Fall 2009: Etude House Moistfull Collagen (Part 1: base makeup)

Etude House's fall collection is called Moistfull Collagen vs. Code: B. Moistfull Collagen consists of various base makeup items and skincare whereas Code: B is the makeup color collection. Honestly Code: B is a snore and I only picked up one (but a very pretty) lipgloss up from the collection.


I however purchased quite a bunch of the Moistfull Collagen collection with mixed results. I like the original Moistfull range so seeing base makeup from the new improved series really excited me and I indulged shamelessly in quite a few of them.

I will review the makeup items in this post and leave the few bits of skincare for later.

The Moistfull Collagen base makeup collection consists of:
-Essence-In Primer (a dual-phase spray) - 10000 Won
-Essence-In Base SPF22 PA+ (pink or green) - 13500 Won
-Essence-In Foundation SPF22 PA+ (2 colors: #1 and 2) - 13500 Won
-Balm SPF36 (1 color only) - 16500 Won
-Essence-In Pact SPF25 PA++ (2 colors: #1 and 2)- 15500 Won


I got all items except for the primer spray.


Essence-In Base:
This comes in bulky plastic bottle with a pump dispenser. I got the pink version (#2 Shimmer Essence) as I thought it would do a nice job of illuminating my pale skin.


The base is a lightweight cream with a smooth and silky feeling when you spread it. It nearly covers nothing but as I expected brightens my complexion and gives a soft pearly sheen.


So far so good...but unfortunately my skin reacted almost instantly to this product. I got a red rash on my right cheek along with a burning sensation so I had to remove the base and I won't be using it again.

Essence-In Foundation:
The packaging is like the one of the Essence-In Base but the top part is purple instead of peach.


The texture and coverage (about sheer-medium and buildable) are excellent, very moisturizing and smooth. However the color (#1 which is the lighter one) is so off (too dark and yellow) that it looked so fake on me I had to remove it. I think this would be suitable for a NC20-25.


It leaves a beautiful dewy finish and it's really a pity that this doesn't work for me.


Balm:


The balm comes housed in a very pretty light peach compact with an opalescent top. The balm is tightly covered by a soft plastic tray and comes with 2 sponges.

This is the only product among the Moistfull Collagen base makeup series that works for me and I really love it (and will order a few more to store in the car, purse etc.). This is actually astonishing me as I expected this to be the item I would like the least.


This is a solid foundation balm which only comes in one color mixed with white swirls of moisture cream. Together they blend to a very light beige which is really *so* close to my natural skin color. I think this would only work up to a NC-20, for anyone more tan than this it will probably be too light.


I love using this when I am on the run and too lazy for makeup but still want even skin (coverage is medium) with a pretty dewy sheen.
I should add that the lasting power of this isn't that great, only 3-4 hours if you don't set it with powder.


This has a pleasant scent like all the Moistfull Collagen range. It's a lighter and prettier scent than the original series carries.
The balm came in a set with the Cream (will be reviewed later) which cost me 31500 Won. The balm came packed together with a sample of the cream, too!


Essence-In Pact:


This is the obligatory pressed powder from the Moistfull Collagen range. I was delighted to find a moisturizing powder compact from Etude House as I like some of their powders.
The compact is purple with an opalescent cover, just like the compact of the balm but in purple.


The Essence-In Pact is too dry for me and the color doesn't match either. It's a very light-toned powder but the yellow tones aren't suitable for me so I can't wear this either.
I even ordered 2 of this by mistake!


I think I should just stop trying foundations and stick with my beloved and trusted Maquillage foundation and powders! However the balm is a great addition to my morning skincare!

I got my stuff from etudegmark on Gmarket. I purchased a whole lot more stuff (especially from their new body care products) and got some nice freebies.