IOPE Air Cushion® XP Cover vs. Hera UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture

Hi, everybody! I hope you're all well!

It's been a while since I've caught the cushion foundation craze and even to this very day, I'm still not over it yet! Obviously, the ones that I've been enjoying so far are my Hera UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture and IOPE Air Cushion® XP Cover. I couldn't express enough love for these two cushion foundations.

Honestly, the price for Hera's cushion foundation is a bit steep if you were to get it at Hera's counters in South Korea. There is not much difference to the price of IOPE's cushion foundation as well. However, if you were to purchase them via Althea, they're way more affordable.

If you still can't make up your mind on which cushion foundation to get, don't worry, Imma gonna enlighten you. Today, we are going to do a bit of comparison between these two foundations. Hopefully, this entry will be beneficial for those of you who are interested in either of the cushion foundations.

First up - the packaging.

As we all know, both IOPE and Hera are daughter brands of Amore Pacific. Amore Pacific owns brands like Laneige, Mamonde, Hanyul, Innisfree, Etude House, Sulwhasoo, Lolita Lempicka, Primera, Lirikos, Ryoe, Mise En Scene, Happy Bath and VB.

If you have been into Korean skincare and cosmetics, I do believe you are aware of this.

Anyway, from the picture above, you can see that the packaging of these two cushion foundations are basically similar.

The cushion themselves look similar as well, aside from the fact that IOPE's container is white while Hera's is purple. Both of the containers look pretty and solid to me. If you were to depot the cushion foundations, you can fit Hera's refill into IOPE's container or vice versa - they fit!

The shade that I've gotten for IOPE is C23 which while for Hera, I've gotten No. 23 as well. I am a MAC NC25 for your information. For Korean foundations or BB creams, shade No. 23 fits me well. No. 21 is a bit too light and fair for my liking.

I know people will ask, "So, which of these two foundations have higher coverage?"

Before I proceed, lemme just tell you - I love make-up and I think that the purpose of dolling yourself up is so that it'll boost your confidence. Confidence only comes when you feel beautiful so, for me, in order to feel beautiful, slapping on sufficient amount of make-up would be one of the ways. So, it's either you slap on enough make-up or you go out with totally none.

Back to the question - which of these have better coverage?

I actually applied just one layer of both foundations over my messily drawn black eyeliner on the back of my left hand.

You can clearly see IOPE has slighter better coverage since the one that I've gotten is the cover version, which is meant to have higher coverage. Here's foundation doesn't really cover the eyeliner well but well, that's what being natural is all about, right? I usually have to put two layers of foundations if I were using Hera's.

The sun protection factor for IOPE's cushion foundation is SPF50+/PA+++ while Hera's cushion foundation has slightly lower SPF at only SPF34/PA++. Naturally, you would know that IOPE's cushion foundation provides better sun protection.

So, yeah, lemme show you my bare face.

You can basically see my bad dark under eye circles that developed over years of years of sleeping late, stresses and well... insufficient rest.

The pores on my nose and around my cheeks are quite obvious. Although I hate them but there is nothing much I could do. Up to date, I have yet to discover any product that could shrink the size of my pores for good.

The problem that I always face when it comes to foundations - it freaking sink into my pores like there are parties in the pores!

Even when I am using a good primer like Benefit Porefessional, the parties still go on and on, the whole night! It's pretty annoying to think that Benefit Porefessional used to work well for me but now, it doesn't do much justice any longer. I needed a more hydrating primer.

On the fragrances of these two cushion foundations, Hera's cushion foundation has stronger flowery scent to it. Is it me or does it really smell like camellia flower? If you do have extra sensitive skin, you may want to steer away from this foundation. IOPE's cushion foundation, to me, has a powdery scent to it. The fragrance is not overpowering or anything.

It's time to slap on these foundations.

From the picture above, it can clearly be seen that the side (right) that I've applied IOPE's foundation on, has better coverage. My dark under eye circle is covered better than the side (left) where I have applied Hera's foundation on. I applied just one layer of product on both sides of my face. Hera's foundation has more natural finish comparing to IOPE's.

I'm not sure if it's just me but I do notice that IOPE's foundation has more yellowish undertone to it while Hera's foundation has less of it.

Let's do a flashy photography.

I was half expecting IOPE's cushion foundation to have more dewy and glowy finish but it appears to look quite matte on my dry skin. That is not entirely bad given there are days when I do like a more matte look. The side which I've applied Hera's cushion foundation on looks more hydrated with a bit of healthy glow.

I actually did go out with two different foundations on my face to test out the wearability of both of the products. For your information, I did not apply any powder over the foundations.

IOPE's foundation wears around 4 hours on my skin without me, touching my face or even touching up the product. The downside to it is that I did notice there are cracks on my laugh lines and corners of my nose. The good thing about this foundation is that it doesn't sink into my pores even without primer!

Hera's foundation on the other hand only lasted around 3 hours on me since it has lower coverage. I did not notice Hera's foundation cracking up on me but, but, but... I was kinda disappointed because as time went by (no matter how many times I've used it without primer), the foundation sunk into my pores for parties! I thought this foundation is supposed to be way more hydrating that IOPE's but why, why, why?!

Anyway, honestly, these two cushion foundations in my opinion, are equally good, depending on your skin type and preferences. I would recommend both but if you have similar skin type like mine, you may need to use primer if you're using Hera's cushion foundation and if you're using IOPE's, you may want to go a little light-handed to avoid it being too cakey.

Lastly, before I go, I hope this entry could enlighten your doubts and if you're ever trying any of them out, be sure to get the ORIGINAL products because I know IOPE's products are being faked and sold at relatively low prices (around RM20++). Make sure you purchase your products from reliable sellers like Althea, Hermo or KYOU Beauty. Please don't risk your skin!

Hera UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture

Ann-yeong!

Finally, I am back to writing my personal reviews on beauty products for once again.

The thing about writing reviews for products - you need to constantly try and test new products in order to give your two-cent on the products. It's either you are sponsored or in worse case scenario like mine, self-sponsored. Ever since I stopped working and started studying again, I stopped buying make-up products unless they are necessary.

However, during my last trip to Korea, I couldn't help but splurge on one of the highly raved BB Cushion - Hera BB Cushion.

If you do not know yet, Hera is one of the higher end brands in Korea. Hera booths are only available in higher end departmental stores. Hera has altogether 4 to 5 different types of BB cushion that cater to the needs of different skin types.

The one that I have gotten is Hera UV Mist Cushion Ultra Moisture in No. 23.

Just like other Korean BB or CC creams in the market, there are not a lot of shade selection available. If I am not mistaken, they have three different shades only - No. 17, No. 21 and the darkest shade is No. 23, which happens to be my shade. I am MAC NC25.

According to the description found on Hera's website, this type of BB cushion is suitable for those with dry, flaky skin.

That's me!

As I age, most of the times, I notice flaky skin especially on my nose. Sometimes, it gets so annoying that I would peel off the skin. The BA recommended this type of BB cushion after noticing my dry skin.

When I took out the BB cushion, I couldn't help but to admire the packaging. Yes! All of Hera's products do have very prestigious packaging.

This BB cushion at the time I purchased it was priced at 48,000 won. It is approximately RM200 all thanks to the lousy Malaysian Ringgit rate.

I know it is not exactly cheap but at that point of time, I really wanted to try this out and I wasn't aware Althea has it at only RM135. Now, I know where to get it once I run out of it. Yes, I am not bluffing, I do love this BB cushion and I am going to re-purchase it.

Truth be told, this is my first BB cushion and you're right, I have jumped into the bandwagon of BB cushion. A lot of my friends are recommending IOPE's BB Cushion but I wasn't keen. I guess the whole reason for me not getting IOPE's BB Cushion could be due to the unfriendly BA at IOPE, Myeongdong.

Anyway, I have mentioned earlier that Hera BB Cushion does have very prestigious packaging.

Best of all, it's purple and purple happens to be one of my favourite colours!

Just like any BB cushion, Hera's BB Cushion comes with an additional 15g refill pack alongside with another 15g that is already attached to the holder. So, altogether, you get 30g worth of product for the price you pay for.

The product itself has SPF34/PA++. Surely, it doesn't have very, very high SPF but personally, I guess this would be quite enough for me since I do wear sunscreen underneath it.

Once opened, this is what you will see...

Everything is so purplish and best of all, again, the packaging makes the product looks so, so classy and elegant!

Some of my friends asked me about the puff that comes together with the BB cushion - does it perform well or does it leave streaks after application?

Lemme tell you, no, the puff doesn't leave streaks after application. It is quite easy to use provided you blend properly. I would say that for every type of different puffs out there, you still need to blend, blend and blend in order to avoid streaks of unwanted foundation or BB cream on your face. The puff doesn't smell rubbery or anything - good!

Now, let me try to describe the smell of the liquid.

Honestly, I prefer products with fragrance rather than those without so, you can more or less guess correctly that this BB cushion does come with a bit of fragrance. However, worry not because the fragrance is very mild and it smells of flowers!

A number of Youtubers and bloggers described this BB cushion as medium to high coverage but honestly, I would say it is a medium coverage BB cushion. It is buildable but not towards high coverage - slightly lower. I have other foundations that covers better than this product itself. This product definitely does not promise a natural look to the wearer. You will look like you are wearing make-up on your skin though.

In the picture below, I applied only one layer and you can see that it does cover the redness on my nose but not perfectly.

One of the things I hate when I put on foundation or BB cream is when the liquid products sink into my pores. The sight is ugly - I am sure a lot of you can relate to that. A lot of people have been telling me to put on primer before applying foundation or BB cream, but, here are times when girls are entitled to be lazy, thus, skipping primer.

What's good about this particular BB cushion is that, it does not sink into my pores without primer!

Amazing, isn't it?

The staying power is quite amazing too.

I worn it out yesterday and it lasted from 11.30am until 6pm, which isn't bad at all!

I wasn't wearing any powder over the BB cushion and it stayed put for around 5 to 6 hours!

Well, like what I've mentioned earlier in this entry, I will purchase this BB cushion once I'm done using it but before that, I would want to try out other BB cushions out there.