This Scanner Produces Makeup That Perfectly Matches Your Skin in Minutes

Bespoke AmericaBespoke AmericaExploring the art and science of all things custom.

Once upon a time, I was shooting a TV pilot. It was potentially a big moment for my career, but I’d tweaked my neck the week before. Not wanting to be all stiff, I went in to get some bodywork done, and it turns out that the bodyworker was a sadist who left me with visible bruises all over my neck. The morning of the shoot, I went to a department store to find some cover-up, and I could not for the life of me find anything that looked right.

What’s especially wild about that is that, if we’re being honest here, I am a generic-ass white boy, and cosmetic companies have long designed the majority of their offerings for fair-skinned consumers. For people of color, finding a foundation that matches their skin perfectly can be more difficult. Companies like Fenty Beauty have certainly pushed the industry in the right direction, but there’s still a very long way to go, which is why I wanted to check out this new system from Lancôme.
 
Le Teint Particulier is fully custom foundation. You can go to one of over 20 stores around the U.S., get your skin scanned with a super-accurate colorimeter, and presto, precision pumps squirt different pigments and lotions into a bottle, and in five minutes, you have foundation that matches your skin exactly. I mean, it’s uncanny. You can even adjust the thickness and oiliness of it to match your complexion. At $88, it’s expensive for foundation, but for people who have struggled to find the right makeup, it might feel revolutionary. Check out the video above to see how the whole process works.