Review and comparison: Using Sulwhasoo Snowise BB and HERA Urban Veil CC on top of various sunscreens (HERA, O Hui, Kicho and Sulwhasoo)

Today I'd like talk about  my experiences using two different base products, Sulwhasoo Snowise Whitening Essence BB in #2 and HERA Urban Veil CC in #21, on top of various sunscreens that I've reviewed recently. I was working on a post about various sunscreens that I've tested last year (you can check it out here: part 1 and part 2), and I realized that it would be a good idea to compare how they fare as makeup primers. Since I'm not using makeup on daily basis, I don't really care about that part of sunscreens' performance, but there are many people who do; as the sunscreen's comparison was growing too long and picture-heavy to add any makeup pictures, I've decided to reserve it for a separate post. Originally I was going to use my favorite Sulwhasoo Snowise BB for this test, but one of Korean eBay sellers kindly send me a few samplers of the new HERA Urban Veil CC with my purchases. I decided that using two different base products might be more helpful in figuring out how each sunscreen affects the finish and the longevity of my makeup.

It took me a few months to finish this post; I started around Christmas, and I'm finishing it in mid-spring, so I've got to test my sunscreens and makeup in various temperatures. I've been using same sunscreens with both BB and CC, observing how quickly my makeup will set without powder, and how long will it last. For continuity I was applying both BB and CC with my fingers, and I didn't  use concealers or any other makeup in my pictures to avoid unnecessary distractions. I'm not a beauty blogger, and this is not a makeup tutorial; the goal of this post is to describe in more detail how various sunscreens behave under base makeup. Since I'll be taking pictures in different lightening conditions, I've tried to use the same grey hat to provide some kind of color reference. Please keep in mind that it's all about my personal experience, and YMMV; as usual, I've purchased all products myself and all opinions are my own. I don't have a professional camera set-up, so all my pictures were taken with my phone. To my best knowledge, my phone does no editing by itself; I tried to pick pictures that highlight the finish and texture of each SS+makeup combo and the color differences between the BB and the CC.

1. Sulwhasoo Snowise Whitening Essence BB in #2 and 2. HERA Urban Veil CC in #21 (in natural light)

Sulwhasoo Snowise Whitening Essence BB in #2 is not high-rated or bestselling BB, but I keep returning to it when I have to have some makeup on; it just works so well for me. According to Sulwhasoo website (here), it shares 46% of its ingredients with Sulwhasoo Snowise Brightening serum. It has decent ingredients list (full ingredients on cosdna here) with both physical (zinc oxide and titanium dioxide) and chemical (Octinoxate and Parsol MCX) filters. It matches my skin tone well (NC20 in MAC, #21 in cushions; neutral undertones); it has sheer to medium coverage with natural finish. This BB blends easily, it does not transfer too much, it does not oxidize on me, and it fades gracefully during the day instead of sliding off and leaving patches with no coverage like some other BBs that I've tried.  

1. Sulwhasoo Snowise Whitening Essence BB in #2 and 2. HERA Urban Veil CC in #21 (in sunlight)

HERA Urban Veil CC in #21 has exactly the same sunscreen filters (cosdna here), but it seems to have more dimethicone in various forms; it has different plant extracts compared to Snowise BB. HERA states on its website (here) that this CC was formulated to protect against free radicals and fine dust in urban air, so I was considering giving it a try even before I got my complementary samplers. It turned out to be very pigmented; it looks more like a foundation rather than CC. It has medium coverage that easily builds up to full; the finish is more radiant than Snowise BB, but not too radiant to turn my face into an oil slick. In my experience it's more primer-dependent than Snowise BB; if used by itself it settles in wrinkles and accentuates every pore it can find, while Snowise BB is more forgiving when it comes to skin texture.

HERA Leports + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

HERA Leports + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

HERA Leports + HERA Urban Veil CC: This was first time I used this CC and I was about to call the whole experiment off; I wanted to wash my face the whole day. To put it mildly, HERA Leports is not a proper makeup base for oily skin. By itself it sets rather slowly, but with CC on top it did not set for 5-6 hours. The overall finish was very dewy and glow-y; not the glass skin, but the oil slick kind of finish. The oily glow lasted throughout the whole day. Neither Leports nor CC improved my skin texture, and it made every pore, every small imperfection, and every wrinkle super visible. It kept gathering in my pores and my under-eye wrinkles almost the whole day. Since this CC has a fairly high coverage by itself, it was very noticeable when it moved or got wiped by my clothes or phone. I've had this combo on for over 9 hours, and it kept transferring for at least 6 hours, so at the end of the day I did not have any coverage in multiple areas, such as around my nose, under my eyes, on my chin where it migrated to my scarf and my jacket's collar; on top of that, bare areas had natural skin finish, unlike the areas where CC survived the day and kept glowing... Overall, I had a very bad skin day, so I decided to spare me the misery and don't test this sunscreen with any more base products.

Kicho sun cream + Hera Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Kicho + Hera Urban Veil CC: This was much better combo, and the end result was a good skin day. Kicho has a very glow-y, practically glass skin kind of finish by itself, but it never makes my skin texture too noticeable, unlike many other products with the similar finish. The CC layered up much better; it did not gather in my pores, but it kept migrating in my under-eye wrinkles. It set up and stopped transferring in less than 2 hours and it wore longer and more evenly as a result. I had this combo on for about 8 hours, and the coverage at the end of the day was less patchy that with Leports; the areas where the CC faded had the same finish thanks to never-fading Kicho.

Sooryehan Bichaek Ginseng True Rejuvenating Sun Cream + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Sooryehan Bichaek Ginseng True Rejuvenating Sun Cream + HERA Urban Veil CC: I've reviewed this sunscreen a while ago (here); it's one of my favorites. This is the best combo I had so far; CC set in about 30 min or so, and stayed put the whole day. It had glowing finish, but it was more natural without obnoxious shine; it seemed that I need less than usual amount of CC to achieve the same level of coverage. CC did not transfer as much as before, and it did accentuate my pores. Right after the application it tried to gather in my under-eye wrinkles, but it gave up after I spread it out again a couple times; it was still gathering in long streaks on my eyelids, but I guess it can't be avoided without setting it. I had it on for over 10hrs on 50F+ day, and I was running errands outside half that time; I still had decent coverage when it was time to wash it off.

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + HERA Urban Veil CC: CC set in about 30 minutes, same as with previous combo, but the coverage seemed better. I might've accidentally used more CC, but I doubt the difference was that significant. My sun spot and under-eye circles needed extra coverage, but other than that my skin looked fine. I didn't notice any transferring after it set, and CC did not gather in my under-eye wrinkles at all; it kept gathering in long streaks on my eyelids the whole day though. My pores were a little bit more noticeable and the finish was more radiant compared to Sooryehan + CC, but it faded to natural after 6-7 hours of wear. I had it on for about 10 or 11 hours on relatively warm and rainy day, and I still had OK coverage left when it was time to wash it off.

Sulwhasoo Snowise sunscreen + Whitening Essence BB #2; no other makeup

Sulwhasoo Snowise sunscreen + Whitening Essence BB #2; no other makeup. I'm pointing at my sunspot, that is not very noticeable otherwise, even without concealer

Sulwhasoo Snowise sunscreen + BB: this combo gave me the most beautiful natural-looking skin, it looked like I had no makeup on. The BB has sheer coverage, but it builds up to medium easily. It did not cover a couple of spots, but i did not expect it to do so; it did not settle in my pores or my under-eye wrinkles, but it did grease a little bit on my eyelids. It was a very warm day for winter in NY (around 70F for most of the day), and I was walking around for most of the day, but I still had most of my makeup on after 10+ hours. This BB always fades away instead of just breaking up, so the decay is not as noticeable; the area around my nose usually fades first, as it did this this time, but the rest of my face still had some coverage left.

Su:m37 Sun Away Multi Effect Sun block EX + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Su:m37 Sun Away Multi Effect Sun block EX + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Su:m37 Sun Away Multi Effect Sun block EX + HERA Urban Veil CC: I have to say that applying makeup on top of this sunscreen improved my opinion of it considerably. Multi Effect comes out heavily tinted and while it blends in somewhat, it seems to oxidize during the day (especially on hot days when my skin produces more sebum). It's the darkest tinted sunscreen I ever tried, at least one shade too dark for me; the CC made all the difference thought. My makeup did not oxidize (or perhaps it wasn't as noticeable), and overall color matched my skin well. Multi Effect turned out to be a decent primer - my pores were under control, and CC set up in less than an hour and stopped transferring for the rest of the day. This combo started with radiant to shine-y kind of finish, but after 5-6 hours it faded to naturally radiant. I had it on for about 8 hours on rather warm day, and it was mostly intact except the areas around my nose and under my eyes. It felt heavier on my skin than O HUI + CC or Sulwhasoo SS+BB combos, and it was almost too heavy for warmer weather. Overall, it was not my favorite combo so far, but it looked decent the whole day; it might've worked out better on someone with normal or dry skin though.

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB; no other makeup

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB: The BB set in under 15min, and I had no issues with transfer. The finish was radiant for a first few hours of wear time, then it started to become more natural, and by the end of the day it was mostly natural. It had the usual sheer coverage, and it did not emphasize my skin's texture too much, even though the pores were quite visible. I had it on for about 8 hours, and it stayed on in most areas except around my nose; it did not gather in my under-eye wrinkles. Overall I think I had a very good skin day.

Kicho sun cream + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB; no other makeup

Kicho sun cream + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB; no other makeup. I'm pointing at my sunspot, that is rather noticeable  without concealer.

Kicho + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB: This combo had radiant finish throughout the day up to the moment I took it off; it set in about 15-20 min, and while I saw no noticeable transfers, the BB started to fade after about 5 hours wear time. I had it on for slightly over 10 hours, and by the end of the day my chin and nose areas had literally no coverage left. It did not migrate into my pores, but it did gather a little bit in my under-eye wrinkles and frown lines. Unfortunately, somehow the BB managed to migrate into my eyes in the evening. It made me very uncomfortable, I felt like it got stuck on my lenses; I don't remember it ever happening before.

Su:m37 Sun Away Perfect Proof Sun block + Hera Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Su:m37 Sun Away Perfect Proof Sun block + Hera Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Su:m37 Sun Away Perfect Proof Sun block + Hera Urban Veil CC: To be fair I should say right away that this particular sunscreen does not mention primer function anywhere in its PR; I put it on in the morning because it was supposed to be sunny the whole day, I had a lot of errands to run, and this is a waterproof sunscreen for outdoor activities. I remembered that I should be testing my CC and BB only after I had it on... The end result wasn't a complete disaster, like  the one I had with HERA Sun Mate Leports (which is another sunscreen for outdoors activities), but I did not have a good skin day. Perfect Proof is supposed to form a film on top of my skin, but for some reason it never truly sets on me. It might be that my skin's too oily, but it's marketed for all skin types. Perhaps it's just too rich and moisturizing to actually set in a film form when proper amount is applied. It was rather hard to apply very pigmented CC without it looking cake-y or patchy; it pooled in every pore and wrinkle it could find. I also had a feeling that Perfect Proof affected the CC's color; my skin looked unusually pale that day, so it must be some stealthy up-toning by the sunscreen. It had such pronounced radiant finish right after the application, that I was afraid it'll turn into greasy shiny mess in a few hours; luckily, it didn't. It wasn't transferring much or moving around despite not setting up completely and feeling rather creamy to the touch, so it wasn't terrible to have it on throughout a busy day, but I'm not going to repeat the experience anytime soon.

Heimish Artless Glow base SPF50/PA+++ + HERA Urban Veil CC; no other makeup

Heimish Artless Glow base SPF50/PA+++ + HERA Urban Veil CC: I think Artless Glow base was formulated as cushion primer first and sunscreen second, and it shows. It never sets properly on my skin, but stays sticky to the touch; it's not as sticky as J.One Jelly pack, but it's still sticky enough to grab my makeup and hold it in place the whole day. Glow base does not alleviate any skin texture flaws, so the CC ended up migrating into my pores and under-eye wrinkles; it wasn't terrible, but it was rather visible. I had ultra radiant finish the whole day, and I did not have significant problems with my CC transferring on my scarf and sunglasses. I had this combo on for about 11 hours, spending about half of the time running errands in cold windy weather; at the end of the day my skin did not dry up, the finish was still slightly moist to the touch, and I had most of my CC intact.

Su:m37 Sun Away Perfect Defense Sun block + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB; no other makeup. I'm pointing at my sunspot, that is not too obvious, even without concealer

Su:m37 Sun Away Perfect Defense Sun block + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB; no other makeup

Su:m37 Sun Away Perfect Defense Sun block + Sulwhasoo Snowise BB:  Even though Perfect Defense is not marketed as a primer, it works well enough under makeup. I had to wait for about 30min for the sunscreen to partially set before applying BB; I tried to spread the BB as lightly as possible to keep the sunscreen in place. It took a long while to set, and initially the BB looked somewhat heavier than usual; I managed to finally blend them together by using a face mist. The combo gave me a natural finish; after an hour or so my T-zone started to get a bit too shiny. The wear time was average; as I had to blot quite often, I had almost no coverage left in nose and chin areas after about 6 hours. I didn't like the way my skin looked that day, but it wasn't a complete disaster either.

Bonus swatches:  

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + O Hui Perfect Sun Water Span; no other makeup

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + O Hui Perfect Sun Water Span; no other makeup

O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + O Hui Perfect Sun Water Span; no other makeup

1. O Hui Perfect Sun Pro Black + O Hui Perfect Sun Water Span SPF50/PA+++ (used as a base product). I got a few samplers of Perfect Sun Water Span with my purchases and reviewed it as a cushion sunscreen initially (here); because it's so pigmented, I thought the only way I could use it is as makeup on top of other sunscreen. While it worked much better this way, I still had some issues with it. I tried using two sheer layers of Water Span instead of one because I had some problems blending it into my skin when I used it by itself; unfortunately, it does not layer well. I would expect a cushion sunscreen to layer easily, especially on itself, since the whole idea is to make reapplication process as easy as possible; however, second layer of Water Span ended up being patchy even after a couple minutes of blending. Perhaps I would've get a better results with the cushion sponge, but since I had testers instead of full-size cushion, I used regular disposable foam applicators. It had decent coverage, and the second layer of it covered most of my blemishes and the sun spot. The finish was more radiant than I usually like; I did not notice much transferring, but it took a long while to set properly. It lasted most of the day, it did not oxidize on me, and it looked fairly natural despite being medium to high coverage; I had a good skin day overall.

Kicho Sun cream + Nature Republic Nature Origin Blur CC; no other makeup

Kicho Sun cream + Nature Republic Nature Origin Blur CC; no other makeup

2. Kicho Sun cream + Nature Republic Nature Origin Blur CC. I was thinking about trying another CC with some of my sunscreens, and I remembered that I still have this one; I bought it last summer when Nature Republic store had some promotion going on, used it for a bit, but then somehow completely forgot about it. Blur CC is rather sheer; it has minimal coverage and natural finish. While it does not have the cleanest ingredient list (cosdna here), it never broke me out. I like that it never accentuates my pores and wrinkles, and that it fades very naturally. This combo had a lovely radiant finish; my skin looked very natural the whole day. It was easy to layer up the CC in a few spots where I needed some extra coverage, it set up rather fast, and I had no issues with it transferring during the day. This combo was one of the most flattering for my skin texture; my pores were less noticeable than usual, even with radiant finish. It did not oxidize during the day, and it lasted for at least 6 hours before it started to fade away gradually. 

Kicho Sun cream + Aritaum All Day Compact foundation #1; no other makeup

3. Kicho Sun cream + Aritaum All Day Compact foundation #1. Last few summers I was using powder foundations in summer to fight sebum overproduction, since blotting alone does not seem to help much. Most powder foundations are very mattifying, and if I just dust them on lightly after I blot, I end up with less oily shine during the day. Last few summers I was using Verite BB cakes, but last summer after watching quite a few Korean bloggers raving about All Day line from Aritaum I picked me their  primer and  powder foundation in shade #1. Primer turned out to be a perfect addition to my routine (I've reviewed it in my 2017 top 3 favorites here), but I didn't try the foundation, since I was still using my old Verite powder. Usually I open a new product in April or May, use it for as long as I need help staying not too oily and shiny, and discard in autumn. I know that everyone's worried about the contaminated Aritaum makeup that was recalled recently, but since I bought mine last year, I don't think it's unsafe to use it. It's finally getting really warm here in NYC, so I thought it's time to see if this is such a great product. The foundation was supposed to be able to control the sebum production, to even skin texture, and to last the whole day. It does have talc, fragrance, and preservatives, but overall the ingredients list is not too alarming for the powder (cosdna here).

Kicho Sun cream + Aritaum All Day Compact foundation #1; no other makeup. Notice how the foundation migrates into my pores right after application.

Kicho sun cream has very radiant finish, so I thought it'll be perfect to test the mattifying power of my new compact. I applied it with the puff, since that's how I'll be using for blotting. There is no fallout, but I had to spend a few minutes trying to blend the powder and make it less patchy. It goes on very matte, and it's very noticeable; I looked like I had a layer of construction dust on my face. Initially it had medium coverage. I was rather unhappy with the results; it was not what bloggers described it to be, to put it mildly, and it was definitely not what I was aiming at. I really wanted to wash it off, but I decided to give it a chance (and take pictures for this post as well). In less than 30 minutes I had the foundation sliding all over my face; it migrated in my pores, in my under-eye wrinkles, and it gathered in long streaks in the eyelid crease. I don't blame Kicho for that, it usually stays put when used by itself. The coverage started to disappear too, and the finish started to turn more satin that matte. In less that 2 hours Kicho won the battle and I had my usual radiant finish; the foundation, however, retaliated and made my every pore and every wrinkle noticeable from across the room. In about 4 hours I realized that I had no coverage on my nose and chin areas, and my T-zone was clearly oily instead of radiant; I tried to blot and reapply the powder, and I wish I hadn't. 

Kicho Sun cream + Aritaum All Day Compact foundation #1 in 3 hrs after application; no other makeup

I'm very disappointed with this powder; it clearly has no ability to control sebum despite all PR claims, and it's lasting power is equal to that of snowflake in Sahara desert. Just to be fair, I'm going to try it on top of less radiant sunscreen before tossing it, but if it can't manage to stay put and mattify my skin in moderately warm temperatures (it didn't get higher than 80F today), what can it do for me in summer heat? After all, I'll be using powders because most of the time my usual mattifying and/or sebum-controlling sunscreens will need help; this powder seems to need help just staying on. 

TL;DR

This is a brief overview of sunscreen-base products interactions on mature, oily, and sensitive skin. Most of sunscreens that double as primers did well, and some SS+makeup combos were complete fails. Please remember, YMMV.