Ellis Faas Skin Veil Foundation

This post took a long time to write, for two reasons. One, it's a direct follow-up to one of the bigger disappointments I've had since I started blogging, and two, it's about a product I received as a sample  from the brand. I wanted to be really fair and balanced in this review - I thought both you, my readers, and the brand deserved no less.

With that bit of transparency out of the way, allow me to dive right into my thoughts on the Skin Veil Foundation from Ellis Faas.

First of all, I am delighted by the fact that this foundation comes in a regular pump-bottle rather than the clicker-pen that the rest of line is packaged in. As swanky and sexy as the pens are, and undoubtedly more convenient to tuck into a bag than a full-size bottle like this, I'm just not a fan of the clicker mechanism. (Though for what it's worth, the lovely rep from Ellis Faas told me that they are working on making sure it takes far fewer clicks to get to the goodness inside.)

The bottle format also means that you get a legitimate amount of product for something that would be used daily - 30 ml, to be exact. (The pen version is available, should you prefer that packaging, but note that the bottle is priced at 90$, and the pen - which holds 15 ml - is priced at 78$ on the Sephora site and 65$ on the Ellis Faas site. Though the price is gulp-worthy for either version, the bottle is the better value by far.)

I have absolutely no complaints about the packaging otherwise. The bottle is frosted glass, simply styled, with a very efficient pump that allows you to control how much product to dispense. For the price, I would maybe expect something with more bling, but then I don't expect my foundation to do double-duty as an accessory, so I'm satisfied with the simple, elegant, functional packaging.

Onto the stuff inside.

I choose my foundation in shade 103, which is slightly too dark and too pink-toned for me. You can see in the swatches above that when it is applied more thickly to the skin, the shade match is off. In retrospect, 102 would have been the correct choice.

That being said, I have been wearing this foundation for the last few weeks, and not a single person has bolted from me, screaming about my horrid orange-pink face. While it appears too dark when swatched heavily, this foundation blends perfectly when I apply it in a normal layer.

It feels creamy and almost thick when first pumped out, but it melts onto the skin, leaving behind a dewy glow and a light coverage. So light that I would consider it more of a tinted moisturizer than a foundation, but it is a buildable coverage. It won't cover more visible blemishes, but the light-diffusing properties seem to almost distract the eye from noticing little imperfections when viewed in person.

The skin-nourishing ingredients mean that this is a great foundation for mature and dry skin, and very forgiving towards dry patches. On my oilier t-zone it still fares fairly well, neither sliding off nor going patchy. It does, however, need some powdering for my optimum shine-to-matte ratio. I'm also not crazy about is the way the dewier finish can emphasize pores.

This foundation has elicited really positive comments from people I interact with. Invariably, I am told that I look healthy, and have I done something different.

It's also incredibly easy to apply and blend. With a Buffer Brush, I can literally slap this on in 5 seconds and be out the door. When I'm waking up at 4am, that is a life-saver, especially considering it contains sunscreen that I don't have to apply separately. Also nice is that you can actually touch it up hours later - even apply a second coat - without it looking caked on. (I did so one day, when I was appallingly lazy.)

Availability: Sephora and Ellis Faas websites. Price is 90$ CAD.

Pros: Creamy but light texture translates into fool-proof application. Light-diffusing properties blur the imperfections the light coverage does not directly address. Very kind to mature and dry skin.

Cons: The finish can make pores look more obvious. The price is hefty, to say the least.

(This item was provided free-of-charge by the brand's PR for potential review purposes.)