Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsI personally like it
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 9, 2022
So my skin is more on the dry and sensitive side, but I loved this. Compared to western beauty, I can almost never find a good foundation that matches my skin [my skin is pretty light btw] and most of the foundations would usually end up looking orange on me. But this looks very good on me and also doesn’t dry up my skin or make my skin look patchy/flakey which is something that I sometimes get from other foundations. Right now I’d say this is a new favorite of mine.
Took a while for me to get here because my Hera cushion was stuck in transit for over two months due to the pandemic, but as promised here’s a review of all the cushions I have from Hera, Laneige, JSM, Espoir, Sulwhasso and [Non-AB bonus] YSL.
Climate: Humid, hot, tropical weather year-round.
Skin type and concerns: Extremely dry dehydrated skin. Can sometimes be oily around the T-zone. Enlarged pores. Mild redness around nose and cheeks. Currently on tretinoin, so there are ocassional issues with skin flaking around the nose and mouth.
Skin tone: Korean shade 21-22, neutral tone but leaning slightly more pink than yellow. My face is closer to a 21, while my neck is a bit darker at 22-23. So I tend to try to buy foundations in shade 22 to try to equalize my face and neck. Assume this is somewhere around NC20-25 Mac shade, although I wouldn’t know as their foundations make me itch.
Skincare routine: Highly moisturizing routine due to tretinoin usage. Anessa Perfect UV Skincare Milk as my base. Canmake Marshmallow Finish Powder or Eglips Blur Powder Pact on top of my cushions.
I use the terms brightness, hue and chroma quite a bit, so if it’s something you’re unfamiliar with, Saerom Min explains it really well here.
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[New 2021] HERA Black Cushion in Shade 21N1 Vanilla – This is the latest cushion I’ve been trying and the one I’m most in love with. You can identify this cushion reformulation as the cover has the H logo instead of “HERA” being etched on the lid. This has the highest coverage out of the bunch with a semi-matte finish, but looks extremely natural. I would say this would be one of the most comfortable cushions I’ve tried and in no way does it feel cakey, thick or patchy. Application goes on smoothly and evenly, it probably is the cushion that is the easiest to blend into your skin out of all the cushions I own. This cushion lasts all day with minimal shifting and the color barely drops [darkens] at all. Balance between brightness, hue and chroma is on point. Now I know why this is a cult favorite. 5/5 HG
Laneige Neo Cushion Matte in Shade 23N – I bought this cushion in 23N because 21N looked a tad too bright on the youtubers who had similar skin tone as mine. I would say the coloring for the Laneige cushions are very weird overall. There seems to be a huge gap between 21 and 23. Shade 23 seems like the right chroma, slightly darker than my face upon application and leans a bit yellow in hue. Initial application looks like shade 21, but sets into 23. I was quite shocked though, as the color dropped so much by the end of the day. Coverage is decent, but can tend to look a bit cakey if I build up too many layers on top of each other. Formulation feels a bit oily despite being a matte cushion. Packaging for the Neo’s are the best out of all the cushions, so that’s one thing going for it. 3/5 MR.
Laneige Neo Cushion Glow in Shade 21N – My second attempt at trying to get the right shade. 21N seems to have the right brightness, but is severely lacking in chroma, so ends up looking a bit white/grey. Upon application, the cushion appears too white on my face, but the color soon drops and looks closer to 21 after about an hour of wear. [Choices between shade 21 that's too white at the start of the day or shade 23 that is too dark by the end of the day???] This is probably the closest cushion I have that gives me the glass skin look. Despite being very light in coverage, it feels very heavy like I’m applying oil to my face that contains powder pigment. The pigment seems to “float” on top of the oil layer and tends to shift quite a lot, making my pores look worse by the end of the day. No amount of powder on top will stop the shifting. This may be an okay cushion for those who have dry skin and lives in really low humidity places. Not for me sadly. 1/5 WNR.
Jung Saem Mool Essential Skin Nuder Cushion in #Light – This is the moist version of the cushion. It really feels like my skin, but better type of cushion. It is a medium coverage for non-problematic skin, but for people who tend to flush really red, you may need to color correct with a primer or touch up with a concealer. Pore blurring action is great and wears nicely throughout the day without much caking around the nose. The color #Light seems to run a bit yellow-orange for me. Oil control seems decent, despite being a moist cushion, definitely better than both Laneige Neo’s at least. May not do too well under masks. Solid choice to start off with if you’re new to cushions and want a natural finish. 4/5 MR.
Espoir Pro Tailor Be Glow Cushion in #Petal – The color petal is really really nice and does a good job blurring problematic skin despite being a low coverage cushion. It looks the brightest on paper, but somehow the color melds into my skin nicely. The cushion really gives off a vibrant glow from within feel, without the wet glass skin look compared to the Laneige Neo Glow. The puffs on this cushion has the softest and most high-quality puff out of the bunch. It feels like pressing clouds onto your skin. This cushion isn’t build-able, so it may not be the right cushion for those with problematic skin or have a lot of areas to cover up. If you try to apply too much product to your face, it ends up pushing excess product around your face until it can settle somewhere. Even though glow cushions like these don’t last as long as other cushions, touch ups are a breeze with this one without clumping. I tend to prefer more matte and higher coverage cushions these days, but it’s a solid choice overall. 3/5 Probably WNR.
Sulwhasoo Perfecting Cushion Brightening in 21 Medium Pink – This is actually the only cushion I got to test out at the counter. Color is a bit off for me as hue is too pink and chroma is too low making me look gray. Actually, none of the other colors from the other lines fit me either as they either looked too yellow, too red, or too gray. Not much good things to say about this product as I hated the wear throughout the day as the foundation started breaking down quite fast [about the 3-4hr mark]. Upon application, there was a very strong distinctive herbal smell that eventually oxidized and smelled like rusted metal on my face. It would not go away until I washed it off at the end of the day. Too expensive to be worth it when compared to so many other options out there. 0/5 WNR.
[Bonus] YSL Fusion Ink Cushion Foundation in B30 Beige – I can’t say I would buy this cushion again as the price is quite high up there and I didn’t really have much knowledge about many AB products at the time. This cushion is pretty decent all around, but nothing amazing compared to other cushions to justify the price. Packaging is also okay only, and the puff feels a bit thin. The coverage is medium to high and the finish definitely more matte than other AB cushions. The cushion is really easy to spread and adheres nicely despite being a bit thick for a cushion. Foundation lasts all day but may get clumpy on areas around the nose and accentuate dry patches by the end of the day. Might not be the best for dry skin unless you have a good moisturizing routine beforehand. 2/5 WNR.
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Overall, I think I’m going to stick to matte cushions for my next few purchases, since AB matte cushions aren’t really matte, but still have this nice subtle glow after about an hour of wear. After buying mostly glow cushions, I don’t really think that if you have dry skin, you only have to stick to glow cushions [and vice versa] provided you have a decent skincare routine. Powdering on top is highly recommended as it helps the foundation stay on for longer. The glow will eventually come back after an hour.
Here’s some rough comparisons/buying guide for those that are interested:
Most matte to most glowy: YSL Fusion Ink Cushion > Hera Black Cushion > JSM Essential Skin Nuder > Sulwhasso Perfecting Cushion Brightening > Laneige Neo Matte > Espoir Be Glow > Laneige Neo Glow
Most coverage to least coverage: YSL Fusion Ink Cushion > Hera Black Cushion > Laneige Neo Matte > Sulwhasso Perfecting Cushion Brightening > JSM Essential Skin Nuder > Laneige Neo Glow > Espoir Be Glow
My recommended all around:
Hera Black Cushion for those who wear makeup all day and want a bit more coverage without sacrificing wearing comfort.
Espoir Be Glow for those who want the barely there, healthy glow makeup look and don’t mind touching up near the end of the day.
[My bad attempt at] SWATCHES HERE