I want to officially welcome the year by reviewing this gorgeous beauty — the Chanel Mat Lumiere Powder. This was one of my mom’s Christmas gifts for me knowing my love for makeup as well as being a loyal Chanel/Dior user. However, what she doesn’t know is how averse I am to powder foundation.

I have MAC Studio Fix in NC35 that I barely touched this year except for some touch-ups when I’m out (which is not at all its use, it being a full coverage foundation). My foundation of preference has always been liquid with a translucent mattifying powder on top.

That’s why when I opened this, I wanted to tell my mom if I could exchange it for a liquid Mat Lumiere or go for the Vitalumiere Aqua. I really didn’t open this for days because I was so confused if I would be able to use it or not. I did, however, decide against my judgment and kept it and boy am I glad I did.

Luminous Matte — initally sounds like an oxymoron, right? It promises to deliver a matte yet glowing complexion as compared to other powder foundations that pledges solely a matte finish — the main reason why I staved off from powders in the first place.

As mentioned, I bought the Studio Fix foundation and shuddered at the image of it making me look too matte and dry. It had very good coverage, I have to say, but made me feel like my skin was suffocated by the second hour. Although I wanted to love it badly, my skin just wasn’t for it. 

Chanel Mat Lumiere changed those sentiments, not in an instant, but a few minutes after letting the powder blend smoothly into my skin upon application. For those with acne and heavy blemishes that need full coverage concealment, this will work as a mattifying powder on top of liquid foundation. But for those who only need minimal concealment, it can serve as a great base foundation on its own.

The powder is very finely milled, silky and velvety as compared to Studio Fix which is also finely milled but not as smooth as Mat Lumiere. It gives a medium coverage when applied dry but can be built up to a full coverage when applied wet. I personally use it for medium coverage when I wake up to a good face day.

Chanel Mat Lumiere 30 Aurore is lighter than MAC Studio Fix NC35 so it probably is the best fit for NC 25-30. However, it still blended perfectly with my skin (methinks) as I’ve been on house arrest for my whole pregnancy causing my skin to lighten a bit.

Looking at the swatches, you’ll see that despite MAC Studio Fix being finely milled as it is — beside Mat Lumiere, it registers a bit chalky. Mat Lumiere is much silkier and smoother in texture. However, both offer the same amount of coverage with MAC displaying a bit heavier coverage than Mat Lumiere.

BEFORE AND AFTER

BEFORE (Completely no makeup. Only washed my face with cleanser. Put moisturizer after taking this photo) — As you can see, I have redness around my nose area and blemishes here and there. I also have extreme eye luggages (overweight when I have to check these in the airport!) and dark circles from my pregnant insomniac adventures. Don’t mind the eyebrows that haven’t seen the light of a tweezer and/or brow salon in weeks! My skin type is combination.

AFTER —This is Mat Lumiere (only) applied damp with just one layer. I was surprised at how effectively it evened out my skintone, hid my red areas and blemishes WITHOUT making me look too dull and flat. I thought it seemed way whiter than my complexion but it actually matched after I waited a few minutes for the powder to really blend into my skin.

IN SUMMARY

PROS

1. Truly a fine and silky foundation that sets well onto the skin effectively covering light blemishes and redness. I can’t reiterate more how soft my skin feels after putting this on! Best for those with minimal concealing to do. For those with more to hide, this may not be the best product for you.

2. Effectively controls oil and shine the whole day for me (take note however, combination skin here, not oily! And this was with minimal heat exposure and activity.)

3. I love how natural looking it still leaves my face despite being medium-full coverage.

4. One of the best pros for me —I don’t have to put on full corrector and concealer when I wear this despite my overweight eye luggages! Look at the AFTER photo and see for yourself! I didn’t wear any concealer whatsoever yet it managed to conceal such problematic areas.

5. I have NOT broken out with this foundation. This is what I am most terrified of when I use powders because I feel like they clog pores more than liquid does leaving me with bad skin thereafter. However, since I don’t use this daily anyway, I can’t fully vouch for this.

CONS

1. I’ve heard of some beauty bloggers and friends who claim this product as their HG being of oily skin type. However, I’ve also heard otherwise from others who claim it doesn’t mattify long enough (less than 3 hours) so I guess, it really depends on the skin type.

2. It does not offer heavy/full coverage for those with acne-prone skin. (I suggest Estee Lauder Double Maximum liquid foundation for those who do have, I’ve recently been introduced to it by a relative and am amazed at the coverage it offers. It’s not for my skin type though, but if it were, I’d definitely live by it.)

3. Hard to choose your correct shade as availability of all shades in the Philippines is limited. When not matched with the right one, you’ll look very ghostly and unnatural (same with all foundations).

4. EXPENSIVE. It’s Chanel, yes but Php 3,250 ($80) for a powder foundation? If you are happy with your MAC Studio fix and you feel that it works for you, then stay with it. For a bit silkier and velvety feel, feel free to add Php 1,000+ more for the Mat Lumier. What I like though is you can purchase the REFILL for only around Php 2,250 ($56) after you’ve bought your first one (with the compact).

 Will I repurchase? The ultimate question! Being a liquid foundation lover, I can say my heart is now confused. I see myself using this powder foundation more than my liquid ones so I may run out of this before I do my liquid foundies. I can’t believe that I’ve officially been converted into a powder foundie lover. PLUS it has cut my makeup application time majorly as it’s much faster and fuss-free to apply than my usual liquid foundation + corrector + concealer + translucent powder routine.

So YES, this is a repurchase!
Do I think it’s a MUST for everyone? Nope, but it is definitely GREAT to HAVE.

EDIT: Chanel Mat Lumiere has been replaced by the new Chanel Double Perfection Lumiere Compact.