Koh Gen Do Aqua Foundation

While purchasing Koh Gen Do's lip gloss, I was give samples of their Aqua Foundation. KGD products, while marketed toward the U.S. market, are all made in Japan.

 The samples came in a paper pamphlet.

The brand's deep-sea water -based ingredients remind of Shu Uemura's skincare and base makeup recipe.

The Aqua Foundation (SPF15 PA++) comes in five colors, one of which is a highlighter (WT-00). The other four colors offer quite a limited shade palette, mostly catering to fair to medium complexions.

From left to right: OC-1, PK-1, WT-00. See above photos for shade descriptions.

Although the samples state they are good for one use, I was able to do two full face applications with PK-1.

WT-00. This is a very unusual foundation. Few brands label highlighters as foundations, but KGD formulated the WT-00 as a foundation and highlighter in one. The consistency is very light and liquid. A little goes a long way, since this highlighter is not meant for the entire face. I applied it on the apples of cheeks, forehead center, and nose line. The white pigment blended into the skin with no white cast, but there was a slight "sheen of light" and the littlest bit of shimmer. Overall, it created a noticeable illuminating effect. For day, it might be over the top, but for an evening soiree, I'd say this is just about right. The formula is commendable. It is not sticky. Alas, though this was a already a light formulation, it was still too heavy for my skin type. It made me look extra oily in a matter of an hour. Sadly, it also clogged my pores. I didn't break out from this though.

Blended out. WT-00 delivers with its superb formulation and finish. I see how it can do wonders for those with normal to dry skin types.

OC-1 turns out to be too yellow for my skin tone. I usually am an OC-02 in Kanebo foundations, so this was quite a surprise. (OC stands for ocher, and is a common labeling method of Japanese base makeup; the others being PK for pink, YO for yellow, and sometimes N for neutral.)

Blended out, this shade looked too dark and yellow against my natural shade, so I didn't bother testing it out on my face.

PK-1. Ah, this one looks much more familiar to my foundation shades. The shade is a perfect match to my skintone. The formula is concocted so well it looks good enough to drink (gulp!).

This foundation felt very light against my skin. It offers sheer coverage, covering minor blemishes and some of the redness on my cheeks. It also gave a slightly glowing, illuminating effect. I like how light the formulation is. The problems I had with the foundation were that, again, it gave me the oilies and clogged my pores. Also, it broke me out around the cheeks in small spots at the end of the day. I can't vouch the same experience for every one, but please do note that my cheeks are extra-sensitive because of mild rosacea, and reacts to products quite often. Other reviews have been very positive with Koh Gen Do's Aqua Foundation. I can already tell that KGD foundations will work very well for people with normal skin, given that they are well-formulated and of high quality.

The ingredients list.