Becca Aqua Luminous Foundation Review
I noticed right away that the packaging was almost identical to my much loved Becca Backlight Priming Filter; Housed in a frosted glass bottle with gunmetal lid. Instead of having a typical lid however, Aqua Luminous has a twist top style applicator. In order to dispense product, you must twist the lid counterclockwise for a quarter turn and a button pops up from the top, from there you can continue to unscrew the lid to have access to the dropper dispenser. Here’s the kicker though – you must push down the button in order to pull up some product into the pipette before you fully unscrew the lid. Gimmicky? Definitely, as well as a bit frustrating because the pipette doesn’t actually hold enough foundation for me to do my whole face (even for a light application), causing me to screw the cap back on partially a couple of times to get one application.
But how is the actual product? Not short of what I expected from Becca, the Aqua Luminous Foundation most certainly has serious glow power to it. On my dry skin it was incredibly radiant – to the point where I actually wanted to powder it down in a few places, which could be a good thing for some and a major downfall for others. I’d say this is best suited to normal-slightly dry skin; Oily and combination complexions might struggle with this looking too glowing. It should also be noted that there are only 8 shades in this lineup, with myself wearing Fair (I am NC20+ish for reference) which will make it hard for very fair or very deep complexions. I am told that the foundation is meant to slightly adapt, and the tones of the line are all neutral leaning yellow.
Becca claims this foundation will blur imperfections and hydrate while leaving a soft focus finish, and I would agree with part of that statement. The formula is a little thicker than most dropper dispensed foundations, and the first two ingredients are water and dimethicone, so shaking it first is an absolute must. Becca claims this blurs imperfections, hydrates and leaves a soft focus glow – and I partially agree with this. I find it leaves an eggshell like satiny finish on the skin, which is great for those who don’t have texture issues. Those with texture issues might find it settles into pores a bit and gathers in places – which is what I stumbled across. With the right primer this can be combatted, but it’s worth noting for those who don’t usually like the extra step of priming.
When it comes to application, I found a soft, fluffy blending brush or fingers was the best to buff this over the skin. I like the Becca The One Perfecting Brush which is super soft and gives the foundation an airbrushed finish which is really lovely. Applied this way you could get light to medium coverage – when I tried to build it more than that I can into issues with it gathering in patches. This coverage lasted about 6 hours on me, which isn’t what I would consider idea, but might make for a nice weekend or evening foundation where you’re not worried about longevity.
Overall, I would say that the Becca Aqua Luminous Foundation is lovely for those who don’t need their base to last a full work day, or want something to mix with an existing foundation that is too dull/matte. I wouldn’t consider it a slap-on-and-go foundation for me personally, simply because I feel you need to have well prepped skin and a touch of powder to complete it, but I think there are plenty out there that will absolutely adore this. It’s very similar to minus the SPF and with more radiance.
