Today, I'm going to be sharing my full review on the April Skin Magic Snow Cushion Pink, which is a pale pink primer in cushion form, meant to brighten skin. I've previously reviewed this product briefly on Instagram, but I wanted to give you guys more details about the product. This product was sent to me by 0.8L in exchange for my honest review on Instagram, but I'm choosing to do a full review on it because I genuinely like the product and want to share my experience with the product in-depth. As always, my review will be 100% honest.
This post does not contain affiliate links.
About the brand:
April Skin is a Korean skincare and cosmetics company that focuses on products made with natural ingredients. If you purchase Korean cosmetics or spend time over at reddit.com/r/asianbeauty, then you're probably already familiar with the brand through some of their popular products, such as the Magic Stone soap, and their popular Magic Snow Cushion Foundations. The brand is built around three core concepts: exclude harmful ingredients, rejuvenate dull and fatigued skin, and make the best products to satisfy consumers.
About the Magic Snow Pink Cushion Compact:
Price: $21-29 for 15 grams of product (doesn't include a refill)
Where to buy it: Amazon $26.88 (prime shipping, all colors in stock, but listed separately as of this posting), $29 AprilSkin (ships worldwide), BBCosmetic $21
The "Pink Cushion Compact" line refers to the packaging of this product, which is a pale pink, mirrored cushion case with the brand name printed in holographic lettering. It's gorgeous, but it's also functional too. The plastic casing feels sturdy, and the mirror inside the compact is a high quality crystal-clear mirror, which is great if you need to use the mirror inside the case (as opposed to a bathroom mirror or vanity/desktop mirror). The compact is also refillable, though the refills for the White and Black cushion foundations won't fit this case. Like I mentioned before, the "pink" in the name refers to the packaging, the product actually comes in four different colors.Where to buy it: Amazon $26.88 (prime shipping, all colors in stock, but listed separately as of this posting), $29 AprilSkin (ships worldwide), BBCosmetic $21
From the product listing on April Skin's website:
01 Pink is meant for fair skin with a warm tone. The pink creates a brightening effect and corrects the appearance of dullness in the skin. (This is the one I'm showing you today.)
02 Green is meant for correcting redness due to sensitivity to temperature, pigmentation left from acne, or other redness in the skin.
03 Purple is meant to correct dullness and discoloration in the skin, especially skin that "darkens and turns dull by the afternoon" (April Skin's words, not mine).
04 Beige is meant to correct dull or uneven skin tone.
The puff is soft, thick, and bouncy, and is also antimicrobial, according to April Skin. Diving into the cushion itself, this is a pretty unique feature of this product. Rather than a standard cushion sponge soaked in product, the Magic Snow Cushion contains product sandwiched between two layers of sponge, which then rises to the top and onto the puff when pressure is applied. The idea behind this is to keep the product more hygienic, and to provide only the amount that you need for an even application. Although I appreciate the concept, I also find it to be a flaw of the product. Maybe it's because I'm heavy-handed, or maybe it's because I'm perpetually late, but the sponge doesn't dispense product onto the puff as quickly as I would like. I find myself having to apply quite a bit of pressure or pushing down on it multiple times so I can get enough product to come out and get out the door (did I mention I'm always running late?).
Ingredients:
Can be found here. Notable ingredients are Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide (physical sunscreens), Niacinamide (fades pigmentation and brightens skin over time), several forms of dimethicone (so be cautious if you have a sensitivity to it, this product may not be a good fit for you), Prunus Serrulata Flower Extract (cherry blossom, anti-inflammatory), Adenosine (anti-inflammatory, potential anti-wrinkle benefits), Honey (moisturizing, anti-bacterical, antioxidant), and Camellia Japonica Flower Extract (anti-inflammatory, stimulates collagen).
 |
| It's a very pale carnation pink |
My Experience:
Let's start with the smell because I fuh-reaking love the way this smells. It's a soft, sweet, almost candy-like floral (cherry blossom maybe?). It's divine, I would wear it as a perfume. It is quite strong, so if you don't like scented makeup, you'll probably want to steer clear of this, but otherwise, I think most people would find this scent pleasant or at least non-offensive. Fragrance isn't listed anywhere in the ingredients list, which leads me to believe the scent comes naturally from the other ingredients.
The texture is lightweight, you can definitely feel that it's a water-based product, though there's also quite a bit of slip and slickness to it that would probably feel unpleasant on oily skin types. It's almost kind of lotiony but without the thickness. This product is recommended for dry to combination skin because it's moisturizing, and I totally agree with that recommendation. I think if you have oily skin, this would not only be too hydrating for you, but also too glowy. However, if you have dry skin and struggle to achieve a radiant glow, you'll probably be head-over-heels in love with this. It really does brighten the face, and it shines through foundation beautifully.
My skin is normal to combo currently, and I have acne-prone skin. This didn't cause me to break out at all, nor did it irritate my skin in any way. I have a lot of texture on my skin right now due to closed comedones, and I didn't find that this emphasized them in any way, nor did it emphasize the pores on my cheeks. I don't know how this would wear on deep wrinkles, but it didn't sink into or emphasize the fine lines around my mouth and eyes at all. It works great under makeup too, it didn't make my foundation wear off any more quickly than it normally would. It's not glittery at all, but it does have a very intense sheen. I loved the glow that this created, but I did have to powder it in a few places (nose, forehead, chin) where it was just a little too much for me. Normally I would suggest applying it just in the areas that you want your skin to look more luminous, but because of the brightening pink tint, it might create a weird color difference. If you try wearing it that way, let me know how it goes. It builds beautifully without feeling cakey, although in humid weather it can feel a bit heavy if you apply several layers. One layer produced mostly shine with only a tiny bit of brightening. On my skin, I had to use two or three layers to really notice a brightening effect. For reference, my skin is approximately an NC15 in MAC, though I have an olive undertone, so it's not an exact match. Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation also matches me pretty well.
Finally, I will say I do think that $29 is a bit expensive for this product since it's only 15 grams of product and doesn't come with a refill. I did manage to find it on sale in a few places, and I would purchase it for about $20 to maybe $25. I would only pay $29 if it came with a refill. Price aside, I do really like this product and would recommend it if you're looking for a glowy, brightening primer.
The texture is lightweight, you can definitely feel that it's a water-based product, though there's also quite a bit of slip and slickness to it that would probably feel unpleasant on oily skin types. It's almost kind of lotiony but without the thickness. This product is recommended for dry to combination skin because it's moisturizing, and I totally agree with that recommendation. I think if you have oily skin, this would not only be too hydrating for you, but also too glowy. However, if you have dry skin and struggle to achieve a radiant glow, you'll probably be head-over-heels in love with this. It really does brighten the face, and it shines through foundation beautifully.
My skin is normal to combo currently, and I have acne-prone skin. This didn't cause me to break out at all, nor did it irritate my skin in any way. I have a lot of texture on my skin right now due to closed comedones, and I didn't find that this emphasized them in any way, nor did it emphasize the pores on my cheeks. I don't know how this would wear on deep wrinkles, but it didn't sink into or emphasize the fine lines around my mouth and eyes at all. It works great under makeup too, it didn't make my foundation wear off any more quickly than it normally would. It's not glittery at all, but it does have a very intense sheen. I loved the glow that this created, but I did have to powder it in a few places (nose, forehead, chin) where it was just a little too much for me. Normally I would suggest applying it just in the areas that you want your skin to look more luminous, but because of the brightening pink tint, it might create a weird color difference. If you try wearing it that way, let me know how it goes. It builds beautifully without feeling cakey, although in humid weather it can feel a bit heavy if you apply several layers. One layer produced mostly shine with only a tiny bit of brightening. On my skin, I had to use two or three layers to really notice a brightening effect. For reference, my skin is approximately an NC15 in MAC, though I have an olive undertone, so it's not an exact match. Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation also matches me pretty well.
Finally, I will say I do think that $29 is a bit expensive for this product since it's only 15 grams of product and doesn't come with a refill. I did manage to find it on sale in a few places, and I would purchase it for about $20 to maybe $25. I would only pay $29 if it came with a refill. Price aside, I do really like this product and would recommend it if you're looking for a glowy, brightening primer.
 |
| Shine bright like a diamond. One layer of the April Skin Magic Snow Cushion Pink in 01 Pink |
Half-Face Comparison:
 |
| Left side: bare skin, Right side: 2-3 layers of the April Skin Magic Snow Cushion Pink in 01 Pink |
Final Thoughts:
You'll probably like this if:
- You have dry or combo skin (maybe normal skin if you really like a glow and don't get very oily throughout the day)
- Most other glowy primers have let you down. Seriously, you can't see it on my face because I'm in indirect light, but that glow is intense.
- You're not sensitive to or allergic to any of the ingredients in the ingredients list.
- You don't mind the price or you can find it on sale
- Scented products don't irritate your skin, cause migraines, or just make you want to throw a product across the room.
Avoid this is:
- You're not cool with shellin' out between 20 and 30 dollars for a primer, especially when it's only 15 grams of product
- You have oily skin (srsly don't do it mate)
- You think the scent or any of the ingredients in this product will irritate you
- You're impatient or don't have much time to get ready, ever. The way the sponge is designed causes it to take a little more time to apply than an ordinary cushion or a primer that comes in a tube, and I can see this becoming frustrating if you're in a hurry. Maybe save it for a day when you're not rushing to get ready, or possibly avoid it altogether if you don't think it would fit your lifestyle.
- Your skin is any darker than a very light medium. Even with a foundation over top, I think this shade would be way too light for anyone above ~NC/NW 30, and even that may be a stretch. You may have a bit of luck with the beige shade if you have a medium skin tone, but I really can't say since I haven't tried that one.
I'm a sucker for shiny things glowy products like this one, and this has a truly beautiful glow that makes me wish it came in body lotion form so I could just walk around looking like a Tiffany's display all the time (#goals).
Have you tried any products from April Skin? Let me know what you thought of them in the comments down below (personally, I'm dying to get my hands on the cushion foundation and some of the sheet masks). You can also find me on Instagram and Twitter. Come say 'hi'!
-Cristine
0 comments:
Post a Comment