Goodbye, Hello: Kate Powderless Liquid makes way for Kate Powdery Skin Maker
Sitting down with the Kate Tokyo PH team for their quarterly news and updates, I may have overreacted (raised my voice and stood up a little from my chair) when they told me that my beloved Kate Powderless is being phased out.
Despite being not the most durable foundation, I really loved how it looked on my dry, textured skin. I scored it a 4 for giving me MSBB (my skin but better,) and only reluctantly took a point away for not being so durable. And believe me, up to this day I still struggle with putting that point back in. The finish alone is worth a 5 for me - it is rare to have such a skin-like, high-coverage matte. But I guess, like I always say, skin-like and translucent glow is the specialty of J Beauty.
T-B: Kate Powderless Liquid in OC-C vs. Kate Powdery Skin Maker in 02, fresh swatch
T-B: Kate Powderless Liquid in OC-C vs. Kate Powdery Skin Maker in 02, after 2 minutes
Kate Powdery Skin Maker SPF 15, PA++ (PHP 960 / 30ml)* is the same product, repackaged. It has the exact same finish: matte but not flat and slightly perfecting. I don't know if because my Powdery Skin Maker is a newer product, but I feel it looks better with facial oil than Powderless ever did. Powdery Skin Maker still isn't very durable (lasts about 3-4 hours before it fades on my dry skin) but I do like how beautifully it fades. My skin is really dry and textured, and foundation tends to crack on it throughout the day. Powdery Skin Maker just fades and thins out in some spots, so that's a huge plus for me.
The only difference I noticed is that my (old) Powderless shade is the standard OC-C, and my (new) Powdery Skin shade is just the number 02. Kate Tokyo has been slowly upgrading their color formulation and following the lead of Kanebo, who is incorporating more pink into their foundations. I think this is their way of getting into the Korean tone-up bandwagon, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. Pro: Kate Tokyo can science the shit out of this and make pink foundations actually tone up (rather than ghost you out). Con: I prefer yellow-leaning foundation. My neck is way darker than my face, and I feel self-conscious toning up my already white-by-comparison face.
Nonetheless, this foundation continues to hold a special place in my heart. Whereas most Western foundations will never set, I've never quite experienced foundation that dries down this silky and actually, physically powdery - running my finger through the dried foundation picks up some powder. Since my dry skin can't tolerate powder foundation, this just amazes me to no end! It's my go-to for quick and light days, where I can't be bothered to blend out full coverage foundation much less wait for it to dry and set with translucent powder. As a plus, the initial liquid format also makes it way, way, way, way more adhesive than plain powder foundation.
Goodbyes aren't always a bad thing, and I'm so happy that Kate Tokyo's signature powder finish liquid foundation is here to stay!!!
*This product was sent for editorial consideration.
