Nothing excites me more than a new foundation release. Exactly a month ago, Shiseido released Synchro Skin Lasting Liquid Foundation, which is said to be a smart, modern matte, long-lasting foundation that synchronizes with each skin type.

When I heard that this foundation is matte, that is it! I was sold. I have not been using any Shiseido foundation for quite some time so I was not sure what differs this from the rest of the foundation clan within the brand. My last Shiseido foundation trial would be the Sheer and Perfect Foundation, which I like when I want a dewy, light coverage.

I have a love hate relationship with the bottle. I like that it is made from frosty glass bottle but it is so tall that it does not fit in my rotating organizer, to which I store all my foundation. Then there is this ombre cap. Yes it is pretty but I find myself constantly having problem matching the shape of the cap with the bottle lol. This is just my personal preference 🙂 . I do like the higher nozzle tip placement as I can easily wipe the excess off after each use without the foundation leaking into the gap.

Now. The foundation itself are formulated with a technology called the Advanced Sensing Technology that is said to adapt to each skin and skin tone by recognizing the skin condition of the user. It smartly creates a dynamic synchronization with the skin, beautify it to give you a flawless natural look. It does not covers up your skin flaw but instead it draws out the skin’s natural vitality to reveal the natural beauty hidden underneath. This type of technology is not new in the market. When I first started using a 2-way power foundation more than 10 years ago, I was told the powder has the ability to adapt to the skin after a few minutes according to the blood flow and warmth of the face. Ever since then I have never heard of any brand or makeup product that does that. The Shiseido Synchro Skin Lasting Liquid Foundation would be the first after so many years!

I went for the hands-on workshop for this foundation launch as Shiseido wanted us to get the first hand try and to get our shade match. Why is this important? Well, it comes in 13 shades, which are broken down to three hues according to skin base. I have always been lucky with choosing the right foundation shade at the back of my hand as I am always matched with the lightest shade. For Shiseido foundation, I have been using their shade 100 Very Light Ivory and even that is slightly dark on my skin tone. So this time I went for Neutral 1. It looked fine at the workshop but outside? Admittedly it is too light on me LOL. Neutral 2 would suits me better. However I am not even a bit worried with light foundation. I always bronze and contour so I can easily balance it out with a bronzer 🙂 . Issue solved!

Here is the Before and After. I was told that the foundation does not oxidize. I never quite believe that when it comes to foundation but I can safely tell you that this Shiseido Synchro Skin Lasting Liquid Foundation really does not oxidize at all. It is a medium coverage foundation, buildable to full coverage if you like. Now here comes the tricky part. The foundation looked sheer upon application. It does not seems to cover any of my skin flaw but when I took the below photo for the review, I was shocked. It is thick! Is my eyes doing some trick on me? I don’t know. That explains why I always end up with cakey makeup whenever I use this foundation. Hah! Mystery solved!

The foundation, as told by Shiseido during the workshop is best applied with fingers as the warmth from the fingers will melt the foundation down as you apply it so it goes on smoother and beautifully. Always start foundation application from the center of your face, smoothing towards the outer perimeter. That does not mean this foundation does not goes well with a brush or beauty blender. No. It works fine. Just use whichever method you like!

Synchro Skin Lasting Liquid Foundation also works well as concealer. I love it when brands came out with a foundation that doubles up as concealer. Some works, some don’t. This one works like a charm. The below Before and After photo as concealer is just a little foundation dab. I usually apply two thin layers as my dark eye circles are bad due to lack of sleep 🙁

The foundation and I had a love hate relationship. I have not been having luck with making it work for me for the first week. But that was purely my own mistake. I piled up too much so it was cakey! As I said before, it looked sheer on the skin at first. After a few minutes it is a different story. I keep on forgetting about the Advanced Sensing Technology that adapts to the skin condition. With this foundation, a little does goes a long way. You do not need much. It will intelligently transform to match with your skin. It is a semi-matte foundation so powder setting is not necessary for dry skin. If you have combination skin, you can always dust a little powder on the T-zone. I like to keep my skin matte all day long so I prefer to set it with powder.

Do I like the foundation now that I understand it better? That’s a yes! It is a foundation unlike others. I just have to bear in mind not to go too heavy handed. What appears on the mirror may not be the same in real. Did I mention the foundation will look even better when the face sebum peeks through a bit? Now you know 😉

Disclaimer: Product was a press gift. This doesn’t affect my judgement in the review in any way.