I remember this being a highly raved product some time last year, if memory serves me right. So many people loved it for being light and comfortable on skin. I was told that it was even better than the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum foundation and some said, even better than the Diorskin Nude foundation. Naturally, I had to try it.
I’d never had much luck with Chanel foundations before this. A friend gave me a powder foundation once, and that made me look like an oompa loompa. For some reason, it gave my skin an orange cast that wasn’t flattering at all. When I went to check out the Vitalumiere Aqua foundation at the Chanel counters locally, I had no luck either. The lightest shade they bring in locally is B20 or BR20 and that is a full shade darker than my skintone. The lovely SA who served me and who gave me a mini makeover fully agreed that it wasn’t my shade and that I should be taking B10. BR10 was too pink.
When I was down in Singapore last year, I checked out B10 at the Chanel boutique. Its the lightest shade in the range and the SA there told me it would be my shade. We did the stripe test etc and it seemed close. I ended up picking up a bottle of Vitalumiere Aqua foundation in B10 later. I’d love to be able to tell you that I love it.
Sadly, I don’t. There is a lot I don’t like about it but let me first tell you some of the good points.
Packaging wise, its lovely and compact and takes up very little space on my dresser or anywhere. The plastic bottle makes it light and easy to travel with. It is wider than the Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation but about as compact.
The nozzle dispenser is very effective. Almost too effective if the mess is to be any judge. I intentionally did not clean it up, because your bottle will look like this after a while. Nozzle-wise it works, but the formula is tricky which results in this mess.
Which brings me to the formula. The Vitalumiere Aqua foundation is supposed to be a water based foundation and you have to shake it up before you dispense. There problem is, it takes a whole lot of shaking going on to get it to mix up properly in the bottle. A. Lot.
The first time, I just did a few wrist shakes, opened up the cap and was horrified to see some tinted runny liquid flow out. The next time, I shook it up with arm action and everything, for a long time. And when I did so, the liquid that comes out is more akin to that of a liquid foundation – slightly creamy yet light in texture. The texture is quite lovely and light but I didn’t like it.
It dries down on my skin looking matte and dull and seems to dry out my skin throughout the day. It must be said that I have combination-dry skin and I did think that a water based foundation might work. The Lunasol Water Gel Foundation does, very impressively. This however, didn’t feel comfortable.
The other problem is colour. B10 appeared fine on my skin when applied, but when the product dries on my skin, it takes on an orange cast. As the day wears on, it oxidises and turns deeper and even more orange. I walked around for a day with my face looking a whole shade deeper than the rest of me. Quite surreal.
I’ve tried it a couple of times, with a face base, with a light hand, and its failed to work every single time. If I go with a light hand, it applies very sheerly and you might as well not bother with foundation. When it dries, it looks like a mask on my skin. Also, the colour still oxidises, so depending on how much I apply, I will have a light tan or a deep tan. Who needs tanning lotions eh? 😛
Here’s the product swatch alongside some other similar textured liquid foundations that I like, and which suit my skin tone.
Left-Right: Diorskin Nude (new formula) 010, Lunasol Water Gel Foundation OC01, Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Ultra-Light Skin Perfecting Makeup B10, Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum #51
The Dior and Lunasol texture is close to that of the Chanel, with Lunasol being the closest. However, the Lunasol foundation does not require shaking up and squeezes out a perfect texture every time. The Dior is slightly more creamy with the Bourjois being the creamiest of the 4.
Its unfortunate, but Chanel and I don’t seem to have a connection lately, and most definitely, not in the foundation department. I’m much happier using the foundation from their sister brand Bourjois, which is cheaper and looks better on me.
In a nutshell
The Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Ultra-Light Skin Perfecting Makeup liquid foundation gets a lot of love from most people who have tried it. I however, have no love for it for reasons that boil down to texture and colour match. The product requires that you shake it up to mix. If you don’t shake it properly, you will squeeze out tinted water. If you do it properly, you get proper foundation. My tip is to hold the black cap when you shake and shake it upside down vigorously. This for me is the fastest way to mix it up. I find that the texture on my combination-dry skin is matte and dull and it oxidises quite quickly as it dries into firstly a peach then orange shade that isn’t flattering to my skintone. All in all, I’d say proceed with caution, and make sure you test this out properly over at least 2 hours before committing to a purchase, as it is expensive.
Pros: Compact plastic bottle makes it easy to store and travel with
Cons: Colour oxidises on my skin very quickly, Texture looks matte and dull and cakey on skin, Product separates very easily in the bottle and requires vigorous shaking to ensure they mix properly in the bottle, Pricey when it doesn’t work, Contains alcohol if you are sensitive
Who will like this: Anyone who can find a colour match, Anyone who is looking for a light textured liquid foundation although I personally think you could do better looking at Dior, Lunasol or RMK for similar textures
Do you like this foundation? Have you tried it?
If you do like this foundation, please feel free to share your thoughts. You know how I feel and personally, I’d look elsewhere for a good light textured foundation. The market place is replete with choices these days and many of them are much better than this one in my books. In fact, look at the Japanese brands – they make the best base products in the world as far as I’m concerned 🙂
Paris B
Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Ultra-Light Skin Perfecting Makeup Price: RM156/S$75 Availability: All Chanel Counters and boutiques (B10 is not available in Malaysia)
I’m sorry you didn’t like this one – it used to be one of my foundation staples :). I love this and the Bourjois equally but the Bourjois has a bit more coverage and at a cheaper price point I ended repurchasing that instead ( plus the fact that my shade BR10 meant I had to buy it in KL n not here!!)
Oh no need to be sorry, Petrina 🙂 I’m sure I can find a nice new home for it 😉 I love Bourjois though – its good stuff!
I agree with you, i have tried chanel foundation before and always oxidised on me, felt a bit heavy…
took your advice and bought the shiseido perfecting refining foundation and am loving…. i find that it is perfect when applied with the shiseido foundation brush….
Ooh I love the Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation! Very nice on skin. I seriously believe the Japanese brands do base products very well and thus far, I haven’t yet been disappointed 😉
Not a fan of the Chanel foundations either. For me, the shades just run too light and a little too pink. I have very yellow undertones. I also have a lot of redness and hyperpigmentation and found the coverage was just not as good as my Cover FX foundation.
Hmm… then you may not like Dior either which I find tends to run a bit pink too 🙂 I haven’t tried Cover FX but its good to know that you have a go-to foundation whenever you need it!
Oh, that’s a pity that u dont find this VLA work for ur skin. I love it and its compact version to death! I also extremely love my Dior Forever and Nude, and Guerlain’s Lingerie de Peau too! I duno, most foundations work well for me BUT I just could not find any good points when I used MAC and MUFE…
Its great to know that this one works for you Liyeun 🙂 I guess not everything works for everyone. I’ve heard a lot of raves for Perfection Lumiere but I’m a little afraid to try it now 😛 I haven’t tried MAC (found the texture too thick) and MUFE (been wanting to but the SA at Sephora pisses me off so that’s that! LOL!)
Everybody was raving about it and I just had to get it
Luckily for the price I paid it works for me. Makes me look I don’t have makeup on and I love that flawless effect
I’m just irritated by how fast it dried that sometimes I am in rush to apply it.
Oh, great to know this one works for you Jue. I was a bit upset because I went through a lot of hassle to get it in my shade only to find that bleh, it doesn’t work. 🙁
I haven’t tried it and probably won’t unless I get a sample (Australian prices being disgusting)! I’d probably forget to shake it in the early morning rush. Think I’ll stick with my Shu, MAC and BB collection!
Haha I was in a rush one morning and squirted out clear liquid. Was so disgusted, I switched to another fuss free foundation 😛
I’m sorry to hear it didn’t work for you! It barely oxidises on me but then again I always wear a very thin layer. Apart from that I never had a problem with product separation although my nozzle does get quite icky like yours lol!
Its good to know it works for you Sukie 🙂 I guess its one of those things that don’t work for everyone 😉
vita aqua does not work on me too! But you should try Chanel’s Perfection Lumiere fluid foundation..it worked wonders on me! Skin is glowing even after a whole day at the office! glides on easy on the skin and all you need is 1 pump. covers redness and my face looks really radiant! hopefully you get to try it soon! 😀
Oh yeah, Tanya Burr (pixiwoo’s bro-in-law) keeps using Perfection Lumiere. Think she must like it a lot.
I’ve heard so much about Perfection Lumiere! So many people love it too but I”m a bit in two minds because of previous experiences with their foundations. I’ll try to pick up a sample and see how it fares. Knowing my luck, they won’t have it in my colour here too LOL!
Fortunately, I decided to wait really long, and not jump onto it during the hype. Now that the hype is down, I am seeing more posts/videos similar to yours. A lot of people do not put Vitalumiere (or Perfection or Aqua) as their number one foundation. Many of them are still going for NARS sheerglow. And of course now, the hype is on Armani Maestro and Revlon Whipped Cream.
But I think you will cry using Armani Maestro too! It is not only a shake to mix bottle, but it’s a dropper glass bottle that makes it difficult to shake hard and over turn.
I still haven’t fully gotten over Chanel yet. So I am haha, quite biased. I just thank goodness I am not biased enough to buy the foundation! Thanks for the review! Very helpful.
PS: I bought the Lunasol blush brush you recommended and I am head over heels about it now too. Hehehe.
LOL Yes, the Armani Maestro foundation is really taking the world by storm. I tested it at the GA counter in Hong Kong and I wasn’t too impressed with it, because it sank into the lines on my hands and looked a bit dry. I didn’t know that it had to be shaken and I can imagine it would be awkward due to the packaging! Also find it a bit too expensive to just “buy and try” LOL So I’ll have to pass on GA for now.
So happy you love the Lunasol Blush Brush. I swear its the best ever! 😀
I use B10 Beige and it only slightly oxidises on me but no big deal because I prefer a bit of colour on my face. 🙂
But at the end of the day I have more oily face than if I were using powder foundation…
Hmm I didn’t notice the oiliness but then I do have slightly dry skin. When it oxidises on me, I find my face turning a whole shade deeper than my neck – awkward! LOL!
bummer it didn’t work for you, but I am really happy to hear that there’s someone else in the world who doesn’t get along with chanel foundations!
Haha you made me laugh Joyce 🙂 I’m guessing Chanel foundations dont’ work for you either? 😉
The only Chanel foundation I have and still using is the Matte Lumiere which i have to used with a good makeup base/sunblock like the Clarins HP UV Plus thingy.. so those two add up to more than $150! its crazy lol. If I use Matte Lumiere with a normal oil free sunblock I oil up in 4 hours exactly. I thought Matte Lumiere means its supposed to help mattify, no? I remember commenting to a Chanel SA who said oh its my skin cos i have combi to oily skin and with wearing glasses its ‘normal’to oil up in 4 hours, in fact, thats ‘already very long wear’! then i asked her about Vitalumiere Aqua and she say ‘dont work for you one la’ but i have heard of many oily skin girls who love it but perhaps in less humid weather..I dont think I want to spend another $80 on another Chanel foundation, not even the Perfection Lumiere although the SA (different one) who served me was really helpful and sweet. Bourjois doesnt quite cut it for me either lol.. Hello to Revlon & Dior! Btw I kinda feel like the DIor Nudeskin foundation might work for combi-oily skin..hmm
Thanks for sharing your experience, Sharon. For myself, I’m not planning to try Perfection Lumiere just yet either. Not sure how it’d fare since few Chanel foundations have ever worked for me. I do like the Dior one too and Revlon does make some pretty decent foundation too. I just have to be careful of the colour match 😉
Hi, first time to comment but I’ve been a regular reader for a while now. Love your blog. It’s one of my daily go to. What do you think of the shu uemura foundations? I’ve been wanting to try RMK but we don’t have it where I live. I have dry skin but it can get oily with some brands (like clinique) or heavier foundations.
Hi Ria, I haven’t tried Shu Uemura foundation but if I do, I’ll be sure to blog about it. The new Diorskin Nude is pretty good as is the Kanebo Lunasol, 2 brands I’m enjoying using now 🙂