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The perfect foundation, the perfect mascara, the perfect concealer. Is the hunt ever truly over? You don´t need to answer that. The fact that you stopped by here for a NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer Review gives away that you, just like me, are still searching.
Of course perfection means different things for all of us (no, don´t go, I am not going to drift off into metaphysical spheres here!).
I for example have long accepted that I will always need two different concealers in my life. One to cover breakouts and acne scars and one to help fight the dark halo underneath my eyes.
Am I greedy if I state that one just isn´t enough? The NARS Radiant Cream Concealer reviewed today is definitely one for the under eye area more than one for acne scars.
It is, just to make that clear, also very good for the no makeup makeup looks. Not that I do them very often, although they probably would flatter my more mature skin. But if I would, I´d reach for the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer.
What NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer claims
Brightens. Corrects. Perfects. All day long. Coveted by artists and non-artists alike for its luxurious texture and luminous finish. Radiant Creamy Concealer delivers all-purpose, 16-hour perfection for all skin tones. Enriched with hydrating, multi-action skincare benefits and light diffusing technology, it instantly obscures imperfections and diminishes fine lines and signs of fatigue. This multi-purpose concealer can also be used for highlighting and contouring.
Some facts about the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer
One tube contains 6 ml and retails for 29,99 € on the website here. The applicator is a classic doe foot, probably not the most hygienic should you apply it to active breakouts, but great to dot a little bit on the delicate skin underneath your eyes. It also lends itself to drawing patterns on your face, like a triangle underneath your eyes (NOT recommended if you are over 35) or to highlight your nasolabial fold in an attempt to make it look less like Marianas Trench.
There are 30 different shades available, catering to different undertones. I use the shade Chantilly for my under eye area, light with neutral undertones and can just about get away with using it on my face in winter.
How does the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer perform on my skin
For someone with acne scars, (no longer) fine lines and long office days, any concealer will always be judged by how well it performs in terms of coverage, creasing and longevity.
The NARS Creamy Concealer has a creamy consistency (who would have guessed), far from lightweight, yet still not heavy when applied. The coverage I get with a thin layer is medium, and while it is buildable to almost full, it looses its weightless finish if done so and is prone to creasing.
With just one thin layer, maybe a few extra dots carefully pressed in where needed the most, and of course assuming that I did hydrate my skin very well and set it with powder, there is no creasing or separation though, and the concealer stays put for at least eight hours.
As you can see in the pictures above, it covers redness and uneven skintone, but lets hyperpigmentation and breakouts shine through. Underneath my eyes it is not enough on its own to get rid of the darkness completely, but used with a corrector underneath (I use the one by Bobbi Brown) has just the right amount of brightening to make me look fresh and awake.
The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer ingredients
While I don´t believe in skincare benefits hidden in my makeup, I do understand that a full ingredient list can be very helpful for those of you suffering from certain allergies, so here you go:
Full ingredient list:
Aqua (Water), Dimethicone, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Propanediol, Butylene Glycol, Peg-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone, Glycerin, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Peg-10 Dimethicone, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Bis-Butyldimethicone Polyglyceryl-3, Sorbitan Sesquiisostearate, Dimethicone/ Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Phenoxyethanol, Isostearic Acid, Polysilicone-2, Aluminum Hydroxide, Maltodextrin, Trisodium Edta, Lecithin, Silica, Tin Oxide, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Tocopheryl Acetate, Sodium Metabisulfite, Magnolia Officinalis Bark Extract, Tocopherol, Vitis Vinifera Grape Seed Extract; May Contain: Mica, Ci 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), Ci 77491 Iron Oxides, Ci 77492 (Iron Oxides), Ci 77499 (Iron Oxides), Ci 77163 (Bismuth Oxychloride), Ci 42090 (Blue 1 Lake)].
How does the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer work for acne?
I guess that depends on what you want to achieve. Again, this is not a full coverage concealer, so it won´t be able to cover your acne lesions completely. I don´t find this one to work very good on especially oily patches of my face either, as the creamy consistency makes it prone to moving around a little, so I personally had no luck using it to conceal an active blemish.
I do however like it once the blemish has gone down, as I tend to get dryness around it from my acne treatments, that the NARS Creamy Concealer does not emphasize.
Still, it would not be my first choice for acneic skin.
How does the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer work for mature skin?
My under eye area is the litmus test for any concealer. Nowhere else on my face are so many lines, so much movement and skin so prone to dehydration. If a concealer performs there, I can slather it all over the rest of my face without having to worry.
And assuming I do a good prep (hydrating eye cream before and setting powder afterwards), the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer convinces.
How does the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer compare to…
Maybelline Fit Me Concealer
It is hard to read a NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer Review without hearing about the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer as a possible drugstore dupe, so let me just go with the masses here and tell you how I think they compare.
Well, they look similar in terms of packaging and applicator, obviously the Maybelline Fit Me one is way cheaper (a fourth of the price, to be exact), but how about the performance? I´d say the Maybelline Fit Me is lighter in texture than the NARS one, which makes it less prone to creasing when applied with a heavy hand, but lighter in coverage as well. So while I´d give the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer a solid medium coverage badge, the Maybelline Fit Me is more of a light coverage buildable to medium if you try.
Oh, and there are only 13 shades in the Maybelline Fit Me one. So a true dupe?
No, they aren´t. But a very good substitute if the NARS one is out of your budget.
Read my full review of the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer here.
Is NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer cruelty free?
I get these questions quite often, so I figured I´d include my answer directly into my NARS Radiant Cream Concealer Review: By the end of 2017 NARS updated their cruelty free policy when deciding they would join the Chinese market in regards that, where required by law, they would test on animals.
So bottom line: The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer is near perfect for me for under my eyes and even as poor woman foundation on lazy days. It is not the best for covering spots or scars. But for me personally it is worth the price.
