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When I see friends or TikTokers who I think are friends trying a luxury foundation and loving it, I think, well, of course. It better be good for that price! But when I spotted Chanel’s Les Beiges Water Fresh Foundation going super viral on TikTok, I took a second look. The medium-coverage skin tint looks nothing like a typical foundation. Instead, it resembles little drops of pigment suspended in water — and comes with the tiniest brush. Yes, I had to try it.
Chanel sent me three shades to try and I chose B10 (there are 15 in total). Because this is a skin tint, each shade will work for a variety of skin tones. Now, I’ve seen many of my fave TikTokers say they really like this product but you really have to feel this texture to understand it. It’s almost like a gel but not sticky at all. It’s cooling to the touch and hydrating. That’s thanks to ingredients such as tamarind and jasmine extract.
Chanel.
Because this is a water-based foundation, a water-based primer is generally the way to go, especially if you have any dry patches like I do. I prefer to use sunscreen as my primer so I prepped my skin with EltaMD UV Clear SPF 46 Face Sunscreen ($37.05 at Amazon). And then I just went right in. I applied a few pumps to my hand and blended the little micro-droplet pigments with the small brush. At first the brush seemed too small and like it was going to annoy me but it worked so well, I shouldn’t have doubted it.
I applied a few swipes to my face, originally just going to spot conceal under my eyes and around my red spots. The coverage was so nice, I ended up applying it to one half of my face to see the difference. And wow, what a difference. I didn’t even realize my skin as so red until I saw how well this color-corrected. I wish I could tell you this $65 foundation wasn’t good but I can’t. Everyone on TikTok was right. The coverage is gorgeous. You can watch my video here.
Speaking on TikTok, I watched a few videos before I tried the product myself. After saying it’s the “weirdest foundation” she’s ever seen, @missdarcei ended up finding it “so beautiful and natural” with an incredible color match. Creator @daniellemarcan said it “neutralized” her skin tone and “feels very soft,” while @mimiermakeup said she “loves it” because she “loves light coverage foundation.”
Now, I’m dying to try the Water-Fresh Blush ($50 at Chanel), which has the same sheer-but-buildable pigments. Chanel definitely has a hit on its hands.
