The Diorskin Nude Air Serum Foundation is the latest of the high tech bases that seem to be hitting the counters these days. They promise great coverage with unbelievably light finishes and the Diorskin Nude Air in my opinion is at the top of it’s game. Formulated with ‘oils’ that evaporate instantly, leaving behind a fine layer of concentrated pigments, it makes for one interesting product!
Packaging
As with all things Dior, the packaging is ultra luxe and just beautiful.
The product is housed in a matte glass bottle and comes with a dispenser that is a very stylish silver dropper.
Formula & Coverage
According to Dior,
“The Diorskin Nude Air is an ultra fluid serum foundation, as weightless and beneficial as a breath of fresh air, for an enhanced complexion with a sheer finish. Like after a day in the great outdoors, the face gains a natural healthy glow.”
As described, the texture of this is very lightweight and runny, making this oil based fluid feel a lot like a serum. Almost liquid silk as you swirl a drop on the back of your hand, it feels like skincare to the touch.
Before dispensing, instructions recommend shaking the bottle well. This helps mix the pigment particles into the solution evenly. Proceeding you can start with just a few drops and build on from there. I found that one drop for either cheek, one for the forehead and one for the chin works well. If you need slightly higher coverage you can always add more, although in my experience the coverage isn’t that buildable.
For application I just use my fingers.
When it comes to thin solutions such as this, sponges absorb too much product and with this foundation using a brush made it difficult to assess how much product was going on (as it’s so light!) therefore fingers were the ideal choice. You can sweep and pat till the finish looks almost airbrushed. Plus this is the quickest route to take on rushed days!
When applied, the Diorskin Nude Air goes on smooth without catching onto or emphasizing any dry patches or exaggerating pores, leaving you with a soft velvety finish as it sets. A layer of this would easily give you medium coverage.
The real selling point though is that it looks just like skin. One of the most skin like foundations I have ever encountered. This has a healthy balance between matte and dewy, and the overall look is soft and airbrushed once it sets.
Here’s a before and after, i’ve just prepped with a light moisturiser and skipped a primer so you get an idea how it looks applied directly onto the skin.
As you can see it corrects redness well and lightly conceals blemishes. Pores are also smoothed out for the most part and skin looks like a better version of itself.
Longevity & Wear.
Those with normal to dry skin may not have to set it with a powder. To me this is a non negotiable step, so I did set it with my Gucci pressed powder as I find a regular loose powder isn’t enough to keep this in place throughout the day.
During wear, I noticed the first signs of dewiness appear around 2 -3 hours of wear (since I do live near the equator and am blessed with 90+ temperature and 70% humidity everyday). Most dewiness was concentrated around the t-zone while the cheeks still looked fresh and non greasy.
As the day continued, the finish got dewier, and blotting was an absolute necessity. Although I am glad that I never noticed any transferring and the foundation mostly did stay in place except around my nose where it seemed to slide off. It lasted well into 8 hours on me after it started to look a bit worn.
In conclusion, I feel this foundation would be ideal for those with normal to drier skin and those of you like me, blessed (NOT) with combination skin having to prep with a mattifying primer before application. If you live in hot, humid countries + have oily skin, it might be a bit high maintenance (unless you spend most of your day in an air conditioned cubicle), having to blot regularly and touch up around tea time.
But of course if you live in colder weather, I believe this could even work well on combination skin.
Shade Range
The shade range is quite limited. When I checked this out, I saw just shades 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60. But then again I was at the Dior Duty Free counter in Dubai. Online I found that there were in between shades similar to Dior Star (21, 23 and 33). But for those of you around an NC 35, you’d still be between 30-40 where there is a massive jump. As 33 is a more peachy undertone than yellow and 40 is a very deep medium with a yellow tone.
Either way my exact match ended up just past 30 which meant I needed to mix in a tiny bit of 40. But once my tan fades, i’m guessing i’ll be back at 30!
Here’re swatches of 30 and 40. There really should have been at least two more shades between >.< Seriously.
A comparison with Dior Star
So for those of you who already have Dior Star and debating getting this, they are nothing alike. Dior Star is more of a full coverage foundation which is also more matte. Something you’d reach for when you need to look flawless without that caked up mask of a regular full coverage foundation.
Diorskin Nude Air on the other hand is more of a sheer to medium coverage skin like foundation. It’s the ideal, your skin but better finish achieved with a weightless formula. A great foundation for day to day use.
*Between the two, Dior Star was the more longer lasting.
A comparison with NARS All Day Luminous Weightless foundation
The NARS ADLWF is somewhat comparable. It’s a similar consistency, with a slightly more buildable coverage and the same idea as far as technology goes. The main difference I see between the two is that the NARS does apply with difficulty over dry areas though I find this a foundation that suits oilier skin types better as it’s longer lasting. The finish is more ‘wet’ in comparison to Diorskin Nude Air mainly since the Dior sets to a velvet finish. However, between the two, even with my oilier disposition, I can truly appreciate the luminosity and overall finer texture of the Dior. It truly feels sublime.
Bottom line, If you like a dewy finishes and don’t mind slightly less coverage, Dior is the way to go.
Overall Thoughts
It truly is a perfect ‘nude’ skin like finish. Undetectable (i’m not talking macro lens point of view!), perfecting and glowy. If there was anything to complain about, it would have to be the shade range. Those with warmer olive skin tones might find it harder to get a match. In general I find Dior shades to suit the rosy and neutral undertones best, so if you fall into that category you are in luck!
Anyways all cards on the table, this is my favourite foundation for now, and wish they come up with a longer wearing version suited for oilier skin.
Product Details
The Diorskin Nude Air comes with an SPF 25-PA++ (no flash back) and is a talc-free formula.
Retails at 88SGD (30ml)
Ingredients List
Yup! There’s Dimethicone in there. Explains that silicony feel!
Other information
*When shade matching, keep in mind this has a tendency to oxidize, always try out a sample before you buy!
Lastly thank you for reading, and I hope this review was useful.
Wishing you a great week!
Michelle. xx
