Korean Cosmetic Brands

One of my readers had requested I do an entry on a few brands to look out for in Korea. I don't purchase many Korean brands but I do enjoy looking out for exciting new Asian Brands as you know be it Japanese, Korean, or Chinese.

Korea is a place that is near and dear to my heart simply because of it's vast entertainment selection. Aside from Japanese pop culture I'd say that Korea definately holds plenty of appeal for me in the entertainment field. I adore Korean dramas as you may already know and some pop music as well (I'm more of a J-Rock girl but popular Korean music definately gets some of my attention).

Do keep in mine prior to reading this that the post will probably create some hardcore lemmings so don't hold the Muse responsible ;)

One of my all time favorite Korean brands which I haven't be able to locate anywhere aside from Korea would be Clio.



Clio reminds me of Bourjois Paris with it's cute packaging and baked eyeshadows and blushes. I've done an entry on Clio prior to this but it deserves a revisit in this post. Clio is actually made in Italy but distributed in Korea. As I mentioned I haven't seen Clio distributed anywhere else in the world aside from Korea but I could be wrong! From what I understand Sasa carries the line but I'm not sure where else in Korea you can purchase it.

The line contains plenty of beautiful, funky cosmetics that are sure to appeal to those who love a bit of color. If you're looking for a natural, neutral look Clio isn't something you'll want to look into however if you love a bit of color this will be something you'll enjoy!



Price is midway in my opinion with blushes running from about $19 USD and eyeshadows at around $14 USD. I've had little success locating Clio in online shops or on E-bay so if you want the line you're either hopping a plane to Korea or asking a mate to pick you up some!

Overall, it's possibly one of my favorite brands. I own about 6 of the shadows or so and two of the blushes (I wish I had more) and they are all very pigmented, silky, and beautiful more so then Bourjois Paris if possible.

Should you happen to be wandering around Korea another cosmetic line to keep your eyes on would be Laneige. Laneige falls into the luxury group of cosmetics in my opinion but the price is tiny in comparison to some lines. Laneige sells outside of Korea and can be found in Singapore and China however some of the better items pop up in Korea and later are distributed to other countries at later dates. I haven't seen Laneige in Japan but again I could be wrong.



Palettes are about $23-30 USD some lower. Prices vary from country to country and of course it remains cheapest within Korea.

The line is extensive, covering point, base, skincare, and other bits and bobs. It definately has some very interesting items and if you have access it is worth looking at!

Next up Etude....

Let me introduce you to Etude. Now Etude is truly an awesome line. It's girlishly sweet with some seriously awesome packaging. It definately falls into a favorite category for me. The brand is available in drugstores and price wise isn't too bad. The range is very extensive and includes a variety of cosmetics, skincare, fragrance, and other bits.

The beautiful commercials and adverts are especially appealing and cutesy! In the video below I'm especially in love with the makeup from the Peach collection which is a new collection for Spring!



Palettes range from $9 USD and up which isn't bad at all. The shadows fall into the MJ line in my opinion which means they are pigmented as you make them out to be. It takes a bit of work to build up color but in the long run you can get a beautiful look using them!



The new Pore Erasing Peach Base is something to keep your eyes out for. It quite reminds me of Benefit's Erase Paste but looks like it'll work much better plus it's only $11 bucks!





Etude is definately Muse Approved for purchase! If you're in Korea you'll definately want to keep your eyes open for products from Etude's range!

Banila Co is another girlish brand that I adore! The new Spring Collection looks much like Clio's dual shadows but the price is a bit lower at about $9 USD per shadow. The highest item cost wise is about $20 USD.



The line also includes a variety of items from base cosmetics, point, tools, skincare, and even body care!

Banilia is available in drugstores and quality is excellent for the price!





A higher end of cosmetics within Korea is Vidi Vici. Vidi Vici is created by Lee Kyung Min a famous makeup artist in Korean. The line for me is a bit unappealing due to the elegant packaging. I'm more for cute packaging which could be why Vidi Vici fails to wow me. The line up is geared more towards the working class lady and has that air of elegance minus the kawaii feel about 90% of cosmetics in Asia incorporate into their collections! As you may have suspected the price range is also geared towards the mature woman.









Last but not least is VOV. VOV for me has the feel of Kose as some of the palettes resemble those in the line even the Spring Collection has the feel of Visee with it's mirrored compacts! The prices are about the same as Kose as well with palettes ranging from $17 USD or so. The line up is appealing to all with it's beautiful compacts and color combinations.

The line isn't as extensive as some brands but does have it's fair share of point, base, skincare, etc....

Overall, it's definately geared towards the fresh twenty something but the Muse isn't twenty and she adores it!





Well...That's all folks!

I hope you enjoyed this little adventure into Korean cosmetics! Do feel free to share some of your favorite Korean brands!

I'd especially love to hear from those of you within Korea about prices, favorite brands, etc.....

Comment box is open!