NARS Cosmetics All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation Versus Armani Beauty Luminous Silk Perfect Glow Flawless Foundation
What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Dimethicone
Emollient
Water
Skin ConditioningHydrogenated Polyisobutene
EmollientPolymethylsilsesquioxane
Glycerin
Humectant
Boron Nitride
Absorbent
Propanediol
Solvent
Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol Crosspolymer
PEG-10 Dimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Isostearic Acid
Cleansing
Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer
Decyl Isostearate
Emollient
Isododecane
EmollientBis-Hydroxyethoxypropyl Dimethicone/PEG-2 Soyamine/Ipdi Copolymer
Emollient
Isopropyl Titanium Triisostearate
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Acrylates/Polytrimethylsiloxymethacrylate Copolymer
Skin ConditioningDisteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingIsostearyl Isostearate
Emollient
Boerhavia Diffusa Root Extract
Skin Protecting
Ascorbic Acid
Antioxidant
Retinyl Palmitate
Skin Conditioning
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Synthetic Fluorphlogopite
Silica
Abrasive
Polysilicone-2
Tin Oxide
Abrasive
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77491
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77492
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77499
Cosmetic ColorantDimethicone, Water, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Glycerin, Boron Nitride, Propanediol, Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol Crosspolymer, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Isostearic Acid, Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer, Decyl Isostearate, Isododecane, Bis-Hydroxyethoxypropyl Dimethicone/PEG-2 Soyamine/Ipdi Copolymer, Isopropyl Titanium Triisostearate, Phenoxyethanol, Acrylates/Polytrimethylsiloxymethacrylate Copolymer, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Isostearyl Isostearate, Boerhavia Diffusa Root Extract, Ascorbic Acid, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Silica, Polysilicone-2, Tin Oxide, Tocopherol, Mica, CI 77891, CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499
Water
Skin ConditioningCyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Isododecane
EmollientAlcohol Denat.
Antimicrobial
Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate
Emulsifying
Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone
Emulsifying
Hexyl Laurate
Emollient
Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate
Absorbent
Disteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Acetylated Glycol Stearate
Emollient
Magnesium Sulfate
PEG-10 Dimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Trihydroxystearin
Skin Conditioning
Cellulose Gum
Emulsion StabilisingNylon-12
Limonene
Perfuming
Benzyl Salicylate
Perfuming
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Antioxidant
Isobutane
Diphenyl Dimethicone
Emollient
Acrylonitrile/Methyl Methacrylate/Vinylidene Chloride Copolymer
Parfum
Masking
Disodium Stearoyl Glutamate
CleansingMethylparaben
Preservative
Butylphenyl Methylpropional
Perfuming
Aluminum Hydroxide
EmollientHexyl Cinnamal
Perfuming
Water, Cyclopentasiloxane, Glycerin, Isododecane, Alcohol Denat., Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Hexyl Laurate, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Phenoxyethanol, Acetylated Glycol Stearate, Magnesium Sulfate, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Trihydroxystearin, Cellulose Gum, Nylon-12, Limonene, Benzyl Salicylate, Benzyl Alcohol, Linalool, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Isobutane, Diphenyl Dimethicone, Acrylonitrile/Methyl Methacrylate/Vinylidene Chloride Copolymer, Parfum, Disodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Methylparaben, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Aluminum Hydroxide, Hexyl Cinnamal
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Disteardimonium Hectorite comes from the clay mineral named hectorite. It is used to add thickness to a product.
It can also help stabilize a product by helping to disperse other ingredients.
Hectorite is a rare, white clay mineral.
Learn more about Disteardimonium HectoriteGlycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.
Topically, glycerin does several things at once:
Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.
Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.
This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.
Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.
Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.
Learn more about GlycerinIsododecane is a fragrance, emollient, and solvent.
As an emollient, it helps your skin stay soft and hydrated. Emollients help trap moisture into your skin.
Isododecane's role as a solvent makes it a great texture enhancer. It spreads smoothly on skin and does not leave a sticky feeling behind. Isododecane also helps prevent color transfer in makeup products.
Isododecane is not absorbed into skin.
The chemical name for this ingredient is 2,2,4,6,6-PENTAMETHYLHEPTANE.
Learn more about IsododecanePeg-10 Dimethicone is silicone with conditioner and emulsifier properties. It mostly acts as an emollient in skincare and and humectant in haircare.
According to the manufacturer, acidic formulations decrease the stability of this ingredient. It works best in neutral or near neutral formulations.
Phenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).
It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.
On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.
Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).
You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.
Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.
Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.
Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.
Learn more about PhenoxyethanolWater. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.
So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.
You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!
Learn more about Water
