We Tested Sephora + Pantone’s Color IQ System, for a Bright, Evenly Toned Tomorrow
The beauty industry is probably the most optimistic business in the world, save the stock market. Innovations are everywhere you look, technology is constantly improving and we doubt we’ll be happy until there’s no Amazonian leaf, berry, or twig left unturned. It’s a great thing, the endless search for something that’ll make a difference in women’s lives.
And yet given this same quality, it’s all too easy to turn a cynic. The irony isn’t lost, but with each new compound heralded as the thing that’ll transform skincare/foundation/lipstick/the world forever, it’s usually safer to pull a skeptical side-eye than put all your hopes and dreams into a product’s abilities. We guess we’ve just had our hearts broken one too many times for that (BB creams, relationships, what’s the difference).
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So when Sephora rolled out their new Color IQ system with Pantone, we were pretty ambivalent. Sure, it could read your skintone, but you know what else can? Eyes. Plus, there’s few better feelings than finding the perfect foundation match through pure hard work. It’s like sorting through Goodwill to get that one amazing piece, or finding all of your missing socks at once. Elation. Deserved elation.
Well. Turns out we were totally wrong, and we couldn’t be happier about it. We went and got color tested, and in all of ten minutes we had a perfect color match and a selection of finishes to choose from. In case you’re not up to speed, the system works like this: a trained associate holds an iPhone-sized gadget up to your cheek, under-eye area and forehead while it takes snapshots of your skintone. About a minute later, it’s matched you with all the possible options in the store; after explaining what you’re looking for, the associate helps you test out a few of them, then emails you the rest with your Color IQ Number for future reference (or for those of us who forget things as soon as they stop being said).
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So let it be known: the Color IQ system is pretty darn convenient, and there’s still that great, “this is my face in a bottle!!” feeling. Only, it’s so much better because while hard work is nice and all, easy things are even better (and thus, Segways were born). But what’s more, Color IQ is perfect for women who are intimidated by the vast amount of options that foundation shopping confronts you with. Between texture, coverage, tone, moisture, and SPF (not to mention any wrinkle situations), looking for the perfect foundation can seem daunting. Color IQ narrows down the options and cuts out the unnecessary confusion, for once using technology to make things more accessible instead of less, like our TV remote.
The only issue? The system’s accessibility itself. Color IQ depends on wireless Internet access to work, so while most Sephora’s in major cities should have it soon or already do, those in more rural areas may face a longer wait time. Still, a store associate said that they’re working on rolling them out across the country, so it shouldn’t be that long. There’s no doubt about it: the future’s bright, evenly-toned and protected from harmful free radicals.
