You’ll love this foundation—even if you’re not a foundation person

Let’s say you were taking a trip to the jungle… Would you bring foundation? Probably not. Summer in south Florida is pretty much the same as the Amazon, which makes me reluctant to wear foundation—but then I received La Prairie’s new Skin Caviar Essence-in-Foundation Broad Spectrum SPF 25 Sunscreen and I’ve totally changed my tune.

First, I LOVE a cushion compact because it makes application, touching up and travel so easy. As if La Prairie’s latest product and I weren’t already off to a good start, then I actually tried it. By far the fanciest foundation compact I’ve ever tried, I placed the sponge on the mesh and gave it a few clicks to release a bit of the liquid. Then I gently patted it on all over my face, and although my skin looked instantly smoother and more even, the formula is so lightweight I didn’t even know it was there. Obviously this passes the summer foundation test—and I’ll be wearing it well into fall, too.

But this compact delivers a lot more than natural-looking buildable coverage. You get La Prairie’s famed Caviar Water for all the skincare benefits you could possibly want, plus broad-spectrum SPF 25 to shield skin from the jungle (I mean summer) sun. It also holds up to the heat, and I was surprised that it survived a run-in with a friend that turned into a 20-minute chat. OUTSIDE of Saks Fifth Avenue. At high noon. (And of course there was nary a sign of sunburn in site.)

Truth be told, all of this oohing and ahhing doesn’t come cheap. In fact, it will set you back $195. BUT you get a refill. And it makes you feel fancy. And it makes your skin look amazing. If you’re up for a splurge, you won’t be disappointed.