This is going to be a review for 2 Kevyn Aucoin products: The Etherealist Skin Illuminating Foundation, and The Sensual Skin Enhancer Concealer.
I was mainly looking for a super full coverage concealer since I've been suffering from crazy breakouts recently. When you're a college student and the dining hall serves the most greasy and salty food ever, it's really hard not to break out :( The reason I say the food is causing my acne problem is because I'm handling school pretty well for the most part - I'm not insanely stressed, and I do get a decent amount of sleep.
Anyway, I'll first be reviewing the foundation, followed by the concealer.
This is how my skin looks with no makeup and this is pretty much the worst acne I've had in my whole life.
I purchased The Etherealist Skin Illuminating Foundation on Sephora for $58. On the website, it says that it comes with 1 fluid ounce but it actually only comes in 0.95 fluid ounce (28ml). I was a little turned off because I felt lied to. Even though it's not a huge difference, I would like to be accurately informed that what I'm paying for is what I get.
The product recommends that you blend with your fingers and a brush, which are methods I don't really use, and I've found that using my Real Techniques sponge has given me the best look in every foundation.
It's made in Italy and has an expiry date of 12 months after opening.
The packaging is very sleek and light and it comes in a plastic bottle instead of glass, which I personally do not mind. However, the lack of a cover on the pump bothers me a little as I put my foundations in a makeup bag and the residue on the pump may leave stains on my bag.
I am in the shade Light EF04, which is described as a light shade with yellow undertones. In case you didn't know, I also have dry skin.
The shade match is pretty on point for the most part. It also provides pretty decent coverage for a first layer. My skin still looks like skin.
This is another layer of the foundation. It is definitely layerable while still maintaining a decent skin-like glow and it is a solid medium coverage foundation. However, I do have to set it with powder as it is tacky and after applying powder, my skin tends to look really matte. I like having that dewy look so I will then spray some MAC Fix+ and that reduces the cakey look.
I've noticed that the foundation will start breaking down at the end of the day when I have it on my face for around 8 hours. Hence, I would not necessarily consider this as a long-lasting foundation.
Now, I'm going to review the The Sensual Skin Enhancer Concealer. I've heard about this concealer before I got this. I went to the Sephora store at the Grove and got my color match but they didn't have my color in stock so I ordered this online together with the foundation.
The concealer is made in Japan and has an expiry date of 18 months after opening.
I'm in the shade SX06, which is described as light with golden undertones and I got this for $48.
The concealer comes in a plastic jar. I wished it did not come in a jar though so that bacteria would not be reintroduced back into the jar. Hence, the way I go about using the product is washing my hands really well and dipping one finger onto the product (which usually picks up enough product and I don't have to go back in with another finger again).
The concealer is a tad bit lighter than the foundation, but I feel like after opening the jar, it may have oxidized ever so slightly and is around the same shade as the foundation now. You may want to keep this in mind when purchasing.
The concealer is extremely creamy and thick and covers EVERYTHING. It is hands down one of the best concealers I have ever used. I previously used the MAC Studio Finish Concealer with SPF35, but it tends to be a little drying and I felt like it sometimes made me breakout.
All that redness gone.
I also tried concealing my undereyes, but I feel that since this concealer is very heavy, it doesn't look the best. My favorite concealer for my undereyes would still have to be the Makeup Forever Full Cover Concealer.
Now, I had the opportunity to wear this foundation and concealer to play basketball. I have to say, it definitely does not look great after playing hours of basketball and sweating. My problem area is always my nose so for the most part I've always avoided applying foundation on my nose (since I didn't really need it in the first place anyway). That day, I decided to give it a go and man I'm mistaken to think that nothing bad would happen. The foundation also looks patchy between my brows. It has also started wearing down around my cheeks. Highly would not recommend wearing this if you're doing intense sports.
Final verdict: Love the concealer, not in love with the foundation.
I think that there's bound to be better foundations out there that suit my skin type better and that provide at least a medium coverage, are long lasting, and does not look patchy at the end of the day/after sports. I have talked about the Koh Gen Do Aqua foundation which you can view here and it definitely does not look weird even when I do sports. It just does not stand out and I don't think the amount is worth its price tag.
The concealer is so great because it will literally last you forever. A little goes a super long way and I don't think I will ever reach the bottom of the jar.
Thank you so much for your time and I hope you found this helpful :)
