Veracious Product Review: Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet Smooth-Effect Makeup

Hi, everyone! When I heard that Chanel had released a new foundation, I felt instantly conflicted. "You don't need any new bases!", my sensible side proclaimed. Indeed, my foundation stash is pretty stocked. At the same time, any new offering from Chanel gets me pretty darned excited. So I sat back and waited for the initial reviews to surface. While my sensible side was hoping for Perfection Lumiere Velvet to get panned, no such rants arose. Not only did bloggers have nothing but good things to say about this new product, they actually proclaimed that this was an ideal option for oily skin. I was sold and, hence, this lovely little foundation came home with me! My sensible side is still rolling her eyes ;)

Chanel's Perfection Lumiere Velvet Smooth Effect Makeup comes in a handy plastic bottle with a compact, rectangular shape and a twist-off cap. The packaging is identical to that of Vitalumiere Aqua foundation, but with a reflective, all-black finish. 

As with Vitalumiere Aqua, it also has an efficient little spout to dispense the product. It can get a tiny bit messy, but all in a day's work. 

As I'll elaborate more on below, the texture of this foundation is quite fluid. Upon shaking up and tipping the bottle, the product flows out very easily, without really having to squeeze the tube. 

Here's what one drop of Perfection Lumiere Velvet looks like on the back of my wrist. It is quite runny, though thick enough to not drip everywhere. The shade I chose was the palest offering 10 Beige.

Here's the same drop of the foundation, partially blended. You can see that it smooths quite easily over the skin and that, in this less blended state, it covers imperfections quite well (e.g., the freckle on my wrist). 

And here it is fully blended out. The coverage is almost in undetectable, yet it smooths and brightens the area quite nicely. 

So onto the review! I'll first let you know what Chanel has to say about the foundation, then I'll give you my own breakdown! 

Chanel describes Perfection Lumiere Velvet as a "lightweight second-skin foundation... that naturally smooths and evens out the complexion for a velvety matte makeup result" (from chanel.com). It touts that the formula has a "perfect skin affinity complex" that "becomes one with the skin" and helps to maintain radiance all day long. It promises to be perfect for combination to oily skin, given its natural powdery finish, and it also claims to even out dark spots and areas of redness without a heavy feel. It also contains SPF 15 for added sun protection (though this is not labelled in Canada, due to restrictions). 

You can see why I was tempted! Here are my thoughts on the product, after wearing it several times: 

Colour Match-Shade 10 Beige is a very good colour match for me. It leans slightly yellow, which neutralizes the redness in my skin quite nicely. I don't find it to be too pale or dark at the moment. May be slightly light for summertime, but nothing a little bronzer can't fix!

Texture-The texture is quite fluid, as it runs out of the bottle easily and will slowly drip down your hand if at an angle. It feels very lightweight and dries down almost instantly to a powdery finish. 

Application- This really applies like a dream! It smooths over the skin easily and, as mentioned above, quickly morphs into a powdery texture. Nicely, it does not leave skin dry and, although it has a powdery feel, it doesn't fully set, which makes it easy to work with. You can definitely go over with a second layer to build up the coverage if necessary. I apply this with my fingers and look forward to using it with my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush as well! It has a fresh, cheery scent that's definitely prominent without being overpowering. I prefer the scent of this over that of Vitalumiere Aqua. 

Coverage- I would describe the coverage of this as light to medium. One quick sweep evens the complexion nicely and a second layer works to mask most imperfections. I do still require concealer on extra nasty blemishes or post-acne marks. I don't mind this at all, though, as it does allow your real skin to shine through! 

Finish- I'd label the finish as a "luminous matte", if that makes any sense. It is in no way dewy, yet still manages to give a lovely skin-like luminescence. Those with more normal skin types won't need to powder this at all; oilier complexions may require a touch of setting powder. I use a very light dusting of MAC Blot Powder on my t-zone and to set the foundation over areas of redness. I find that the foundation can smudge slightly when applying powder over top, so I do my best to tap on Blot lightly as to not disturb the base. 

Wear-This wears so much better than expected, especially as it is lighter coverage! This gets me through the 9-to-5 quite well with very minimal need for blotting or powdering. The foundation can wear and fade slightly off of blemishes and areas of redness, but a quick concealer touch-up remedies this easily. 


Here are some "before and after" shots to give you a sense of the shade, finish, and coverage of the foundation!

Bare-faced:

And with Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet in 10 Beige only:

As you can see, it camouflages my redness and post-acne marks quite nicely, without a full-on mask-like effect. The texture is soft and matte, while still maintaining a natural radiance. All good things!

Here it is in the context of a completed makeup look, topped with MAC Select Cover-Up in NC15 (to further conceal imperfections) and MAC Blot Powder in Medium applied lightly to set the foundation:

If you couldn't already tell- I love this foundation! It is the best lighter coverage matte foundation I've ever tried, hands down. It wears amazingly well on my oily skin, evens out my complexion so nicely and yet still leaves a lovely, natural glow. I'm not sure how Chanel did it, but I commend them!

Have you fallen for this foundation yet? Is it something you think your skin would like? What are your favourite foundations at the moment?

Thanks for reading! xo