Test it Out Thursday - Kjaer Weis Foundation

Kjaer Weis foundation is a 2015 InStyle Best Beauty winner and has something of a cult following in the organic makeup world. With a hefty price tag of $93.00 Canadian for her cream foundation and compact you can definitely see why this is considered a “luxury brand”. I know what you are thinking, because I was thinking it too… wow that's a lot of money to spend on one compact of foundation! And your right but creator Kristen Kjaer Weis’ philosophy is focused around product sustainability and social responsibility. What that means for you is that after your initial purchase of any Kjaer Weis compact you can purchase a refill that will cost you far less that the original investment price. For example the refill of the foundation is $55.00 which is a much better price point than the initial $93.00 investment. The product comes in a beautiful silver compact with the signature KW logo on it and it is not flimsy so it will definitely last you years and years to come!

I admit I was intrigued by this product when I started my journey into the green beauty industry but I wasn't going to spend $93.00 Canadian or even $55.00 for a product without testing it first. So I purchased two samples from the Citrine Beauty Bar website for $5.00 a sample. I have to say the sample sizes were quite substantial. I chose Lightness and Like Porcelain. Lightness is the lightest foundation colour created for extremely fair skin. It is a well-balanced neutral color, suitable for pink or yellow undertones. Like Porcelain was created for fair skin with pink undertones (FYI this is my colour).

Lightness on the left and Like Porcelain on the right

Lightness on the top and Like Porcelain on the bottom

These foundations are formulated with Sweet Almond Seed Oil and Coconut Oil which naturally moisturize the skin, and Jojoba Seed Oil which is rich in fatty acids and promotes skin elasticity and reduces the signs of aging. I have read numerous reviews on this product and it apparently can cause some people to break out because it contains coconut oil but that wasn’t the case for me. The full ingredient list is below.

Ingredients: Mica, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Seed Oil•, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil•, Zea Mays (Corn) Starch•, Cera Alba•, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax•, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil•, Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil•, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Tocopheryl Acetate, Glyceryl Stearate, Talc, Gallic Acid May Contain +/- CI 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), CI 77491(Iron Oxides), CI 77499 (Iron Oxides), CI 77492 (Iron Oxides) • organically grown

This foundation can be applied with the Kjaer Weis foundation brush or with your fingers so I obviously opted for the finger approach as I have never really been a foundation brush or beauty blender girl…. although I might try one soon! I found this foundation has a pretty thick consistency when applying and it did take me a bit of time to work with the product to get a good application going. The website does recommend using the “Beautiful Oil” from Kjaer Weis as a primer to help smooth out the product but I forgot to buy a sample when I was ordering the foundation…. NOTE: a full bottle of the Beautiful Oil will cost you $300.00 so it’s not an investment I am prepared to buy into… yet anyways (however this product is more than double the size of most facial oils so that might justify the price…. maybe! It does however get good reviews). Anyways I didn’t have the oil so the foundation was a bit tricky to apply, it didn’t seem to glide on my skin like the other organic foundations I have tried. However, the coverage is flawless once you get it on, it covered every speck of red on my face and it really did give me that porcelain look and my other make-up applied beautifully on top of it.

Just look at this Beautiful Packaging!

When developing this foundation Kristen wanted a dual product, a foundation/concealer and that's why the foundation is so dense and heavy. And yes it does work as a concealer very well however when you are looking for a concealer you usually choose a shade or two lighter than your foundation in order to cover up any dark circles or redness that you might have. If that is the case you would still need to purchase two products. For example, the Like Porcelain shade was a perfect match for my skin and while Lightness was a bit too light for me it worked very well as a concealer! I am still using my sample “Lightness” as a concealer and pairing it with my Lauren Brooke foundation! I also set this product with some translucent powder for staying power.

Since this foundation is so thick I did have some creasing on my forehead initially but as the day went on the foundation was able to sit better on my face. However, by lunchtime I had a lot of noticeable shine in my T-zone and some redness on my face again.

Because this is such a pricey product I have to say I did expect more and was a bit disappointed in the performance! That being said this is a very well loved product and game changer for many people it just seemed to be a bit of a miss for me. It also doesn’t seem like you get a lot of product for the money spent. Some online reviewers suggest the full size product only lasts about 2-3 months…. so that is not really a lot of product for the money in my opinion. I still prefer my Lauren Brooke foundation over this one. I also found that the coverage was a bit too heavy for me.

I really wanted to love this product but I don’t think I will be repurchasing a full size and I am sure my husband will be very happy not to see $93.00 coming off the visa every 2 to 3 months, lol…

All of Kjaer Weis products are free of Phthalates, Butylated Hydroxytoluene, Propylene Glycol, Butyl Acetate, Cocamide DEA/Lauramide DEA, Diazolidinyl Urea, Ethyl Acetate, Parabens and Petrolatum. But there is no rating on the Think Dirty or Healthy Living Apps yet.

Although it wasn’t my favorite foundation you should definitely try it out if you are looking for a heavier coverage foundation because its still a good product with excellent organic ingredients.

Simply Truly Jenny…