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Foundation haters, rejoice—Mary Phillips, the makeup artist behind Hailey Bieber, Kendall Jenner, and Priyanka Chopra’s dewy, cool-girl glam, has officially dropped her breathable, light-as-air foundation that makes you forget everything you know about traditional formulas. Bieber even trusted the silky complexion perfector for her 2026 Grammys glam. But heed my warning: it will not stay in stock for long.
Hailey Bieber wearing the M.ph Le Skin Weightless Serum Foundation at the 2026 Grammys.
The contouring powerhouse, who launched her self-abbreviated brand, M.ph, last summer with a specialized palette for her “underpainting” technique, is back with a major addition to the growing line. After creating some of Who What Wear beauty editors’ favorite sculpting and lip products (shoutout to the Overliner Lip Pencil and Lip Ciggies), Phillips has launched her very own “weightless” foundation—no really, it’s in the name—that boasts a gentle, hydrating formula, a natural finish, and the kind of medium coverage that makes people question whether you’re wearing anything at all, or just having a really good skin day. It’s available to purchase on both Sephora and the M.ph site as of right now.
The Product
M.ph
Le Skin Weightless Serum Foundation
Shades: 35 | Coverage: Medium | Finish: Natural | Key ingredients: Niacinamide, hyaluronic acid
One of the first things that jumps off the page is its serum formula. Though this type of foundation is steadily increasing in popularity, with others like Victoria Beckham’s Foundation Drops and Ilia’s Super Serum Skin Tint being WWW favorites, it’s still something that grabs our attention—especially when said serum claims to have buildable coverage, which is sometimes a challenge with such lightweight, skincare-boosted formulas.
Speaking of skincare, this flexible formula—available in a whopping 35 shades that consider cool, warm, neutral, and olive undertones—is infused with 2% niacinamide and hyaluronic acid for that extra dose of nourishment. Niacinamide is a steadfast ingredient in so many people’s skincare routines, whether they realize it or not, because it treats a variety of skin concerns: redness, enlarged pores, dark spots, pigmentation… You name it. This means that in addition to the foundation’s hydrating properties, courtesy of hyaluronic acid, it can also help to even and smooth your skin tone and texture. In other words, this foundation is doing something good for your skin while you wear it, which can’t be said for all formulas.
Having sensitive and dry skin, I was relieved to see that this foundation was packed with so many beneficial ingredients—and that it was certifiably safe for irritable skin types. But to find out for ourselves, senior beauty editor Jamie Schneider and I tested this foundation for two weeks to see how it really holds up to all-day wear, cold, dry winter weather, and the mounds of other makeup products we test in a week. Keep reading to see how it fared.
The Testing Process
Application
As seen in Phillips’ TikTok tutorials, the makeup artist prefers to apply her foundation in light, sweeping motions with a fluffy brush, which helps deposit the product in a sheer fashion across her underpainted canvas. To get her exact results (minus the years of professional experience), Phillips also released a foundation brush, specially engineered with synthetic bristles to blend the formula into a natural, skin-like finish.
M.ph
The Foundation Brush
After some trial and error, I found that the best way to apply and blend this foundation was to deposit one to two pumps—depending on how much coverage I desired—onto the back of my hand, dab the product onto my face in small dots with a finger, and stipple the product into my skin to warm up the foundation. From there, I swirled the brush across my skin in painterly strokes, blending the formula with surprising ease. (I normally use denser blending brushes to apply foundation, so I was a bit skeptical about this brush that, to me, looked better-suited for powder. Boy, was I mistaken.)
Our Review
Alyssa Brascia, Associate Beauty Editor
I was floored by the performance, texture, and natural glow of this foundation. My sensitive skin leans dry—which is exacerbated during the winter—yet this product left my complexion looking radiant and hydrated despite the New York cold. Though I expected a bit of a learning curve with this fluffy brush, I found it to be a surprisingly intuitive blending tool (and even began favoring it over my regular dense brush). Because the foundation has a supremely light texture, you can achieve a smoother blend and streak-free, more painterly finish with the longer, thinner bristles than you would with a regular foundation brush.
Another quality of this formula that surprised me was its staying power. With my usual foundation, I’ll usually notice a bit of creasing at the end of most days—especially around my under-eyes and dry patches—or fading, which allows my natural redness to peek through. At the end of very long travel and New York Fashion Week days (sometimes 12-hour stretches), I still had an even visage, and I suspect that it encouraged the rest of my makeup to stay put, as well. Yes, there will be the occasional crease, but as far as foundation goes, this is the one I’ll now reach for on days when I want major longevity and natural, skin-like results.
Brascia wearing the M.ph by Mary Phillips Le Skin Weightless Serum Foundation.
Jamie Schneider, Senior Beauty Editor
“This is the most serum-like foundation I’ve tried that doesn’t come with an actual pipette,” says Scheider. “It’s super weightless and forgiving, and I can tell that it’s made to layer; I can use three coats on the same area (which I did in the photo here!) without it looking cakey. You really can’t overdo it, which means I can apply glob after glob directly on my skin without disrupting that natural skin finish.
“I usually dispense the product on the back of my hand, saturate a dense brush until each bristle is thoroughly coated, then apply all over my face for a soft-focus finish. With this foundation, however, I find more success with applying product directly on my skin wherever I’d like the most coverage, then using The Foundation Brush to softly swirl the pigment until it blends. (Thank you, Alyssa, for the tip!) Trust, that application makes all the difference.”
Schneider wearing the M.ph by Mary Phillips Le Skin Weightless Serum Foundation.
If you’re not yet convinced that you need a serum foundation in your life, there are so many more that we’ve tested (and a handful still on our wishlists). Keep scrolling for more silky serum foundations that perform like makeup, but treat your complexion like skincare.
Shop More Serum Foundations
Outside In
Silk Serum Foundation
Rare Beauty
Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation
Ilia
True Skin Medium Coverage Serum Foundation
MAC Cosmetics
Studio Radiance Serum Powered Foundation
Saie
Glowy Super Skin Tint Foundation
Victoria Beckham Beauty
The Foundation Drops
L’Oréal Paris
True Match Hyaluronic Tinted Serum Foundation
