Bespoke Makeup Sweeps Into Texas With High-Tech Magic

Bespoke suits, bespoke footwear, yes. But bespoke makeup? Welcome to a remarkable approach to personalized beauty.

Lancôme‘s Le Teint Particulier custom-made foundation promises to rock your world, particularly if you have difficulty matching your skin tone to over-the-counter offerings. And, really, who doesn’t?

As someone who could make Snow White look pale, I have long struggled to find a makeup base that made me look neither like a kabuki dancer nor like a terra cotta pot. So when Lancôme’s Erin Doyle Cronin offered me the opportunity to test drive this scientific make-up miracle, I didn’t hesitate.

After all with 8,000 different shades and 72,000 possibilities when combining three levels of coverage and three levels of moisture, surely there was something special here for me.

One recent afternoon, I was swept into the luxury of one of the Post Oak Hotel‘s lavish suites, which had been only slightly transformed to display a world of Lancôme products amid bouquets of white roses. In the corner, a Lancôme makeup artist worked the magic on a young client. I was soon to follow.

The consultation began with a scan of my skin tones via a gadget that looked something like an old style cellphone. The results were sent to a tablet with software that contains thousands of skin tones from which my personalized formula was calculated using an algorithm. The process is a combination of artificial intelligence with color expertise and personal input.

The color expert asked about my skin type and my preference for foundation coverage. My skin is dry. I prefer medium coverage.

Once the formula match was derived, it was mixed in a science lab-looking machine that is equipped with “eight peristaltic pumps for an airtight blending and dispensing process.” I watched as the colors gently poured into the bottle, which was then mixed to a perfect color.

The makeup artist tried a sample on my face and I thought it a bit too pale. It might have been a perfect match to my skin tones but I wanted a touch more warmth, avoiding that kabuki pallor.

She put the vial back into the machine, punched a few keys. Color dropped in. The mixing resumed. Et voila! Within seconds, the color and coverage were perfected. I was delighted.

If that weren’t enough attention to detail, the sleek bottle of foundation was given a personalized label with both my name and my formula number so that I could order refills without the process. The Shelby bottle was placed in a velvet lined box, adding a further touch of luxe to the entire experience.

The cost is $88 for a one ounce bottle and is available at Nordstrom in Houston’s Galleria and in NorthPark’s Nordstrom in Dallas. While new to Texas, Le Teint Particulier was introduced in 2016 and that year won Allure magazine’s Best of Beauty Breakthrough honors.