Going to Korea soon? 7 Foundation Reviews

Are you going to Korea soon and thinking of what you’ll buy in Olive Young? Here’s my review of 6 different Korean foundations and 1 western brand!

TLDR: Purchase the Hince Second Skin Foundation or the Jung Saem Mool Skin Nuder Foundation!

Rating criteria

Overall score

1. Ease of application - Take note that I use a makeup spatula and then a brush to spread out my foundation

2. How it settles on my skin - Whether the foundation adheres to my skin well, whether it leaves a cakey look

3. Coverage - How well the foundation coverages up my skin’s redness and acne scars

4. Durability - How long does this foundation last, whether it smudges easily

5. Price (roughly based on Shopee’s prices)

Jung Saem Mool Skin Nuder Foundation (8.2/10)

I love this foundation the most out of all my foundations. I find that it gives me the best skin like look!

I had known that JSM is a top-rated makeup brand in Korea and this purchase certainly cemented that impression.

With that being said, this foundation is more expensive as compared to the other foundations, coming in at around $50 (which is the same as what I paid for it in Korea).

Take note that I purchased this at Chicoor in Korea and not at Olive Young - I don’t think OY stocks this brand in their stores!

1. Ease of application 5/5 - I actually look forward to using this foundation because of how easy it is to apply it with my makeup spatula 😚

2. How it settles on my skin 4.5/5 - It gives me the most skin-like natural look, almost feels like nothing on my skin! There is however some patchiness and streakiness but it’s very slight. Even though it has SPF, it doesn’t feel oily. My boyfriend even commented that it makes my skin look flawless! 🤩

3. Coverage 3.5/5 - Covers my skin’s redness and acne scars slightly but it’s not high performance

4. Durability 4.5/5 - Given that it is a glowy/sheer type of foundation, it does budge if you wipe against your skin but I don’t mind this. I noticed that there was some patchiness at the end of the day.

5. Price 3.5/5 - At $50, this is the second most pricey foundation out of all the other foundations.

Parnell Cicamanu Skin Fit Foundation (7.5/10)

This is one of the first foundations I’ve bought in Korea as it’s well stocked across all the Olive Young stores.

It’s not the very best but it’s also not the worst. It does the job well enough but I wouldn’t repurchase.

It’s branded as a semi matte foundation - I find this confusing… it feels neither a glowy nor. A matte foundation.

I’ve noticed that matte foundations tend to stick to your dry patches more easily - and it is so with this foundation.

1. Ease of application (3.2/5) - As the foundation is slightly thick, the application is meh - upon application, it sticks to my dry patches so it’s harder to apply to my face evenly.

2. How it settles on my skin (3.5/5) - Clings onto my dry patches; my skin doesn’t look as flawless as compared to when I use JSM

3. Coverage (3.5/5) - Coverage is similar to JSM.

4. Durability (4/5) - It endures well over the day but it does budge if you wipe your skin.

5. Price (5/5) - At around $30, this is priced really reasonably!

Hince Second Skin Foundation (8.5/10)

Like Parnell, this was one of the first few foundations I’ve bought. This was my favourite before I purchased the JSM foundation.

Similar to Parnell, this foundation is widely available in Olive Young’s across Korea and retails for about $30.

As to why I prefer JSM to Hince, I prefer JSM’s viscosity which is much thinner and water like as compared to Hince’s viscosity which is thicker, almost like a paste.

Performance wise, both are really similar - with JSM performing slightly better. I would say that if you have this foundation, there’s really no need to purchase JSM.

1. Ease of application 4.5/5 - Very similar to JSM’s foundation but due to its thicker viscosity, I prefer JSM’s.

2. How it settles on my skin 4.5/5 - Very similar to JSM’s again, and like how it’s branded, it is like a second skin. I would say JSM is a tad better but the difference is minute. There’s patchiness upon application. Compared to JSM, Hince’s accentuated my patchiness even more but the difference is slight.

3. Coverage 3.5/5 - Coverage is similar to JSM’s but I noticed that JSM’s is better slightly.

4. Durability 4/5 - Given that it is a glowy/sheer type of foundation, it does budge if you wipe against your skin but I don’t mind this.

5. Price 5/5 - At $30, this is priced reasonably!

Espoir Pro Tailor Be Velvet (7.5/10)

Espoir was recommended as one of the more popular makeup brands amongst Koreans.

This particular foundation is a matte one, and as with all other matte foundations, it tends to stick to dry patches.

As such, I’m not a huge fan of this foundation, especially so, in Singapore where my skin tends to secrete more oil throughout the day, undoing the matte effect. I’d say it performed much much better when I was in Korea - probably due to the different weather and climate conditions.

I’d say unless you’re a big fan of matte foundations and live in colder countries, I’d give this a skip.

1. Ease of application (3.5/5) - As the foundation is slightly thick, the application is meh - upon application, it sticks to my dry patches so it’s harder to apply to my face evenly. I’d say the performance is better than that of Parnell though.

2. How it settles on my skin (3/5) - Clings onto my dry patches; my skin doesn’t look as flawless as compared to my glowy foundations.

3. Coverage (3.5/5) - Coverage is similar to all the other foundations but very slightly better.

4. Durability (4.2/5) - It endures well over the day but it does budge slightly if you wipe your skin.

5. Price (5/5) - At around $30, this is priced really reasonably!

Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup (3/10)

The Estée Lauder foundation is highly hyped by influencers and fellow Lemon8 users. I however take a different opinion - I don’t like it.

Take note that this foundation retails at the highest price point at $82 and that you have to purchase a pump separately ($16) in order to extract the foundation efficiently. I also found the pump isn’t that smooth - I have to press it harder for foundation to come out.

Whilst I found that it spreads well and adheres to my skin well, I found that my other foundations performed just as well in terms of performing its function.

After wearing both the matte foundations together (Espoir and Estée Lauder), the overall performance is similar. There is a slight difference but it isn’t big enough to justify the huge price gap.

I don’t recommend the Estée Lauder foundation for these reasons.

1. Ease of application (3.8/5) - Unlike its matte counterpart, Espoir, the Estée Lauder foundation spread much better with my makeup spatula. However, upon application, it sticks to my dry patches.

2. How it settles on my skin (3.8/5) - As compared to Espoir, it settled on my skin much better, having a skin like look but there was still some dry patches. Wearing the Espoir foundation on one side and the Estée Lauder foundation on the other side, the Estée Lauder foundation is more smooth and slightly less patchy.

3. Coverage (3.8/5) - Coverage is similar to all the other foundations but better than Espoir’s.

4. Durability (4.5/5) - It endures well over the day but it does budge slightly if you wipe your skin.

5. Price (0/5) - At around ~$90, this is a no go for me.

Amuse Dew Wear Foundation (7.8/10)

This foundation is a glowy skin like foundation, it also has SPF50, which is as good as your regular sunscreens 👀

I don’t hate this foundation but I also don’t love it.

Due to the high SPF, I find that it leaves an oily sheen on my face which is worsened by Singapore’s hot and humid weather as well as my oily skin.

I’d say this foundation is suited for people who don’t have oily skin or for those who live in colder climates - where your skin doesn’t sweat/produce so much oil.

1. Ease of application 5/5 - It spreads as well as or even better than JSM’s 😚

2. How it settles on my skin 4/5 - It gives me the most skin-like natural look, almost feels like nothing on my skin! There is no patchiness due to the foundation’s viscosity. However, application is streaky. Due to its high SPF, it feels and looks oily after some time.

3. Coverage 3.3/5 - Covers my skin’s redness and acne scars slightly but it’s not high performance

4. Durability 4/5 - Given that it is a glowy/sheer type of foundation, it does budge if you wipe against your skin but I don’t mind this. This foundation budges the easiest compared to the other foundations.

5. Price 5/5 - At $30, this is priced very reasonably!

Laneige Neo Cushion Foundation Cover Cushion (2/10)

This is the first ever foundation I’ve ever had! My mom bought this for me when I was in my 20s and I replaced the cushion with the refill 1-2 years back.

I’m not a huge fan of cushion foundations due to hygiene reasons 🫣 After going through the first foundation insert, I found that the cushion pad became more and more gross 🤮

I realised that after using the pad, putting it back into the compact and closing it, bacteria seemed to thrive on the pad. I tried to wash it but it disintegrated 😭

It’s been a few months (or even years) since I’ve used this cushion 🫣 I sadly still disliked it. Take note that I used a makeup sponge and brush for the application. I

1. Ease of application 0/5 - I hated the application.

2. How it settles on my skin 0/5 - Out of all the foundations, this was the most cakey and spotty. Perhaps, this is due to the makeup sponge? It feels disgusting in my skin 🤮

3. Coverage 0/5 - The cushion provided me with so little coverage, that it felt point.

4. Durability 2/5 - It does budge if you wipe against your skin.

5. Price 5/5 - At around $38 with one refill, this is priced reasonably!

As you may know after reading many of my posts, I’ve splurged quite a lot on makeup and skincare.

I’ve probably 100s of makeup and skincare products in total, having shopped lots in Korea (I visit Korea at least twice a year!) and in Singapore’s Sephora 🤫

I’ll be starting a new series of posts reviewing all of the makeup and skincare products I’ve bought.

#makeup #foundation #korea