Purchase - Laura Mercier Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer

image from sephora.com

I am so pissed off at my friend Tessa. You know what she did? It’s terrible. She gave me a huge sample of Laura Mercier Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer.

…

I know exactly what you are thinking…because I thought it too…

B*TCH!

I mean really. How can you just give someone a sample of something and then not expect repercussions?

Exactly.

First of all the color is a perfect color match for me. I found that Laura Mercier Oil Free tinted Moisturizer in the lightest color was too pink and the next darker color was too dark & yellow. This one in the Illuminating formula is a good mix between the two. Ugh. How insensitive can you get Tessa?

Then I tried out the Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer for a week and ya know what happened? That’s right. I a) didn’t break out and b) got decent coverage. I was able to use it without foundation and just a little concealer and powder. I also layered it under foundation and had a loverly glow from within look. Thanks for nothin Tessa!

According to Laura Mercier This Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer does the following:

“Protecting skin from the damaging rays of the sun with SPF 20 protection, this skin-friendly formula contains a unique Dewy Complex that is proven to keep the skin moisturized and better equipped to combat external aggressors and irritants. Layer with other foundations for a custom blend and radiant finish. It's dermatologist-tested.”

Translation:
It has SPF which could help you when and if you experience any sun exposure
Dewy Complexion is achieved by the finely milled mica in the ingredients.
Can be mixed with your favorite foundation for a more glowy complexion or use sparingly on your cheek bones, bridge of your nose and temples for a enhanced complexion.

What I like:
The product has shimmer. Not over the top shimmer, not disco ball shimmer, but enough shimmer to give you a dewy-fresh faced look and to diffuse those little wrinkles I have around my eye area.
The coverage is great. It layers well does got get cakey and usually one nickel sized dollop (or 1/2 a kumquat sized ....mmmm kumquats!!!) covers my face and neck and allows for some extra layering on my cheeks where I have some acne scarring.

Wait a second! Kumquat? Really Elvira. A kumquat? You couldn't have picked something a little more common like a pea?
No I couldn't. First of all Kumquat is a fun word to say. It just makes me giggle. It's silly. secondly, until you have actually eaten a kumquat, it's sort of a mystery fruit! Plus I like to keep my readers on their toes. "A pea size dollop" is not going to wake them up as much as a "half a kumquat sized dollop". So IF YOU DON'T MIND I would like to get back to talking about tinted moisturizer. We can discuss your fruit fetish later.

The color match for me is excellent. I’m a MAC NC20 and Bare Radiance is a good match for me.
Does not break me out. (Whoot!)
Wears well (when you use a primer)
Has SPF
Looks great under foundation
Works well as a cream highlighter for a subtle shimmer


What I don’t like:
It only comes in 4 colors:
Bare Radiance (light beige/ for fair to light complexions)
Natural Radiance (medium beige/ for light to medium complexions)
Warm Radiance (medium peach beige/ for medium complexions with pink undertones)
Golden Radiance (golden beige/ for medium to deep complexions with warm undertones)
Those lighter than me will find this too yellow and dark. Those with darker skin tones may find the darker colors to be too orange. I have added a picture of all the colors, heavily swatched, for your reference, but remember that you would sheer this out on your skin. For reference my arm is like a zero base white. Like albino, devoid of color lighter than a NC15.


The price. It’s about $20 too much for my pocket book. $42 USD and you get yourself 1.7 oz. Granted that will last you several moths if you use a small dollop each time…which I guess is OK. But still pricey.

Do you NEED this? Probably not. I adore this tinted moisturizer, but I understand why some people may not like it. If you are like me, and find it hard to get a good color match for your skin tone you might want to try this. But if you don’t want to spend that much on a tinted moisturizer, you might want to try the following: Mix in a little MAC Vanilla Pigment with your foundation or mix in a little liquid highlighter with your foundation or tinted moisturizer.


Ingredients:
Octinoxate 7.50%, Avorbenzone 2.00%. Ingredients: Water, Dimethicone, Cetearyl Alcohol, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Xylitylglucoside, PEG-40 Castor Oil, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Cyclopentasiloxane, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Hexyl Laurate, Anhydroxylitol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Sodium Ascorbate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Hydrogenated Olive Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), XYlitol, Copper Gluconate, Allantoin, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Polysorbate 60, Phenoxyethanol, Butylene Glycol, Tribehenin, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Carbomer, Aminomethyl Propanol, Tetrasodium EDTA, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate. (+/-): Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides, Mica, Tin Oxide.