting duo you've probably ever encountered!

We'll start with the cream contour. A scary, muddy color in the pan, it translates into a mid-tone brown with just the tiniest whisper of grey on the skin. It is also much sheerer than it looks in the compact which makes it usable for a wide range of skin tones- even the fairest of the fair. I have Shade 1, there is though a Shade 2 that is slightly deeper for darker skinned beauties. It's translucency means it truly melds with your foundation, giving your cheeks a gorgeous natural definition you wish you'd been born with.

The cream highlight is also a gem. It has no shimmer in it. Zero, zilch, zeid. None. What it does have is a beautiful, almost "wet"- looking sheen that, when strategically placed in moderation around the face, gives a dewy, believable glow. It makes the skin look as though you've doused it in the most luxurious, fabulous moisturizer. It's easy to go overboard on this stuff- I suggest using fingers rather than a foundation brush for a more precise application. I use it just on the top of my upper cheekbone, on the apex of my brow-bone, and along the arch of my cupid's bow. Because of it's reflective nature I do not recommend using it along the nose, forehead, or chin unless your skin is fiercely dehydrated. A "glowing" skin can quickly turn into a grease-face as the day wears on, so do be careful. This is a wonderful highlight but one must be dainty and delicate in its application.

Shade & Illuminate in action

Swatched heavily

In sunlight

Blended out

Is this a product I consider worth $75.00? Yes, yes, and yes. It is a wonderful product for me, personally, but also one I will get miles of use out of in my kit. In a way, it is the quintessential one-size-fits-all cosmetic. You also get a hefty amount of product- 14 grams. It's travel-friendly and totally luxurious- a product I'll use till I'm scraping the very last remnants of it out of the pan.

Seth

Chantecaille Future Skin Review

Hello lovers!

So, on my perpetual quest to uncover my holy grail foundation we have here Chantecaille's Future Skin. I have heard a lot about this foundation over the years- it is by no means a new formula- yet for some reason I never decided to purchase. Chalk it up to the $72.00 price tag or the mixed bag of reviews but  time after time I passed it over in favor of other formulas. Some reviewers said it wasn't long lasting, it appeared greasy, and it gave minimal to zero coverage. I don't know about you, but $72.00 was way to much money to risk on a foundation I wasn't fairly certain I would love. Well thanks to a Nordstroms giftcard and a newfound respect for sheerer, more "second-skin" like formulas of makeup, I took the plunge and ordered this little baby, and I couldn't be happier I did!

Per the Chantecaille website:

-		Innovative oil-free gel foundation with refreshing, lightweight texture
-		Light-reflective circular pigment provides adjustable coverage
-		Contains 60% charged water and seaweed
-		Protective field prevents water evaporation, blocks environmental oxidation Now onto the review! Texture The texture of this foundations is one of the first facets that had me smitten. It is cooling like aloe gel, has the delicious consistency of a slightly richer CoolWhip, and simply melts into my dry skin. Never does it cling to any flakey patches I may have- It smoothes and hydrates wherever I place its delectable formula.

Shade: Cream

Look at that gorgeous mousse!

Coverage
The coverage took some getting used to. As an avid user of medium to full coverage foundations (i.e. ByTerry Cover Expert, Rouge Bunny Rouge Milk Aquarelle, NARS Sheer Glow etc.) I was initially wary of such a sheer coverage.  These fears were erased immediately upon application!  It evens the skin, yet remains translucent, letting the areas of good skin shine through so your face does not appear as though suffocated by a mask. Concealer takes care of the rest! 


Finish
Now this is where Future Skin truly shines! This foundation looks truly ethereal on the skin and should suit dryer skinned beauties perfectly! It toes the line between dewy and satin, erring on the side of dewy after the six hour mark. It seems to shine in all the right places while remaining acceptable satiny in the danger zones. 
Photos of me wearing the foundation will be down below (after twelve hours of wear!). 

12-hour mark!

Longevity
I've been wearing this foundation for about two weeks now and I have to say for such a sheer, glowing formula it easily lasts ten hours. I've even pushed it to twelve and although yes, it does appear a bit shiny, based on the picture at left it is still acceptably intact. I really feared that this formula would melt off the skin within a matter of hours... it's a deceptively hearty lil' guy!

Shade Range
I love Chantecaille's shade range. While not gargantuan, it has enough options to suit most skin tones. I love that they split the shades between neutral, cool, and warm- it's one of the factors I appreciate most from a brand. Being an NC25, the shade Cream suits me perfectly. Often times foundations don't have sufficient yellow in them to suit my tastes- thankfully Chantecaille incorporates copious ochre into their warm shades!

In Conclusion
If you're itching to try a different formula now that the weather is slowly turning cold and dry and you can appreciate the translucency of a second-skin formulation, Chantecaille's Future Skin may very well be a match made in foundation heaven! It glows, it calms, it refreshes, and it lasts a very decent amount of time for such a light coverage. Try it out and be sure to let me know what you thought!

Retails for $72.00 at Nordstroms, Saks, or Chantecaille.com

*All items were purchased with my own money for review purposes.