Armani Luminous Silk Foundation Is a Game Changer for Our Beauty Editor’s Low-Key Routine
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Some products that we’ve tried have stood the test of time and remain our faves to this day. In our series10/10 Would Recommend, we’re giving the final word on well-known products that we fully stand behind.
The Product
Armani's Luminous Silk Foundation is lightweight with buildable coverage, adds a glowy skin finish, and is available in 40 shades.
The Stats
The Price: $65.00
Year it came out: 2000
Reviewed by: Rated as one of the “Best Foundations for Mature Skin” by Women's Health and Oprah Daily and recommended by Padma Lakshmi and Julia Fox
How Did I Find It?
Armani Luminous Silk Foundation is one of the most iconic foundations on the market, earning plenty of love from my peers in media and pretty much every makeup artist I've interviewed over the last 6 years. After hearing so much hype about this foundation, I knew I had to eventually give it a try. So, I finally got my hands on a bottle of this $65 foundation to see if it really lives up to the holy grail hype.
Why Do I Love It?
Buildable Coverage
Armani Luminous Silk Foundation offers a light-to-medium buildable coverage, depending on how many pumps of product you use.
For light coverage that allows your freckles to shine through, use half to one pump of foundation.
For medium coverage, use up to two pumps of foundation.
I've experimented with applying three pumps of product, but can definitely get by with using less since I use Armani Power Fabric Concealer for added coverage — and, of course, because I don't want to waste expensive foundation if it's not necessary.
Also, I credit the light (but not at all watery) liquid texture that blends like a dream for leaving my skin smooth and never cakey. Thanks to its undetectable coverage, this foundation is the true embodiment of a “my skin, but better” foundation.
Effective for All Skin Types and Ages
Hear me out: I already expected this foundation to deliver a radiant glow to my face, but I have very oily skin. Since I start to look greasy after 2 to 3 hours of wear with just a setting powder, I'll use a face primer and makeup setting spray when I want my foundation to last all day in the summer.
Thanks to its glowy finish, Armani Luminous Silk is ideal for dry, normal, and mature skin types — even oily skin like mine. Anyone with oily and acne-prone skin can also enjoy this iconic foundation with a little finessing.
Wide Shade Variety
While other brands make blanket shades like light, medium, and dark (if you're lucky!), Armani delivers an extensive range of 40 shades, allowing you to find a perfect match.
The same can be said for the foundation undertone, which is the color under the skin's surface that impacts our overall shade. Most brands offer foundations in three undertones — cool, neutral, and warm — but Luminous Silk Foundation includes pink, neutral, peach, olive, and golden undertones. This expansion allows for a more accurate color match for a much wider variety of skin tones, hence the impressive 40 shade options available.
If you're not 100% sure of your closest match, take the 30-second shade match questionnaire listed as “Find your shade” under the colors.
And don't worry — I found from personal testing that the short quiz is incredibly accurate. After noting that I use Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Foundation in 9 Cool, Sephora's AI bots suggest I buy Luminous Silk Foundation in shade 9, which is my go-to color. In other words, it's incredibly accurate, and you can totally trust it.
Oil-Free Formula
This foundation is fantastic for anyone with acne-prone skin because it's oil-free, so it won't congest the pores and cause pimples. I've even fallen asleep wearing this foundation more times than I'd like to admit, and I've never experienced any blackheads and pimples, which can't be said for other products I have tested.
Works with All Beauty Tools
I haven't met a brush or makeup sponge that isn't compatible with this liquid foundation — seriously, it's that good. It blends easily when bouncing a Beautyblender or a cheap dupe across my face and works with the hundreds of makeup brushes of all sizes, fiber densities, and prices in my collection.
And when I'm in a pinch, aka too lazy to clean my makeup brushes, I can even use my fingers to apply and blend out this foundation without any noticeable lines of demarcation. The same can't be said about most foundations I've tested, so it's something that I appreciate from Armani.
Lit From Within Glow
As its name suggests, Armani Luminous Silk Foundation provides a gorgeous luminous glow to your skin. I’ve never used a foundation or highlighter that provides a natural, healthy glow reminiscent of how I look after a spa facial. So it makes sense why celebrities like Meghan Markle, Cate Blanchett, and Kim Kardashian often sport this foundation on and off the red carpet.
And that glow won’t oxidize either, which is one of my biggest makeup pet peeves. When foundations oxidize, their pigments react to the air and the skin’s natural oils, causing your face makeup to darken or turn orange like a bad spray tan — and it’s pretty common. Impressively enough, the color of the Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in the bottle looks identical to the color of my first application — all the way until I remove it at night — leaving me with an oxidized-free glow all day.
How to Apply Armani Luminous Silk Foundation
I'm obsessed with this foundation and how easy it is to apply it to my oily skin. Here are three other complexion essentials that help elevate my Armani Luminous Silk Foundation routine to ensure all-day wear.
Primer: The trick is to use an oil-free primer that smoothes my skin and minimizes the look of pores without dehydrating my face. During warmer months, I like to pat on the Hourglass Veil Primer on my T-zone, and in the winter, I apply the ultra hydrating Hourglass No 28 Primer Serum all-over to amplify my glow.
Setting spray: After finishing my full beauty look, I like to spritz my face with either the Hourglass or Charlotte Tilbury setting spray to lock in my makeup and prevent smudging and evaporation, regardless of the weather.
Finishing Spray: Anyone with normal, dry, or mature skin should consider using a finishing spray made with moisturizing ingredients to melt the makeup into your skin for an extra glowy look. MAC Fix+ is a great water-based spray that uses a blend of soothing green tea, chamomile, and cucumber to hydrate and add a nice sheen to the skin.
The Final Word
Despite having oily skin, I'm still obsessed with this oil-free foundation and honestly believe it's worth the $65 price tag. It's easy to apply, feels featherlight on my face, and imparts a naturally radiant finish to my skin. Plus, it photographs great and is available in a beautiful array of 40 shades.
Application is incredibly easy, making it a worthwhile investment for newbies to professional makeup artists looking to level up their kits.
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