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Post in K-Beauty
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What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

What Western products have you found work well to get that K-beauty natural look? I would also love some foundation recommendations! Non western makeup works fine too! The reason why I specified Western products is just because it's more accessible to me, and that I really hate the white ashy sheen a lot of Korean foundations give, but if anyone has some Korean products that actually have a color range, I'd be glad to look at them!

 

I'm a college student who only spends about 10 minutes on makeup everyday. I hate feeling like I'm wearing makeup, and I also hate looking like I'm wearing pounds of makeup on my face when going to lectures. I usually opt for using Jeffree Star Concealer to lightly cover up acne, Etude House Water Tint for lips and blush, and Cheek Chok by A'Pieu in Rooibos Tea Latte to layer on cheeks again. If I'm feeling extra fancy I use Kaja Eye Bento Bouncy Eyeshadow Trio Orange Blossom to lightly dust around my eyes. I finish off lips with innisfree My Lip Balm Dried Rose Tea.

 

I've been wondering if I should look into some foundations to wear, but I'm having a hard time finding one that I really like. I'm looking for something super lightweight, and light to medium coverage. I tried the innisfree foundation cushion and also the pump and hated both of them, but that's a different conversation lol.

 

Thank you!

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Laneige or Fresh products. Clinique is good for the more “Western experience.” As for makeup Bare Minerals and/or Bobbi Brown

To be short, Koreans prefer western brand foundation such...

To be short, Koreans prefer western brand foundation such as Giorgio armani, bobbi brown, chanel and etc. I recommend Bobbi brown serum foundation if you prefer glowy, natural finished foundation! Also, glossier has a lot of natural makeup products!

RE: Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Laneige is a Korean product 🙂 It was trendy in Korea for a short while and people still use it, but not many younger people do because it's on the expensive side.

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Surprisingly, Western foundations are more popular in Korea. The popular ones are from Giorgio Armani, YSL, Dior, Guerlain and Nars. There are a few formulations that are only available in Korea though... If you are looking for the glowy look, just avoid the matte formulas. I'll list a few specific foundations that are popular in Korea and available in the US:

 

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk

Giorgio Armani Power Fabric

YSL All Hours Foundation

Dior Forever Skin Glow

Guerlain Parure Gold

NARS Sheer Glow 

 

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Thank you for the reply! For you personally, what product that you listed is your favorite and why? Was the formula smooth and lightweight? 

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

I haven't tried all of them. I personally liked Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk. I have combination skin and it wasn't too glowy for me with sufficient coverage. People didn't notice that I was wearing foundation at all. Nars Sheer Glow  and Dior Skin Glow looks great, but my skin was getting a bit greasy at the end of the day in the summer. Both are lightweight and smooth. I would say that all of the foundations listed are on the lightweight side. 

 

Giorgio Armani Power Fabric and YSL All-Hours foundation was great for longevity, but I wouldn't call it glowy at all. Those two foundations were popular in the fall when people were gravitating towards sophisticated looks. 

 

Definitely try to get samples. Those foundations are so expensive!

 

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Thank you so much for the detailed reply! Next time I stop by sephora I'll be sure to test these out!

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

I love the K Beauty look too though my skin is not milky white so a lot of the Korean cushions and foundations are hard to find the right shade (either too dark or too light for me).  For lips, I reach for my Charlotte Tillbury hot lips 2 In love with Olivia daily (Sephora). It is already more moisturizing than most lipsticks and still quite pigmented (it’s a dream for me) but I like to add my Innisfree honey lip mask over it to create a more gradient look and lock in the moisture for my dry lips.  It’s a little pricy but if you have a simple routine and just need one amazing lipstick, owning one of her newly formulated lipsticks is worth the splurge. Also her hot lips 2 Angel Alessandra (coral nude) to me is such a K Beauty shade that is so popular in Korea these days.  It’s a shade that makes you look high society.  I had a no make up look one day and was only wearing Angel Alessandra and I got complimented on my lipstick color and also that it made me look like a wealthy society lady 😆 Blush is also very important for that K beauty look or any look. I love EM cosmetics liquid blush in nectar.  It’s my favorite blush this year.  I like glossier cloud paint blushes too but for the dry winter, the EM blush is just perfect.  If you’re on a budget, Milani cheek kiss blush is fantastic to achieve that K beauty look (I own pink flirt and rose romance).  If I’m in a hurry with no time to blend a liquid blush, I reach for my Clinique cheek pop powder blush in ginger (beautiful color that I’ve seen Korean you tubers wear but it’s a challenging powder blush to get good color pay off. I was going to toss it when I discovered my secret weapon, the Zoeva stippling brush can work wonders with it).  Before I used a beauty blender, my fingers or a blush brush to apply liquid or cream blushes but I’ve discovered the Zoeva stippling brush is stupendous at layering and blending blush so beautifully and effortlessly (I’m headed to Ulta soon to buy a backup which is a first as I never do with brushes so that says a lot). I use Stem cellular CC cream in natural glow from Juice Beauty (Ulta) to give me that luminous K beauty look. Has some coverage, spf 30, and is a clean brand so I don’t feel as bad using it on my skin.  If Juice Beauty came out with a cushion version of it, I’d be over the moon!

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Thank you! I'll definitely look into the Zoeva stippling brush since I currently only have one brush I use for basically everything lol. For the Stem cellular CC cream, what have you found that works well with it in terms of primer and setting powder or is it fine with anything? Is it longwearing, and if not, how many hours have you found before it needs a touchup. Also do you think it would work well with oily skin? 

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

The juice beauty cc cream stays on about 6 hours. I have middle aged drier skin at this point so I use a lot of products that provide protection and nourishment. If I have time, I’ll use a beauty blender to stamp it on. For someone with oily skin, it depends how matte you want to go.  If you like a little moisture, you could go without a moisturizer under it and not need powder.  For someone young like you, you may wish to give Missha bb creams and cushions a try.  I’m not good about using a primer but when I do, I use cover fx super power antioxidant booster drops (on sale at Sephora), kaja blur drop (sadly discontinued), or son and park filter cream (it’s $16, 50% off at Sokoglam right now!). I will reach for the heavyweight champion, makeup forever photofinish primer, for occasions when I want to look camera ready and flawless as possible.  For powder, I use the Innisfree mineral powder.  I like the dewy look at my age so I don’t usually powder or I just powder T zone unless I have a special event to go to.

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Thank you for the reply! Your advice sounds really useful and I'll definitely look into it!

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

@gabrelliefor a light coverage foundation that is literally effortless (or as near as you'll get) to apply and gives a nice natural, dewy look I think KOSAS - Tinted Face Oil Foundation really can't be beat. The big caveats there are their shade range needs some work (though it's light enough you don't need an exact match) and there is some trial and error figuring out which products it will play nice with. If you're not using a primer that's one less thing to worry about, but it will still pill some moisturizers- especially any with dimethicone. It works with my Youth To The People Superfood Air-Whip Lightweight Face Moisturizer with Hyaluronic Acid 2 oz / 59 mL but not with a lot of the trials I've been working through. 🤷‍♀️  I love it, but depending on where you're ready to change up your routine it might not be to you

 

Otherwise their lip balm/ tint is really out of this world. Even if you don't do the foundation the lip tint is a slam dunk

Re: What Western products work for K-Beauty looks?

Thanks for your reply! For the KOSAS face oil foundation, what would you say you like about it? I read some reviews saying that it reacted with their skin and feels heavy, but have you had any of those experiences? How long would you say it is able to last before it needs a desperate touch up? Does it slide around or crinkle under the eyes? Also what other products have you found work well with it? 

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