REVIEW: banila co. it Radiant CC Cover SPF 30 PA ++

For the last few years, Korean culture had taken the world by storm: K-pop groups, K-dramas, K-food and K-beauty. I myself have an obsession with everything Korean. Who wouldn’t adore their charms as well as their gorgeous skin? Their climate and genes have a big part on their good complexion but it is no secret that their glow comes from religiously applying their skincare items and their genius makeup creations. Starting from the BB Cream, K-beauty have been catering the world for years and coming up with new innovative products from time to time. One of the latest craze in the makeup department is a hybrid of a brightening, moisturizing and correcting cream: the CC Cream. And we’re lucky that Korea’s #1 CC Cream is within our reach through banila. co stores all over Metro Manila!

REVIEW: banila co. it Radiant CC Cover SPF 30 PA ++

Packaging: The product comes in a glossy black box printed with hot pink letters. So classy and femme.

The box contains all the information regarding the product but unfortunately it’s only in Korean (so I opted not to photograph the other sides of the box because I myself can’t understand it). I hope that they’ll improve it with English translations. The good thing is that the expiration date is printed in the bottom part of the box 😀

30 mL of the CC cream is housed in this slim plastic packaging. It has also an easily removable plastic cap for hygienic purposes. I love that this is so lightweight and can easily be thrown to the bag during travel.  To get the product, all you have to do is pump it! This type of pump dispenser is very hygienic and you can control the amount you need!

Contents: The CC cream comes only in one shade and upon swatching I guess that this is a light beige shade or equivalent to #21. This is recommended for people with light to medium skintone since it might be too white for darker skintone.

Consistency- Light and silky. it quickly blends and melts in the skin. It is really good on its own. Feels like a second skin, I almost forgot that I am wearing something on my skin since it does not have a heavy feeling when worn.

Finish- Matte and semi-dewy. This cream is in between matte and dewy- not too dry and moist. It is perfect for oily skin since it mattifies the skin without the drying effects. For dry skin, I recommended that you put a moisturizer before putting this since it can highlight flakes and dry patches on the skin.

Ingredients– Water, Phenyl Trimethicone, Titanium Dioxide, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Zinc Oxide, Caprylyl Methicone, Butylene Glycol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Glycerin, Methyl Trimethicone, Cyclomethicone, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Cetyl PEG, Niacinamide, 1,2 Hexanediol, Tridecyl Trimellitate, Mica, Centella Asiatica Extract, Argania Spinosa Kerne, Oil, Oenothera Bijeenis (Evening Primrose) Oil, Lilium Candidum Flower Etract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Water, Hibiscus Sabdariffa Flower Extract, Jasminum Officinale (Jasmine) Flower Water, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Water, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Leaf Water, Mentha Rotundifolia Leaf Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Water, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate, Maltitol, Polypropylsilsesquioxane, VP/Hexadecene Copolymer, Cyclohexasiloxane, Magnesium Sulfate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Dipentaerythrityl Hexa C5-9 Acid Esters, Glyceryl Tribehenate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Tribehenin, Aluminum Hydroxide, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Ethylhexyglycerin, Glyceryl Caprylate, Adenosine)

Swatch Test: I pumped a drop of the CC Cream on one side of my hand and swatch it. You can easily notice that the shade is really light but no worries! After blending well, it can adjust to the skin tone and color correct it. Look how brighter and more even my skin is compared to the other side <3

Oil Test: To know how much oil the CC Cream has, I simply put a drop of it in an oil blotting sheet from Clean ‘n Clear and allowed to settle in an open air. After three hours, you can see the circle of oil surrounding the product. But not all oils are bad, since this can help in moisturizing and keeping water from drawing out of the skin. Just make sure that you put a finishing powder after applying if you want to make it more long lasting and blot from time to time to minimize oiliness 😀

Coverage Test: To test the covering power of the CC Cream, I first swatched some makeup to mimic redness, darkspot and blemishes using a lipstick, eyeliner and lip tint. Then I put a drop of the CC Cream on the other side and blended it well. Holy grail! The redness and dark color are almost nonexistent on the side with the CC Cream. Love it <3

Final Verdict: I am road testing this CC Cream for a week now, and it gave me a pretty good impression. So far it haven’t gave me breakouts so I’ll update you on how this will react to my skin upon continued use. Here’s the breakdown of the good and bad about it:

The Good

• Semi-matte finish perfect for hot and humid weather

• Can cover minor blemishes and redness

• Easily available

• Hygienic and classy packaging

• No breakout so far

The Bad

• Expensive (You only get 30 mL for the price of Php 1250)

• Comes in one shade. Not for darker skintones

As you can see the good outweighs the bad so this product is definitely recommended! Try it now from any banila co. stores in the Metro Manila!

Bhenz Benig is a BS Food Technology student from UP Diliman, the content creator behind confessionsofaprince.tumblr.com. He is a Korean culture enthusiast; a lover of K-pop, K-drama, K-food and K-beauty. During his free time, he likes to shoot photos of everything under the sun and post it on his Instagram account @bhenztagram.