Exciting news, guys! Today is the day that Lancome launches its first cushion. After launching in Europe earlier this year, this cushion compact has finally arrived Stateside!
For those who are just tuning in: a cushion compact is a sponge that is saturated with a sheer, weightless foundation. You dab an applicator into the sponge and pat the applicator directly onto the skin. Convenient packaging and buildable formula make re-application of makeup easy and fast. The formula typically offers multiple benefits including sun protection, moisturizing and anti-aging ingredients.
Today Lancome launches the Miracle Cushion, its take on the Korean compact cushion. This new development is historic for two reasons.
- It validates what the Korean beauty industry is all about. Years of innovation, creativity and R&D in Korea lead and influence the largest beauty brands in the world. The big players are looking closely at all the innovations coming from Korea and implementing them into their own product line-up. Korea led with BB cream, then sheet masks, and now cushion compacts. Now other international companies are following suit.
- It introduces more variety. If you’ve always wanted the Korean cushion compacts but couldn’t use them because your skin tone is darker than an average Korean person, you’re now in luck! A wider spectrum of shades will be available through Lancome. Hopefully this encourages Korean brands to also accommodate the global crowd with expanding color options for their own cushion compacts.
The cushion compact was first launched by AmorePacific’s brand “IOPE.” It quickly took Korea by storm and now makes up 60% of the foundation market. When I discussed the innovation with AmorePacific’s R&D team specializing in cushion compacts, they told me that their inspiration behind the cushion compact actually came from traditional Korean ink pads. In Korea, a lot of official documents were stamped with an engraved stamp with color from a red ink pad. I love that there is a cultural aspect behind this product.
Keep in mind, AmorePacific cushion and sponge technology is patent-protected so other brands may not offer the exact same experience as the IOPE or the Amore Pacific CC cushion. Their applicator is made with a non-hydrophilic layer that does not absorb the liquid foundation. The sponge that is saturated with the liquid foundation doesn’t dry out – they tried over 100 different kinds of sponges to find the best quality.
That being said, we are curious as to how the Lancome one will perform. We just got our hands on the Lancome Miracle Cushion and we’ll update this blog post in a week to let you know what we think of their cushion compact! Stay tuned!
Have you tried a cushion compact? What do you think? Share your experience in the comments below!
