If you’ve been following my blog, you might have seen my big foundation collection post last fall. I’ve been trying to finish up some of the ones I have but got sidetracked with the new Shu Uemura The Lightbulb Essence foundation. I thought it would be a great glowy foundation for the winter time so let’s see how it is!
Basics
Name:Shu Uemura The Lightbulb Essence
Shade: 12 shades, I have 564 Medium Light Sand
Price: $66
Size: 30mL
Available at Sephora
Packaging: The packaging is simple but sturdy. The foundation comes in a glass bottle that feels heavy. The cap is the interesting part of this foundation. It is a twist off with a dropper and there is also a knob at the top to push the product out of the dropper. There’s nothing jaw dropping about the packaging but it is very functional and it feels well made.
Skincare Claims: I love when foundations include SPF as I hate applying sunscreen on its own. Usually foundations will have SPF 15 but this one has an impressive SPF 45! Unless you are tanning in the sun, this is great coverage for every day.
This foundation is called lightbulb essence because it actually contains 5 different essential oils. The Shu Uemura brand is known for developing foundations with skincare benefits and with continued use, this foundation is suppose to help you achieve better skin. The botanical oils are lavender, rice nuka, geranium, ginger, and camellia.
Shades: The shade I have is 564 medium light sand. There are 12 shade ranges available but it stops at a medium tone. I would say the entire range will cover Asian skin tones but not encompassing all skin tones.
Medium light sand is a neutral beige and when swatched it initially seems quite a bit darker than my skin. But once it’s blended out, it looks to be a bit lighter and a better match for my skin.
Formula: The foundation is very watery and thin in consistency! But it does have a lot of oils in it’s thin consistency. I use the corresponding sponge to apply by using a tapping motion and can get medium coverage. I’ve also tried using a foundation brush and it works as well but I find that the foundation sinks into the brush quickly and therefore I need to use more product.
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| Before and after foundation |
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| After foundation |
I really like the initial glow of the application. I actually prefer lighter coverage, luminous foundations so this is right up my alley. I do find that although it feels weightless, the product never really dries down unless you use powder on top. While it isn’t sticky, if I touch my cheeks, I can definitely feel that there’s product.
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| After finishing the rest of my makeup |
The luminous glow also only wears for about half the day. I feel like it’s quite good for my dry skin but at the end of the day, I do see it cling to any dry patches! So it’s good for hydration but not good if you have peeling dry skin, which is kind of a catch 22.
There is a sponge that is made specifically for this foundation and I quite like it. It’s a lot more dense than a beauty blender and you don’t have to use it damp. The bigger round side is what you would use to pat in the foundation. then the smaller pointed side is what you can use to control the glow. I find the smaller side is good for getting into the curves of my nose. What I really like about this sponge is that it retains the product but when you press onto your skin, the sponge gives the product back out!
It is definitely my favorite way of applying this foundation.
Overall, I really like the idea of the foundation including SPF and skincare benefits! It performs well for the first few hours but loses its glow. Depending on how long you like your foundation to last, this may be a big or small drawback to the beautiful initial finish.