I love a good affordable foundation, well who doesn’t. I have had a hard luck finding a decent affordable foundation , except Colorbar Perfect Match Foundation , only because of the lack of shades. Lakme has a wide variety of base makeup and they keep on launching new products even other month. This time the brand has Illuminating foundation which is an extension to their illuminating makeup range which I reviewed couple of months ago. Lakme Absolute Illuminating Foundation packaging is almost identical to Absolute White Intense Skin Cover Foundation. I bought it online and tried it yesterday –
Packaging is simple & sturdy plastic pump bottle. The black & silver bottle looks good and quite travel friendly.
Shade – Unfortunately there are only 4 shades available – Ivory Glow, Natural Flare, Beige Shimmer & Honey Beam. I chose the darkest one which is Honey Beam. However it is still tad light for me. That means there isn’t a shade available for deeper complexion ! The shade looks quite good when swatched but on face it looks a lot lighter. Maybe because of the shimmers it looked a bit ashy. So the next time onwards I will mix it with a darker foundation.
Texture & Formula – The consistency is liquid, thick one. I find it to be on drying side, I mean as I start blending the foundation it feels drying, which means people with dry skin have to ensure proper moisturization before applying it. Also the texture is bit difficult to blend, shimmer is way too much which makes blending with sponge very difficult. I had to use brush to blend it properly.
Lakme Absolute Illuminating Foundation is a shimmery foundation , and shimmers are quite visible. It can be good for evening/ night parties but for daytime I have my doubts. Personally I love glowing finish but not sparkles on my face, that too in abundance.
Coverage – Light-medium. I can’t see it covering spots or evening out skin tone, maybe because even the darkest shade was light for me or the pigments aren’t there. The coverage is build able, but it would be really drying for my skin type. You can layer a powder foundation on top to get some more coverage.
Lakme Absolute Illuminating Foundation in Natural Light
Finish is glowing, looks pretty good from far and in pictures if flash isn’t used. With flash it makes me look like a disco ball !
Lakme Absolute Illuminating Foundation Honey Beam With Flash
Also if you have discoloration/ pigmentation, I would recommend color correcting before using the foundation.
Staying Power – On me it stayed for good 5-6 hours without using a primer.
Lakme Absolute Illuminating Foundation Honey Beam is priced at Rs 750 for 30 ml
You can watch the Demo of the foundation in the video below –
Overall Thoughts
Not for me. I love glow but not sparkle, and it has tons of it. Lakme Absolute Illuminating Foundation can be good for weddings/ parties for glow. The formula would be more suitable for normal-Oily skin. Coverage & Staying Power are average. The limited shade range is the biggest issue.
Rating : 3/5
safi
Being an indian brand, I wish they come up with more shade range.
safi recently posted…Geri G Plush Mascara Review
Shalini
Couldn’t agree more
Mariyam
This is so bad that they don’t provide many shades for every skin tone! Shimmery and chunky finish looks awful!
Mariyam recently posted…Himalaya Herbals Clear Complexion Whitening Face Scrub | Review
Shalini
I know :/ thats what I thought
Archana
I don’t like shimmers in foundations. I think I will skip this…
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Shalini
Same here 🙁
Kaveri
Hi shalini..first i would like to say i m a big fan of ur reviews ur videos..and i m always waiting for them..pls tell me can i use faces liquid highlighter under my foundation to get a nice glowey skin..or what should i do to create the effect of a glowing skin..my complextion is very near to urs..thank u..pls suggest
Shalini
Hi Kaveri, yes you can use faces metaliglow highlighter under your makeup or mix it with your foundation 🙂
Taneesha
I was really hoping for a good foundation for oily skin from Lakme this time which will make skin glowing without making it greasy. But adding sparkles is not a way to make skin glowing. It looks really ridiculous specially on oily skin!!! Thanks for the review Shalini 🙂
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Khushi@NotOnlyMakeup
I m suing this presently and love the texture giving a even toned skin.
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Sangeeta G
I don’t understand why an Indian makeup brand doesn’t have enough shades.. they know the market 😐
Sangeeta G recently posted…Valentia Pure Glow Brightening Moisturizer for brighter nourished skin
Beena Sarath
Use it along with Lakme 9 to 5 mousse foundation. Then the shimmers won’t be visible and your skin will glow.
Rimpa Ghosh Bedi
Hi,
I have always used Lakme Absolute Mousse for my face, during the day and also for any party (only the amount changes with occasion). I don’t use any primer but the mousse itself stays put for quiet a long time. I have a normal to dry skin. My question is which one is better, Lakme Absolute Mousse or the Foundation. Also I’m prone to sweating. So, even when the mousse stays put on my face, I think I sweat more with the mousse on sometimes during the summer. I’m really confused.