Review: Sun Blind Cushion (Etude House)

I bought this cushion on a whim while I was shopping the sales on G-market. Although I don’t review Etude House a lot, I am a big fan of their brand and have used a lot of their things. In fact, before I got into BB cushions, my daily go-to product was their precious minerals BB cream! To this day, I still love that product; it matches my skin well, gives me great coverage and feels good on the skin too. However, as a beauty enthusiast who basically spends every hour of the day testing and critiquing, I find that some of their products are a bit of a hit or miss – better to buy after testing in person.

However, there is no one who can deny that Etude House is winning at the packaging game. Their flag ship stores in Korea are absolutely beautiful and all of their products are super on brand; they’re always pushing the design aesthetics and coming out with cute, interesting concepts too. Even people who don’t like how pink and cute the Etude image is, you have to admit that they are great at what they do.

So, naturally, I got suckered in by the packaging of this super slim, nautical inspired cushion and put it right into my cart so quickly. This cushion comes at the time when sun cushions we’re popular in Korea. They don’t have skin shades but, like the 3CE white milk cushion, is white toned and intended for brightening the skin tone during summer. They are definitely not for everyone and I think that some skin tones would look ashy with this applied, but it works well for pale to medium complexions.

So this cushion has a really cute nautical inspired design that makes use of white, blue and a metallic print. It definitely looks more subtle in photos than it is in real life, but it’s still really pretty and modern looking. I love that it isn’t as princess-like as most of Etude’s other products, but it still maintains a very distinctive look that suits their brand image. Comparatively, I think that this looks a bit more sophisticated, but still has a very youthful look.

The case is made of plastic and feels really sturdy. It is a lot thinner than usual cushions too (see below photo where I compare it to the Banila Co cushion) and light as well, so it’s really easy to carry around. I think that this is actually the thinnest compact that I own. According to the website, this weighs approximately 67g while the Cream Filter cushion (which is also quite slim) weighs 125g. The case clicks shut easily and firmly, so there is little concern about it opening in your bag. I also like how they paid quite a bit of attention to the design of the case – which has a longer ‘opening’ area – as most other cushions tend to look the same. I appreciate that the packaging of this is something fresh and new.

The compact has a good sized mirror and comes with a pretty standard puff. The material feels a little bit stiff, but it isn’t bad. The product has the usual sticker seal over it and, when you open it, there’s the super saturated white cushion sponge! For some reason, it has an almost honeycomb pattern that isn’t built into the sponge, so it disappears once you use it. I think that this has to do with how the product was made. The product seems to dispense evenly at the moment, though I’m not sure what it would be like when the cushion dries up more. When you press down, it does feel a bit thin – most likely because the overall compact is smaller too – but this means that it would be easier to keep using the cushion without having the flip it.

The concept of the Sun Blind Cushion is that it is meant to help with the difficulty of sunscreen application. Most people are lazy or forget to apply SPF at the beginning of every day – something which they are really careful about in Korean skincare. I find it strange that we are so lax about sunscreen here in Australia when we are known for how bad our rays are. With its sheer pigmentation, this product is very much like a portable sunscreen. The cushion form helps for it to blend into make up and be easier to reapply during the day.

The cushion has a light, powdery scent but it isn’t anything too strong. It fades quickly as well, so I’m glad that it doesn’t linger around. As the puff is quite big, it applied very quickly and easily. I think that this would be great for on-the-go touch ups.

According to the website, this product is to be used at the end of your skincare but can also be used after makeup application. It has a high SPF that protects your skin from UV rays, as well as brightening your skin tone. There is pretty much zero coverage with this product so it is best used as a corrector. I definitely tried to use this alone, but it was too sheer and made my face look strange. As I read on the website, the Sun Blind Cushion is also somewhat water proof – it is meant to adhere even to wet skin, which is very appropriate for the summer weather. However, I have to note that I wasn’t able to these this as I was unable to wear the cushion alone. Even if this was waterproof, my base foundation would have melted.

This cushion is meant to be reapplied; frequently even. It contains Porous Silica Complex Powder – which explains the matte finish – which helps to control oil and sebum. As the formula is light and thin, it doesn’t interfere with your base make up. The product is also meant to calm and soothe the skin, containing Aloe, Camomile, Calendula and Witch Hazel.

See below how the product looks on my hand and the comparison of my skin tone before and after.

The brightening effect of this product is really obvious and the finish is pretty much semi-matte. There is a slight dewiness at the beginning, but this quickly mattifies. The colour is very suitable for my skin (which is a bit dark and dull at times) but the lack of coverage means that it doesn’t help with any redness or uneven skin tones. This product works well underneath concealer or full base make up. It’s easy to reapply and touch up, which is accurate to its description.

My main issue with this is that it applies really matte, which isn’t the best for someone with dry-combination skin. The lack of coverage is also somewhat disappointing because it looks really bad worn alone. At least, it doesn’t work for me. This product has its strengths and weaknesses for sure but, because of my own personal preferences, I don’t find myself reaching for it in the morning.

THE GOOD

• High SPF
• Cute packaging design
• Light and easy to carry around
• Easy to reapply
• Can be worn under or over make up (or touch ups)
• Calms and soothes skin
• Light scent

THE BAD

• The finish is too matte for me
• No coverage (as it is white)
• White cast which can grey out deeper skin tones
• Does not even out skin tone
• Puff is a bit hard
• Thinner case means less product

WOULD I REPURCHASE?

I know that there re a lot of people who liked this cushion but, unfortunately, I don’t see this working very well for me. I would prefer to use actual sunscreen and a BB cream with SPF. In addition, sunscreen is actually meant to be applies quite generously to protect your skin so I’m not entirely convinced that reapplying thin layers of this during the day would actually help. I’ll finish up my compact but I’m not really looking to repurchase at the moment.

I will update if I do change my mind though.

WHERE TO GET IT FROM

I got mine from the the official Gmarket store, or you can check out the below links to different sites that all carry this! All are sponsors for Oh My Stellar and are trusted websites that I always recommend and purchase from myself.

Please note that the above banner is an affiliate link – this does not influence my review and does not cost you anything, but works towards supporting my blog.

etude housekbeautyroseroseshopskincarestylekorean