By now we’ve all tried the infamous BB creams and heard of (or tried) the CC and all of its successors. The BB & CC creams are definitely here to stay, but the others never quite got a foothold in the West and I can understand why. There’s a time when it’s just too much. Straight up overkill. Luckily, Korea already has its next star product lined up, and I’m positive we’ll see/hear a lot more of it in the next year. Meet the “cushion foundation“, a product who’s popularity skyrocketed in Korea over the past year and with the Korean (beauty) wave, it’ll soon conquer our makeup counters as well.
So what exactly is a cushion foundation?
It’s a small refillable compact foundation you could easily mistake for a power or cream foundation, but instead it contains liquid foundation. Unlike your regular liquid foundation which comes in a pump or a bottle, the liquid is soaked into a cushion or sponge which you can pick up with a special puff and then carefully dab it onto the skin. It’s perfect for people who are on-the-go. Just like BB creams and CC creams, most cushion foundations offer the “all-in-one” function. That often indicates it serves as a foundation with moisturizing, cooling, brightening, cooling and sebum controlling abilities as well as UV protection.
Watch how it works in this video from Etude House:
Some brands that offer cushion foundations include AmorePacific, Etude House, IOPE, Verite, Laneige, The Face Shop, VDL, Innisfree and Hera. IOPE is said to have invented the cushion compact foundation and even today, the original version remains the best selling compact foundation in Korea. Fun fact: they’ve even released a compact for men.
1. Laneige BB Cushion Pore Control 2. Hera UV Mist Cushion
3. VDL Metal Cushion Foundation 4. Etude House Precious Mineral Any Cushion
5. IOPE Air Cushion XP
It’s no secret a lot of brands turn their eye towards Asia to spot new products that are up and coming. It’ll come as no surprise you can expect the first Western brand to jump on the bandwagon as soon as February next year, when Lancôme will release their ‘Miracle Cushion’ Liquid Cushion Compact, available in 6 shades for € 42. Refills will retail for € 30.
I’m going to try and get my hands on some of these when I hit Japan next Spring so I can give you a better idea which ones are worth investing in. In the meantime keep your eyes peeled for more Western releases.
What do you think about the idea of cushion foundations?
Would you give them a try?
Aziatische cosmetica lijkt altijd een stapje voor te zijn op westerse. Ik zou dit wel willen proberen.
My Lancome should be flying to me from France right about now. In Japan it’s supposed to be released at the February, but as of yet I have not seen a single advert or promo for it. I looked through all February issues of beauty and style mags. Nothing, zip zilch, nada.
The cushion market in Asia is so crowded that unless Lancome can come up with something excellent and out of this world (highly doubtful), for that price I don’t think it will be a huge success.
Either way, I am looking forward to comparing it to the flagship Amore Pacific cushion, since AP considers itself to be the Lancome of Korea, it’s only fitting. Hopefully I’ll be able to do it next week.
PS. Cushions are not that popular in Japan.
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I just got my hands on it and I’m testing it out as we speak. Lancôme had theirs made in Korea, so it’ll definitely come with the Korean expertise instead of just another Western dupe.
Indeed, I haven’t seen many Japanese brands with cushion foundations, so I was hoping to score some Korean ones when I visit Shin Okubo 🙂
Mirenesse, an Australian brand released their Collagen Cushion Compact last year, around May. Its awesome, the best formula, and I’ve tried Iope and Laneige. Its better coverage but yet still light.
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Hi Cat, thanks for the info. I’m not familiar with the brand but it sounds promising. I’ll try and see if I can get it here 🙂