I love Konglish – they’re always so literal that it’s so quaint and cute. Take this item for example – it says Beauty Shot Face Blur, which is essentially telling you that with it, you’ll look like you’ve got the Beauty Shot mode on your camera on, and it literally blurs your face (so that you look flawless and pore less). What it is is actually a pore-blurring primer/base product (for more information on the product, read my Beauty News).
Etude House Beauty Shot Face Blur – SGD$27.90
Etude House Beauty Shot Face Blur – SGD$27.90
I say…
The Packaging: It’s a pretty little bottle that’s peach in color. It measures about 13cm including the cap and dispenser nozzle, while the bottle itself (the portion containing the product) is about 8.5cm tall. The bottle fits snugly into the palm of the hand and feels good cos of its plastic matte finishing with rounded edges. The pump dispenses enough just for the entire face.
The Scent: It has a vague powdery scent that smells really pleasant and somewhat “babyish” (if you know what I mean).
The Application: It’s a medium-texture cream that isn’t too sticky and spreads easily. It seems to be somewhat of a suspension, so make sure you blend it in properly or else you’ll see some white powdery streaks. Once it’s settled in, there’s a pearlised sheen over the skin – if you rub a finger gently over the surface, you’ll see a very slight layer of sheen/powder on the finger. Other than that, there’s no sticky/greasy residue on the skin.
The Effect: What really makes this product stand out is that it does indeed brighten your skin. And yes, it does help blur out the pores and mattify the skin, giving it that filtered effect. In addition, it gives a pretty subtle glow which is perfect for those who dislike the overly dewy finish of Kpop stars. I’m pretty impressed that the effects remain even after I pile on some BB/foundation over it – the pores/fine lines look filled out, and the skin seems more radiant and glowy. Does it look like I had a filter on – Yes. Etude House has named its product aptly.
The Verdict: As much as it sounds good, I have one pet peeve with this – halfway through the day (after spending my hours in an air-conditioned office), my skin started getting patchy. I attribute this to the fact that this is more for mattifying/pore hiding and therefore doesn’t do much in terms of hydrating/moisturising. The areas around the corners of the nose and chin were the first to start getting patchy, with the dry areas being emphasised more in particular. The cheeks were also looking rather meh – the makeup there looked drier than it usually does.
Overall, I’d say that this product really does take away the need for a Beauty Shot mode or a filter – only if you take your photos within 1-2 hours of applying this product. Otherwise, it’s pretty much an okay primer. It does well in terms of skin brightening (I can’t argue with this), and it somewhat fills out the pores of the skin (which means you need to cleanse your skin more thoroughly to avoid clogging), but it’s somewhat lacking in terms of hydration. It’s a pretty fun product to play with, and I daresay it’s more suitable for those with normal skin (not oily-combi raisin like mine), or perhaps those who are blessed with waterfull skin. Damn, now I need to go slather on a chunk of Laneige’s Water Sleeping Mask naooooo.
