Etude House is a Korean beauty brand under the Amore Pacific group. Since opening in 2005, it has grown to more than 200 stores across Korea and overseas. With its strong value for money and its “princess” marketing direction, Etude House has gradually won its way into shoppers’ hearts. Over the years its brand ambassadors have all been current K-pop stars, and as the Korean wave went global, Etude House caught the eye of plenty of K-culture fans both at home and abroad.
The way I see it, even though both are makeup and skincare brands under Amore Pacific, Etude House shines more on the makeup side, while Innisfree is better known for natural skincare. So in this post I will lay out Etude House’s popular best sellers and recommend the must-buy makeup that beginners will love.
1. Double Lasting Cushion Glow 15g
Fans who follow K-pop probably already know that Etude House’s Double Lasting Foundation is an incredibly good value foundation. It is lightweight yet covers well, sits comfortably without feeling sticky, does not slide off easily, and keeps up that long-lasting, luminous glow.
The Double Lasting Cushion Glow is the cushion compact version, and it is just as good. Here is the highlight: in 2020 the Japanese beauty magazine “LDK the Beauty” tested 12 popular foundations on the market for coverage and longevity, and Etude House’s Double Lasting Cushion Glow, a favorite among budget-conscious girls, came in second. This glow cushion has serious staying power, and many users say it smooths over pores and effortlessly creates a fair, natural, creamy skin look. It also works well as mask-friendly makeup.
Korea price: KRW 14,000 (about HKD 93) / KRW 20,000 (about HKD 132) (depending on shade)
Hong Kong price: HKD 198
2. Contour Powder 5g*2
This contour palette was co-developed by Etude House and HYOJIN, a Korean YouTuber with 1.71 million subscribers. HYOJIN is a well-known Korean beauty YouTuber famous for her contouring skills, and her “True Beauty” Jukyung look-recreation video racked up 16 million views thanks to her “god-tier makeup skills” that recreated the comic character 100%.
So HYOJIN helped Etude House develop a contour palette with the “best contour tones”, so you do not have to mix your own shades. Just one palette gives you that slimming effect, super simple and easy to use.
The Etude House dual-tone contour palette comes in two versions:
#1: Creator, for fair, bright skin tones
#2: Inventor, for tanned, sun-kissed skin tones
Korea price: KRW 18,000 (about HKD 118)
Hong Kong price: HKD 169
3. Lovely Cookie Blusher 4.5g
Because the famous Korean makeup artist PONY once raved about Etude House’s blusher No. 6 (now the PK002 Grapefruit Jelly shade), Etude House blushers became hugely popular for a while. These days they have gradually rolled out even more new blush shades, with soft, sweet colors that tug at your girly heart. Double the cuteness!
Korea price: KRW 6,000 (about HKD 40)
Hong Kong price: HKD 58
4. Play Color Eyes Palettes
Etude House’s eyeshadow palettes are honestly a must-buy in every Korean girl’s life. On top of the friendly price, the color combinations Etude House releases keep getting prettier and prettier, just gorgeous. Their palettes come in several different shade-count options, which I will walk through below.
Etude House Play Color Eyes 10-Color Palette
The Play Color Eyes 10-color palette is really Etude House’s headline eyeshadow line. They have already released more than 10 versions and keep adding new ones. Recently they put out “Autumn Closet”, a caramel-nude palette, with gentle shades that make it easy to create that cozy fall and winter eye look.
And the most famous of the 10-color palettes has to be “Bake House”. This warm-toned palette brings together earthy shades, nudes, and shimmers, and it has always been a favorite. Every color is easy to pair, perfect for everyday or work looks.
Etude House really does eyeshadow well. Besides the versatile color combos, the matte and shimmer shades both have a fine, clingy powder texture that shows up vividly the moment it touches your lids and does not fall out easily. As for the other palettes, I find “In The Cafe”, “Lavendar Land”, “Rose Wine”, and “Leather Shop” the easiest to pair, not the kind of tricky colors that are hard to use.
Korea price: KRW 22,000 (about HKD 145) / KRW 24,000 (about HKD 158) (depending on shade)
Hong Kong price: HKD 250
Etude House Play Color Eyes 9-Color Palette
The Play Color Eyes 9-color palette is a newer release from just the past couple of years. I think it is because most Korean beauty brands have launched their own “nine-grid” palettes, so Etude House could not fall behind either.
The 9-color palettes have a similar powder texture to the 10-color ones, all fine and clingy. But personally and a little biased, I think the “nine-grid” color combinations are prettier, with shades that feel more cohesive and unified overall. The new “Cookie Chips” and “Dusty Cat” colors are so gentle, one cool and one warm, and both combos really capture that fall and winter mood. “Dusty Cat” was even carefully developed by Etude House in collaboration with popular Korean makeup artist Leo J, and it suits any skin tone while still looking flattering.
On top of that, the “Muhly Romance” palette has a truly romantic color story. Built around autumnal pink-browns, with matte shades and peachy shimmer flecks, the looks it creates lean vintage and elegant.
Korea price: KRW 21,000 (about HKD 139) / KRW 25,000 (about HKD 165) (depending on shade)
Hong Kong price: HKD 230
5. Drawing Eyebrow 0.25g
The Etude House Drawing Eyebrow has been through several generations before evolving into its current form, and it is still just as easy to use, or rather it covers all the basics a brow pencil should. The triangular tip and the brow spoolie have a smooth feel, so it is easy to comb through and color your brows for a natural finish. While there are plenty of even better brow pencils on the market now, this one is still pretty good value, the product size has increased a lot, so it lasts longer.
Korea price: KRW 3,200 (about HKD 21)
Hong Kong price: HKD 35
6. Color My Brows 4.5g
Etude House’s brow mascara is another great-value brow product. It may not wow you the way Japanese brow mascaras do, but it comes in quite a few shades and colors easily. After applying, you need to wait at least two hours, and after six hours the pigment clings tightly to the skin without fading or coming off, so it lasts well. If you do not use a makeup remover on your brows, the color can hold for at least a few days.
Korea price: KRW 6,000 (about HKD 40)
Hong Kong price: HKD 60
7. Dr. Mascara Fixer Perfect Lash 6ml
This is a lash primer. Although Etude House officially recommends pairing it with a mascara, plenty of users say it can create naturally long-looking lashes on its own too. Many Korean girls call this waterproof lash fixer their “first ever” entry-level lash primer. It is very easy to use and makes your following lash makeup last longer and stay curlier.
One thing to note: most of the glowing reviews are for the regular clear lash fixer, not the black Super Longlash fixer. Be careful not to grab the wrong one.
Korea price: KRW 6,500 (about HKD 43)
Hong Kong price: HKD 58
8. Curl Fix Mascara 8g
Alright, once you have used the waterproof lash primer above, you can sweep on this, Etude House’s best selling long-lasting curling mascara! The Curl Fix Mascara is the “national mascara” Etude House designed after gathering feedback from 400 users during development. This mascara, with curling as its main feature, has been the number one seller in Korea’s curling mascara category for five years running, and it has also held the No.1 spot in Korea’s GlowPick curling mascara category for ten years in a row.
Billed as “waterproof, sweat-proof, and smudge-proof”, this curling mascara uses a straight-line wand, so you can easily sweep on light, long, naturally curled lashes, and even reach your lower lashes.
#01: Black
#02: Brown
Korea price: KRW 15,000 (about HKD 99)
Hong Kong price: HKD 128
9. Fixing Tint 4g
Etude House claims that the new Fixing Tint stays put without transferring onto your mask or smudging, and the feedback from many users and bloggers is that it really does not stick to masks, making it a super handy lip product during the pandemic. In Korea you can find this matte tint in 8 shades, while Hong Kong and Taiwan only carry 5.
When you first apply this tint it has a glossy, almost mirror-like finish, but after a little while it turns matte, with extremely high longevity and color retention. Once it is on, it feels light and weightless, so you barely notice you are wearing anything on your lips. About 60 seconds after applying, it stops transferring. And the shades they released are stunning, those hugely popular milk-tea, maple, coral, and rose tones. Any one of them looks lovely!
Korea price: KRW 12,000 (about HKD 79)
Hong Kong price: HKD 120
10. Dear Darling Water Gel Tint 5g
Remember the “gradient lip” look that was all the rage in Korea for a while? Etude House’s Dear Darling Tint makes it easy to create that must-learn Korean gradient lip.
This tint leans watery, more like a lip serum, but that does not weaken its color payoff or staying power. Instead it makes the lip color more vivid and longer-lasting. With added pomegranate and soapberry extract, the hydration is boosted, keeping your lips moisturized for a long time. The Water Gel Tint is mostly in the “red family”, and every shade helps brighten up your overall complexion.
Korea price: KRW 4,500 (about HKD 30)
Hong Kong price: HKD 49
Etude House Makeup Wrap Up
Etude House makeup is great value and hugely popular with budget-conscious office workers and students. The eyeshadow palettes in particular have beautiful color combos, with fine, clingy powder that is genuinely lovely to use, totally fine for everyday or work looks, and I highly recommend them for makeup beginners. As for the other eye and lip products, I think they are pretty good for the price. You have probably noticed the Etude House brow products are not the most exciting, but when you need to hit a certain spending threshold to unlock a discount, that is a good time to pick up the brow items.
Note: the images above are from the Etude House official site.
