Lancome Brand Review – 3 Mini Product Reviews

Lancome is a brand I’ve only recently got acquainted with, I’ve held off purchasing any products for while because of the prices. But inevitably, I cracked and went and brought three products, a foundation, a blush and a moisturiser. I’m going to review each of my Lancome products today and tell you if you should try them or miss them.

I’ll start off by giving you a little background on the brand it’s self. Founded in 1935 by Guillaume D’Ornano and Armand Petitjean, Lancome is a French brand that started as a fragrance house eventually expanding into cosmetics and skin care. D’Ornano and Petitjean created Lancome “with the wish of spreading the spirit and taste of French elegance around the world”. Lancome’s name was inspired by the Domaine de Lancosme, a forest that lies within the Indre valley in the region of La Brenne. The name was actually chosen by Elisabeth d’Ornano, Guillaume D’Ornano’s wife. She came up with name due to the roses in the area, which also became the company’s signature symbol. 

In 1964, Lancome was acquired by L’Oreal, along with many more luxury brands such as Giorgio Armani, Yves Saint Laurent, Kiehls, Shu Uemura and Ralph Lauren to name a few. In 2016, celebrity makeup artist Lisa Eldridge became Lancome’s global Creative Director.

Unfortunately Lancome is not currently cruelty free as they are a part of the L’Oreal brand which sells in China. In order to sell cosmetics in China, the government requires third-party animal testing. 

As much as I love Lancome’s cosmetics, it’s very upsetting that the company still tests on animals. In Europe there are strict laws in regards to animal testing. Any cosmetic company selling within Europe is not allowed to test their products on animals which means my products (as I live in the UK) technically aren’t tested animals. Any products sold in China will be animal tested. The reason for brands expanding to China all down to  money, the Chinese market is huge and there’s potential to rake in an insane amount of revenue. According to Cruelty Free Kitty, last year alone, the cosmetics market in China was worth over 26 billion USD. From an ethical view-point, it baffles me that practices such as animal testing are still in existence, it’s absolutely awful. The laws against animal testing in China are moving forward with Cruelty Free Kitty stating that “On June 30th 2014, China lifted the animal testing requirement for cosmetics manufactured within the country. While this is a big and important step, it’s important to emphasise that cosmetics manufactured outside of China are still confined to the same animal testing law.” It looks as if slowly, animal testing will no longer be a practice in China, which is an incredibly wonderful outlook.
Onto the product reviews –

The first product I have for you is a foundation. This foundation is one of my all time favourites. I’ve had it for about 3 months and find myself reaching for it every time I do my makeup. The packaging is beautiful, it’s a frosted glass bottle with a good amount of weight to it, it’s so luxurious, I love it. It’s Lancome’s Teint Idole Ultra Wear Foundation and this retails for £31.50. It’s pricey but well worth the money. I have the shade 005 which is a light neutral shade, this is probably a touch too light but it’s still wearable, especially if I warm up the outer perimeters of my face with a little bronzer. This line of foundation is available in 40 shades which is means there’s something for everyone, which is amazing. It’s available in very fair shades, very deep shades and everything in between with a variety of undertones.

This is a natural to matte finish foundation and claims to be suited to all skin types. I disagree with this claim completely, this is definitely better for normal to oily skin types. I have very dry skin and worn alone, this foundation begins to feel tight and uncomfortable. The only reason I love this is so much is because I mix it with two drops of Jojoba Oil. Mixing oil in makes this so beautifully luminous and comfortable to wear. It looks beautiful all day, even without a primer. It’s very long-lasting and still looks freshly applied at the end of the day. This is a liquid formula but it’s on the thicker side. It a medium buildable foundation but can be sheered out with a beauty blender (my preferred method of application). If you have oily skin, you’ll love this! If you have dry skin and have a facial oil on hand, give it a try. But always get a sample before buying the full size! It’s a lot of money to waste if this doesn’t work for you.

Lancome Teint Idole Ultra Wear Foundation

The next product I have is a blusher. This is another favourite of mine and I’ve spoken about it in a few other blog posts. We’re all familiar with cushion foundations, well this is a cushion blush, one of the first I’ve ever come across. L’Oreal are set to be launching a line of cushion blushers soon which will make a nice high-street alternative but this product really is beautiful. I have the shade 032 Splash Corail. It’s a beautiful mid-toned pink that looks natural on my neutral skin. Again, excellent packaging. It’s sturdy, good quality and very beautiful. It is on the bulky side but that’s to be expected with a cushion compact.

This is essentially a liquid blush which makes it look like it’s one with your skin. If you find the right shade, people won’t be able to tell you’re wearing a blusher. It will look like you’re naturally flushing. This is available in 6 shades which is nice for a blush line. The shades on offer are incredibly universal suiting a variety of skin tones and undertones. This blush is expensive at £29.50 but you really don’t need a lot. This is highly pigmented, it actually very easy to over do, which I found out. This will last you years, I consider mine an investment because it’s such a wearable, everyday shade. This is also ideal for all skin types. Give this one a go, you won’t be disappointed.

Lancome Cushion Blush Subtil

The final product I have is a skin care item, a moisturiser called Énergie De Vie Liquid Moisturiser. I was a little undecided on this because of the astronomical price of £42. However, after a few days of using a sample, I was sold. I saw a noticeable difference in the texture and overall appearance of my skin. I was glowing, and people noticed. Lancome claims that “It’s like that post-gym glow – in a bottle”, and I couldn’t agree more. Énergie De Vie is going to noticeably brighten a dull complexion and it’s been inspired by Korean beauty technology. This a liquid formula which was new to me as I’d never used anything quite like it, and I’ve never seen another liquid moisturiser on the market. Don’t confuse this with a serum, it’s completely different.

This also works wonderfully as a foundation primer because this leaves a tacky feeling on the skin when it dries which gives your makeup something to stick too. I use this at night like a normal moisturiser and as a primer prior to my makeup application. This goes a really long way, one pump is enough to cover the face and neck which means this is going to last a long time, making it well worth the money. I have the 50ml but this also available in 30ml at £28. You can see in the picture above how much I’ve used and that’s two pumps everyday for about 3 months. This product is definitely an investment and one I really recommend trying.

Lancome Énergie De Vie Liquid Moisturiser

Lancome is a brand I’m exited to try more of, they create quality items and the products I do have are some of my absolute favourites.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read today’s post. I hope you enjoyed it and if you have any questions feel free to leave a comment. I hope to see you back in my next post.

Sofia x