I was super stoked when I found out that NARS was coming out with a new foundation. I have been using their “Sheer Glow Foundation” for years now and I absolutely love it. What’s cool about this product is that the actual foundation is sold separately from the compact and the foundation pops into place in the compact. This allows you to swap out different shades or replace the product when you’ve used all of it up. Inside I’ve got full swatches and a review on the new NARS Radiant Cream Compact Foundation!

[This review features press sample(s) sent for consideration.]

 

 

 

 

The compact itself is exactly like the rest of NARS packaging, only slightly longer.

 

 

 

 

The compact opens up to a mirror, a place for the sponge it comes with, and the actual cartridge with the foundation in it.

 

 

 

 

The cartridge’s are a nice size because they’re tiny enough to travel with and pop in your bag even without being in the actual compact. On the fly, I’d definitely pop just the cartridge into my makeup bag for touch-ups.

 

 

 

 

My shade in NARS foundation is Stromboli. I have always been between Stromboli and Punjab in their shade range, it just depends on the time of year (I tend to be a little paler in the winter months). 

 

 

 

 

Stromboli is “Medium 3 – Medium with olive undertone.” It fits my complexion perfectly. I find that NARS matches that olive undertone in my skin better than any other brand does. My skin has pretty strong olive undertones, and some foundations that claim to be golden, olive, or yellow based just don’t fit right. I’ve always preferred the NARS foundations for matching my olive skin best. In the winter when I am a little more pale, I may go for the Medium 1 shade instead, Punjab, which also matches an olive complexion well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As far as applying this foundation, the sky is the limit. I prefer not to use the generic makeup sponges that come with these. I definitely recommend using either a foundation brush or a product like the Beauty Blender (which I absolutely love). For this particular article, I used my Beauty Blender wet (run under water, and squeeze out all excess water so that it is just damp). I love that my Beauty Blender can get into the nooks and crannies of my bone structure and the area around my nose. Also, since the Beauty Blender is damp, it keeps the foundation looking ridiculously luminous and natural.

 

 

 

 

The foundation has a really nice luminous finish to it. It felt very lightweight and airy, like I wasn’t even wearing any foundation at all. It almost felt like the product had a “whipped” texture because it was so moisturizing and lightweight. I definitely like that in a foundation, because no one wants to feel like their face is caked in foundation. As far as the coverage, I would place this in light to medium coverage territory. I have some spots from past breakouts on my cheeks, and I was able to go back and pat on a second layer of foundation to cover this area. The second layer took care of the spots immediately, so it’s definitely a buildable formula.

 

 

 

 

I was really happy with how nice this foundation looked on my skin. Most importantly, it didn’t sit on top of my skin, darken throughout the day, or turn oily on my oily skin. It “played nice” with the other products on my face, helping them to look really luminous and smooth.

 

 

 

 

 

Overall, I love this foundation. I’ve been wearing it out in the extreme heat and humidity and it doesn’t streak or budge on me. They have an extensive range of shades (twenty total!), so there is a color for fair skin to very dark skin. The formula feels lightweight, airy, and hydrating. The only perceivable downside from a consumer perspective is that you have to purchase the compact and the foundation refill separately, and the compact is $10 extra. The total for the product plus the compact comes out to around $48.00, which is average for a high-end foundation though. Also, the compact is a one time purchase and you’ll have it for life. I like that you can pop the refill pan out and carry it with you if you need to save space, as well.

 

 

 

The NARS Radiant Cream Compact Foundation is a brand new product from NARS. It is available at NARS boutiques nationwide as well as as Sephora stores nationwide. Each Foundation Refill retails for $38.00 USD and each empty Foundation Compact retails for $10.00 USD. There are twenty shades available from extremely fair to extremely dark. You can purchase the empty compact online, as well as the foundation refill online.

 

 

 

 

[ALL PHOTOGRAPHY ON THIS SITE IS TAKEN BY REBECCA KAZIMIR. NO PHOTOGRAPHS ARE TO BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION.]

 

 

 

 

 

[This article contains a sample product provided by the brand or PR company. Beauty Gala’s opinions are our own, and we commit ourselves to honesty in our reviews and descriptions at all times. Sample products are not guaranteed a review. For consideration of your product, please send all PR requests to Rebecca@beautygala.com, or by using our Press Inquiry Form.]