I have used the original YSL All Hours foundation for a few years, it was my favourite med/full coverage, long lasting foundation of all time. For those not familiar with it, I would say it was very comparable to Estee Lauder Double wear Stay-in-place, but less matte (it was more of a satin finish) and less drying on the skin, despite it containing alcohol quite high on the inci list.
When L’oreal decided to “reformulate and repackage”, as they always do…. I was anxious to try the new version, hoping it would not be worse than the original. Spoiler alert: it unfortunately did not live up to my expectations.
Shade: I was B30 in the original (light neutral with slight olive undertones). According to the chart YSL has on their website, I should be LN9 in the new version. That shade was way too dark and yellow for me, the closest match I could find is MC2 (despite it being described as cool toned, it is actually a neutral with slight olive undertones). The original did oxidise within minutes of application (turned half a shade darker, but not orange in any way), the new formula doesn’t “darken”, however it does oxidise into a warmer shade (very slightly).
Formula: YSL claims the new version is “filled with skincare” and spf 39. The skincare ingredients are at the very bottom of the inci list. It still contains alcohol (4th ingredient), but they have lowered the concentration of glycerin – which results in the foundation being far more drying, than the original. I can feel “tightness” on my skin within an hour of wear, no matter how well I prep.
Finish: As mentioned, the original was a satin matte finish. It gave a slight luminosity to the skin, which lasted throughout the day for me. It never looked cakey, powdery or too “makeup-y”. The new version is far more luminous (hence the name Luminous Matte), and in my experience, it goes from luminous to “plastic/oily/shiny” looking within an hour of wear. Keep in mind – I have dry skin. The only way for me to tone down the shiny looking finish is to powder it with a talc based powder – which I do not like to do. I even tried it with the YSL Blur primer, it still looked overly shiny, just after 3 hours. The original worked and looked gorgeous on the skin all day, without any additional product (no primer, setting spray, powder needed). I do have to say that the humidity is still quite high where I live, so perhaps it would perform better in the winter… There is a positive though – the new version looks really good on fine lines (forehead, under eye, around mouth). The old version wasn’t bad in that regard at all (even after 8+ hours of wear), but the new version is truly great, it almost “erases” the fine lines.
Final verdict: I think the new YSL All Hours foundation would be nice to wear in the evening, due to it’s luminous finish. This however isn’t something I want from my day-wear foundation. I also think it looks far more “makeup-y” on the skin, compared to the original, in broad day light. I also don’t like the drying feeling on my skin, so I won’t be buying the full size of it.
