I did a little bit (?!) of shopping last time when I was in Seoul (Dec/2014-Feb/2015). Most of the products have been used about six months now and finally I feel quite confident talking about my thoughts about these products. I am going to start with BCDation All Master SPF30 PA++ by Tony Moly.
Tony Moly is one of the brands that I've never heard of before visiting S.Korea last winter. I think the brand itself isn't very old but I heard quite a lot of 'impressive' reviews on some of their products such as lip tints, egg pore tightening pack, eco snail gel and, of course, BCDation.
When I visited the store, they had both original BCDation (which comes in two shades) and BCDation All Mater. The store manager recommended the latter to me, saying that it's better for the normal/dry skin while the former is better for combination/oily. I was instantly got worried about the fact that it comes in only ONE shade but went ahead as I desperately needed a new foundation for my overly dry skin after a long flight and exposure to constant heating at home/transportation. No need to mention about extremely dry winter climate in S.Korea.
I've been using this foundation on and off since then and to cut a long story short, my verdict is simply:
don't bother.
According to Tony Moly, BCDation All Master is for anyone who
- wants no darkening effect caused by BB cream, All Master creates natural skin tone with luminosity;
- wants foundation's coverage effect and light texture;
- wants CC creams' moisturising skin effect and perfect coverage; and
- wants one product for base makeup effect and luminosity instead of wearing many layers of different products.
I am afraid to tell you that I wholeheartedly DISAGREE with all the claims made above. Before I get into the details, here are a couple of photos me after applying the foundation.
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| Tony Moly BCDation All Master Review #1 |
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| Tony Moly BCDation All Master Review #2 |
First of all, it comes in one shade which is too light. Honestly, I should have trusted my gut instinct: one shade, really?!!! In general, I just don't understand S.Korean foundation/BB cream/CC cream, etc. I am a South Korean myself and haven't found one South Korean product which matches my own skin tone. Yet, they usually offer one or two shades as if everyone's skin tone is one or the other. It's just like S.Korean tops (e.g. t-shirt) which only comes in, yes you guess it right, ONE size. !@£$£%^&.!!!
The very limited range of shades is why I've NEVER purchased S.Korean foundation/BB cream/CC cream in the past and I shouldn't have done it this time as well. BCDation All Master is way too light for my light neutral skin tone (MAC NC20-25, Chanel 2.0, Giorgio Armani 4-4.5). I look like a ghost as soon as I apply this foundation despite the fact that the coverage is VERY light. Unless you want to apply this foundation all the way down to neck/chest area or you are lucky enough to be a very fair skin (I say NC10 or NW10), don't bother.
A good news is that the foundation oxidises so after a couple of hours, it matches my natural skin tone. Yet, I have to be super careful for the first couple of hours (such as avoiding raindrops by all means), or I will have very visible lines on my face. NOT a very attractive look, dare I say.
Secondly, if you want to apply this foundation evenly, you WILL need a beauty blender (or its alternative). I tried all different methods from the recommendations of Tony Moly (applying with and without primer), using fingers, different types of foundation brushes, sponges and finally, beauty blender. The only method that I found working is all-time trustworthy beauty blender. When using other methods, it's almost impossible to blend the foundation. Even after the primer (varies types), the foundation just slips off my face. It's almost like mixing oil with water: i.e. IMPOSSIBLE. However, when being applied with the beauty blender, the foundation applies quite beautifully. It blends well and provides a perfect dewy, radiant finish. However, I need to make sure that I apply extra thin layer around my nose and under-eye area, or it will crease really badly. A funny thing is this creasing issue is totally new to me. I've used so many foundations from high end brands to high street and never experienced creasing before. In conclusion, I just don't have time to fiddle around with BCDation.
Thirdly, as you can tell from the previous two points, coverage is very light and texture is quite thick. I find the description itself is quite confusing as far as the coverage concern. It says a CC cream's perfect coverage but as far as CC creams that I've used in the past, they all have no or very sheer coverage so I am not sure what it means by a CC cream's perfect coverage. This doesn't mean that I don't like the coverage it offers; and I actually LOVE light coverage but the problem lies with its texture which is thick. It says BCDation is for someone who wants a light texture and doesn't want many layers of different product but this isn't a foundation which feels weightless like Giorgio Armani Maestro. It might has some skin-benefiting ingredients for lasting moisture and volumising effect, I don't really like the thick, also quite sticky texture it provides.
To conclude, I wouldn't say BCDation is a total waste or money; I just think there are so many better foundations in the market, like Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation and Loreal Paris True Match. Many people complain about a limited shade range in high street brands BUT I've seen no brand which only comes in one, extremely fair shade. The foundation is RRP 19,800KRW (approx. £12) and has 50g of product (approx. 1.7 oz) which is relatively generous compared to other foundation. Then again, regarding the actual price of the foundation, I think it's within the average high street price range. I am going to continuously use the product sole because I hate wasting money. But if I could turn the clock, I would definitely NOT purchase this foundation.
I am very sorry for such a negative review. I hate writing something I dislike but after I used this product over six months, I just can't understand the hype and rave reviews out there. I am just hoping that you aren't as mislead as I was...
Hope you enjoyed reading this post. See you in the next post!
Love,
Kyra x
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