The latest from Charlotte Tilbury is her new Hollywood Flawless Filter ($44 each for 1 fl oz/30 ml). It’s a complexion booster which you can use in a variety of ways for a radiant glow. I’m a huge fan of glowing skin and love mixing in liquid luminizers with foundation, applying as a base or layering it on top. I already own quite a number of glow bases but the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter is one of the best ones I’ve used. It’s very pigmented but is easy to blend. It melts into the skin and layers well with liquid foundation. For me it has the perfect amount of glow to be noticeable without looking harsh. Texture is just perfect for my combination skin to last all day without getting too dewy looking.
There are seven shades total and each one has a really pretty glow to them. Her website has shade recommendations according to her Light Wonder and Magic Foundation shades. I’d recommend sticking with the shade recs there. I’ve always been in between colors for her foundation varying between 5 (a bit too peachy), 6 (a bit too olive) and 7 (perfect undertone but a bit too deep). I usually mix 7 with 6. The Flawless Filters come with a sponge tip applicator. With this you can wear:
- As a primer under foundation
- Mixed in with foundation
- Or on top of foundation
I like it mixed in or on top. To mix I simply swipe on a few stripes on the face and dot in foundation on the forehead, cheeks and chin. I then blend out with a beautyblender sponge. The other way I’ve applied it is on top of blended foundation like you’d apply a brightening concealer or highlighter. Then blend with a sponge. Many of you have mentioned liquid highlighters tend to disrupt the foundation underneath. This one stays put and blends in with the base without wiping it away.
My best matches in the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter is Shade 4 or Shade 5. I’ve experimented with both and there’s a pretty big gap. I’m on the lighter side right now so 4 works best. I’ve also found Shade 2 or 3 work to lighten some foundation shades that are a bit too deep for me because they’re my summer color. I did try to use the deeper options as a contour and for my skintone they are really too warm to use. The nice thing about this product is you don’t need an exact match as it’s intended to add glow to the complexion not cover up the skin like foundation.
Swatches of all 7 shades below:
Blended:
Swatches next to the Wonder Glow and Brightening Youth Glow. Both of these are a lot sheerer in color and thinner in texture. The Wonder Glow has a beautiful golden yellow undertone which I have loved for years. The Brightening Youth Glow is more opalescent with a pearly glow. It’s also sheer and similar in concept to MAC Strobe Cream. The main difference is formula and color. MAC has more of an iridescent sheen and comes in different flashes of color. The Charlotte Tilbury is more of a natural flesh-toned shimmer. Applying all over does some slight color correcting in the brightening sense but in a very sheer natural way.
Swatches of Hollywood Flawless Filter 4, 5 and 6 next to Magic Foundations 5, 6 and 7:
Flawless Filter Shade #4 in action below applied on top of Magic Foundation 6 + 7 mixed.
Full natural makeup look wearing:
- Foundation is Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation 6 + 7 mixed
- Highlighter is Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter Shade 4 blended
- Powder is Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Powder Shade 2
- Blush is Charlotte Tilbury Cheek to Chic Blush in Sex on Fire
- Eyeshadow is NARS NARSissist Wanted Eyeshadow Palette and Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerize in Mona Lisa
- Brows are Diorshow Brow Styler in Universal Brown
- Lips are Charlotte Tilbury Lipstick in Pillow Talk with Cle de Peau Radiant Lip Gloss in Charm 3
- Top from Nordstrom Trouve
Bottom line love. I love these mixed in with foundation or layered on top. I’ve tried this with a variety of bases including the Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation, Dior Fiorever Foundation, Dior Forever Undercover, YSL Touche Eclat Glow, La Prairie Skin Caviar and found it compatible with all the formulas I tried. I like that the Flawless Filter has no detectable scent, has a dewy finish that doesn’t get greasy and has a beautiful glow. Quick note that a little goes a long way. The formula is very opaque and if you find you look too dewy or glowy then you’ve applied too much. I found there was a slight learning curve to getting just the right amount of glow. I think less is definitely more with this unless you want a real intense shimmer. I do wish there were a few more shades options. To me 1 and 2 look really similar but if you’re on the fair end of the color spectrum I suspect you will see more of a difference. I see a pretty big gap between 4 and 5 but I should be able to make them work with mixing for me once I get my tan back.
Overall I highly recommend these and think it’s definitely worth a look. They truly make the skin glow in a radiant way where you can control how much glow you have. You can definitely get a similar effect with other liquid luminizers but I feel like this formula works best for my skintype. So many other liquid highlighters tend to be a lot more shimmery or get dewy-looking very quick. This one has the right balance for me.
You can find these at all Charlotte Tilbury counters and retailers. Mine are from Charlotte Tilbury and Nordstrom.
Shades 3, 4 and 7 purchased by me. Shades 1, 2, 5, and 6 provided courtesy of Charlotte Tilbury for review.
