Hi everyone!
I finally caved in and bought the NARS foundations that have been super raved by almost everyone in youtube. I actually wanted to get NARS Sheer Glow (SG) because I've heard more reviews about that as opposed to the NARS Sheer Matte (SM) even though ironically I should be getting the matte version since I have pretty oily skin.
Here's a Get Ready With Me using the NARS Sheer Glow foundation:
Anyway a long back story...
Since a few month ago I've been reading up and trying on the foundation every time I chance upon any NARS counters, the SA actually suggested and matched me to either Light 4 Deauville or Light 3 Gobi. I leaned more on to Deauville because I thought Gobi looks light and I don't want to have a white face! So I thought Deauville would be a good match. I also went online and read up on people with MAC NC20 colour because... I thought I am NC20 hahaha (I recently found out I am actually generally MAC NC15-NC20 and C1 for Face and Body). Anyway I decided upon Deauville and I bought it.
Went home and tried it on the next day. It was pretty disastrous because..... IT WAS TOTALLY OFF. I felt dull, grey-ish, orange-ish, basically anything but my skin colour -_- I was pretty depressed for a few days because NARS products are. not. cheap!!!!!!!! They are actually pretty expensive and Idk what to do if I have to purchase another colour at $72 and then leave my Deauville in the cupboard. I really wanted Deauville to work for me, and I tried it on again the very next day. I wanted to die because I still felt dull and that's not how foundations are supposed to work, at least in my opinion :(
Long story short, I managed to sell off the Deauville and in the meantime I purchased the SM in Gobi and shortly after that the SG in Gobi. I think it was kinda fate because my sister found some vouchers and Robinsons had their last bottle of Gobi cause Sephora was totally out of stock. Hahaha. Happy me!
Presenting to you....
NARS Sheer Glow and NARS Sheer Matte, both in Light 3 Gobi
Product
I'm not an avid NARS fan, not familiar with their products and I've only tried the lip glosses which I love. So I wasn't quite sure what my expectations should be but because of the price tag and all the raves surrounding it, I expected it to be good.
Sheer Glow
The SG is very runny and not sheer at all. I would say it is of a medium-full coverage depending on how much you put and how you apply it. Very easy to blend into skin, although it will emphasize dry patches, after a while it's no longer obvious. Finish is super natural and not flat, which I love, doesn't feel thick at all no matter how much you put.
Sheer Matte
Surprisingly, SM is very very light. It is more of a gel-water texture, very difficult to come out of the bottle and I had a super hard time trying to get it out!! It is more of a light-medium coverage, when you put more it gets a little cakey, eeks. However, it feels light on the skin. The finish is also surprisingly not matte at all! I don't really like extra matte foundations because I have some dry patches and matte finish tend to make my skin look worse than it is.
Packaging
I love how NARS packaging looks - very sleek, simple and professional. But I HATE how it functions. The cap is super super super dust and dirt attracting, super difficult to clean as well. It's also kinda ridiculous how we have to buy a separate pump at S$10 each, when the product is already pretty pricey!
The SG and SM looks exactly the same of course except for the fact that the SM has a matte finish glass bottle and SG just regular glass bottle. I strongly suggest pump for the SM because I'm having a hard time trying to shake it out of the bottle. The SG is easy to pour out onto the back of my palms, but I'm really considering getting pumps for these two because I have no time to waste products or get bacteria in it. Hahaha.
Swatches
You can see that the SM is of a thicker texture and the SG is thinner. I had an easier time blending SG than SM. My hand was a little bit red cuz I was cold but the colour is pretty damn awesome for my face. I'm so glad after such a big turn I managed to get Deauville off and find not 1 but 2 Gobis! Yay.
Application
In my opinion, both SG and SM feel and look the best applied with my fingers.
Sheer Glow
The first time I applied SG on my face, I used the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush and it left my face looking streaky and patchy. Tried to salvage the situation with my Beauty Blender but to no avail. I was so pissed off cuz 1. Colour was already off and then 2. SO STREAKY??? Second time I applied, I used the Beauty Blender and it still didn't give me the finish and coverage that I wanted and expected out of this foundation. Was quite depressed. Third time I used my fingers and it was okay but ... Still dull -_-
But with Gobi, and using my fingers to blend out the SG, it looked super good. The coverage was good enough for me and I pat a second layer on my pimples... Haha. Good enough concealing for me! Dry patches were still there because I am on my period so pimples and then the aftermath which is dry skin was on my nerves. However after the foundation sets, my dry patches were no longer visible and the finish looks awesome.
Sheer Matte
As I've mentioned, the SM is slightly of a thicker consistency but when blended out it becomes lighter coverage than SG. Weird, I know. I've been using my fingers the moment I got this and never tried it with anything else because with fingers, the coverage is already so minimal, I can't imagine what it'll be with Beauty Blender or a brush. Anyway, SM, to me, is not matte. It doesn't cling onto my dry patches as obviously as SG does, weird again I know. Haha.
I wasn't impressed with this at all cause I like to have at least medium coverage, if not I don't see a point in putting on foundation. I have half a face of SG and half a face of SM. Both are oily after a few hours and I didn't powder both. Although I have to say that the side with SM is significantly less oily that the side with SG. So I would say it's pretty oil-controlling considering the fact that my skin is really oily hahaha.
Verdict
Overall, I prefer SG to SM. Although I feel that there isn't a significant difference except for the different feeling during application (which SG won me over cuz it has higher coverage than SM) and also the fact that SM is more oil-controlling than SG (I can always blot right.. HAHA). After a while both looks great on my face and my skin looks flawless even though my skin is not even near good. As you can see my unevenness, red patches, pimples, pores, dry patches.. I can go on forever lol.
And this time round it really proves that colour match is soooo important. When I had the SG in Deauville I was complaining and cursing everyday as to what a waste of money this is and the raves are all fake. But after getting my actual matching colour, I can see why SG is such a holy grail in many people's books. I love it, I love the finish of it and I love how good it looks in photos. However, do note that after a prolonged few hours of wear it somehow doesn't look as good anymore? I'd definitely suggest this as a special events kinda foundation. Definitely not a long-wearing everyday foundation, especially in Singapore, where we are either under the hot sun with super high humidity or in an air-conditioned confined space.
If you are choosing between SG and SM, I'd highly recommend SG because it is something different as compared to other foundations that I've tried and the immediate finish is beautimoussss~!
Quick Summary
Sheer Glow
The Great:
- Very natural finish
- Great medium-high coverage
- Easy to blend
- Feels light on skin
- Many shades to choose from
The Not-So-Great:
- Not very long-wearing, at most 6 hours on me
- Expensive
- Pump is an additional purchase
- No SPF
Sheer Matte
The Great:
- Pretty good oil control
- Easy to blend
- Natural finish and not too matte
- Many shades to choose from
The Not-So-Great:
- Light coverage
- Expensive
- Pump is an additional purchase
- No SPF
NARS Sheer Glow and Sheer Matte Foundations can be found in Robinsons at The Heeren, Orchard Tangs and Sephora ION. It contains 1 FL Oz/30 ml worth of products and is priced at S$72 each, pump comes separately at S$10 each.
Do you like the SG or the SM? Let us know!
Love,
Flo.
