First of all, I know that some of you have been waiting for this review for quite a while. I am sorry for the delay, and I hope you will enjoy reading this review.
Lavshuca Finish Powder was released in February this year and it is meant to replace Face Powder. It is available in two shades, Lucent and High Cover. I wasn’t sure which shade to get, since I really liked Face Powder in Lucent and I was also curious about High Cover. In the end I decided to get both.
When I saw the packaging in person, I actually liked it more than I thought I would. Obviously it is not as princessy as the more ornate Face Powder, but I still think it is quite pretty. The center of the lid is gently raised, which I think is a nice touch.
The case is smaller than that of Face Powder. The Face Powder case measures 7.7 cm in diameter (at the widest part) while the Finish Powder case measures 6.4 cm in diameter. Face Powder has 16g of powder while Finish Powder in Lucent has 9.8g of powder and High Cover has 6.8g. (I find the difference quite interesting. The two cases seem to contain roughly the same amount of powder and I think the difference is down to the ingredients, which I will touch upon later.)
The powder puff still has the cute bow, but the puff itself is smaller than the one included in Face Powder to fit the smaller case.
(Lavshuca Finish Powder in Lucent)
Now onto the powder itself. If you like Face Powder in Lucent, you shouldn’t be disappointed with Finish Powder in Lucent, which is quite similar. It is a predominantly matte setting powder with a hint of fine shimmer and with a very light coverage. It has a good pore coverage and does well in oil control. The fine powder feels soft on the skin.
I was surprised to find that High Cover doesn’t have more coverage than Lucent. (It won’t be able to replace a foundation.) Finish-wise, it is more matte than Lucent and it has no visible shimmer. In terms of ingredients, High Cover has kaolin, which is second on the ingredient list. (Lucent doesn’t have kaolin but has mica, which High Cover doesn’t have.) I do find that High Cover does a slightly (only slightly) better job in shine control, and this is probably down to the absorbent quality of kaolin. (I think the differences in the ingredients might explain why Lucent weighs more than High Cover even though the two cases have more or less the same amount of powder.)
(I didn’t include a photo of High Cover in this post mainly because Lucent and High Cover look similar in color. High Cover looks slightly lighter and slightly less yellow-toned than Lucent. Both are relatively sheer so there is virtually no difference in color when they are worn on the skin.)
Even though High Cover does slightly better in shine control, I personally prefer Lucent. First of all, I like Lucent’s soft-focus finish. It disguises the look of pores well and it gives the face a polished look. High Cover is nicely matte (not chalky matte) but it doesn’t do as well in pore coverage. Secondly, I personally don’t like kaolin in foundations. It does help absorb sebum but it can also absorb moisture, which can potentially dry out the skin.
Overall, I think Lucent should suit most skin types and should please those who go for an almost-matte finish with a touch of shimmer. If you would like a shimmer-less loose powder and if you have no issue with kaolin, then High Cover might be a good choice as well.
Related posts:
SUQQU Loose Powder in Natural
(if you want more shimmer)
Crème de la Mer The Powder in Translucent
(another shimmery loose powder)
Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder
(another great loose powder for an almost-matte polished finish)
Coffret D’Or Makeup Powder
(an ultra-natural loose powder)
{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi PJ,
It's great to see your blog is back up! What a lovely review of the new Lavshuca powders!
any japanese loose powder without parabens?
thanks
This is totally unrelated, but I just came back from Taiwan (haha remember me?) ANDD I picked up a Lavshuca nail polish, because I remember you mentioning this line on your blog, so I bought it, and I have to admit that I LOVE IT!! It's nicely pigmented and goes on so smooth and evenly. I wish I could have bought more from them, but because of you, I am defintely more willing to try japanese brands. So Thank You SO Much!! :)
Nice to see your blog up and running again.
I almost picked this up but didn't know which to get and in the end passed it up. Hopefully it will be around long enough for me to pick up the Lucent version the next time I visit. Thanks for the review.
Hi PJ
Your Lavshuca powder has been mentioned as one of your preferred choices in some posts before and I've been wanting to try them ever since.
Thanks so much for this very in-depth review. I never knew about kaolin, so thanks for sharing this as well!
Hi PJ!
Thanks for the long awaited review! I love the older Lavshuca LP and I think I will get the new one when I go to Taiwan this November. Pity about the smaller size though… how much does the new one cost as compared to the older version?
Hi Betsy,
Thank you very much. I am happy that you enjoyed reading this review! :)
Hi,
I had a look at the ingredient lists of both Lucent and High Cover, and I don't think they contain parabens. Also, Kanebo's Freeplus is a paraben-free line, and the line features a loose powder.
Hope it helps, and thank you very much for your question. :)
Hi Monica,
You are very welcome. I am glad that you find my blog to be helpful.
Even though Lavshuca is quite an inexpensive brand, it does have some quality products. It is great that you are enjoying using the nail polish. :)
Hope you will have more chances to try other products from Lavshuca and other Japanese brands!
Thank you very much for your comment! :)
Hi Kit,
You are very welcome!
Lavshuca's previous loose powder, Face Powder, was available for about three years, so I think Finish Powder should be available for at least a couple of years as well. Hope you will have a chance to get it in the future and that you will like it.
Than you very much for stopping by! :)
Hi Munchie,
You are very welcome!
Yes, the Lavshuca Face Powder in Lucent is among my favorite loose powders, and the Finish Powder in Lucent, which is very similar, is also one of my favorites.
If you have a chance to try either of the two loose powders, do let me know what you think.
Thank you very much for your comment! :)
Hi Kng Suan,
You are very welcome!
In terms of the retail prices in Japan, Face Powder retailed for 2415 JPY while Finish Powder retails for 1680 JPY.
Hope you will enjoy the new Finish Powder, and let me know what you think later on.
Thank you for stopping by again! :)
Hi PJ,
Thanks so much for your review!
I finally managed to get hold of both tubs and tried them over a period of time.
Like what you mentioned in your review, Lucent is slightly darker and more yellow-based.
High Cover is lighter in shade and is more matte. However, after a few hrs, my complexion starts to look patchy and T-zone gets oily.
And even with touch-ups, my face still looks patchy.
Lucent does give me oily T-zone too but no patchy.
High Cover was a let-down for me.
I love to re-purchase Lucent again, however I dislike its small puff. I prefer a bigger puff.
PJ, do you have any other recommendations for loose powder?
I want something that has the same shade as Luvshuca Lucent, good coverage, and affordable.
Thanks!
winterberry_gal
Hi Winterberry_gal,
You are very welcome!
I do think Lucent appeals to me more than High Cover. It is very interesting to know that you feel the same way. It seems to me that the kaolin in High Cover might be a possible cause of the patchiness.
Another loose powder I really like is Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder. It has a good oil-control ability and doesn't dry my skin, and it is among my favorite loose powders.
(But the puff in Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder is about the same size as that in Lavshuca Finish Powder. It might also be too small for you.)
Hope it helps, and thank you very much for sharing your thoughts again! :)
because you mentioned this powder in one of your roundup/ranking posts, when i saw it at my local drugstore here in Japan i went and grabbed it. i did notice the shimmer, and wasn’t sure if it was going to be crazy so i only applied a tiny amount. now that i know (via your blog) that the shimmer is very fine and won’t make me into a glitter ball, i think i’ll use a more normal amount to set my fdnt.
do you normlaly use a powder brush to apply, or use their powder puff? It’s so cute but while i used it this morning, i almost feel bad since it’s going to make it dirty? can i use sponge washing solution (like from Daiso) to wash a powder puff?
also i just read above in your comment that you also like the Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder. I THINK there’s a little kiss section in the store i go to, so i think i’m gonna go hunt this one down too! :D i have very oily skin, so i would love to try the other powder.
thank you!
Hi Kai,
You are very welcome! :)
Indeed, some people call the shimmer micro-shimmer. It is able to give the skin a polished look without making it too shimmery. I am glad that you like the powder too!
I almost always use a powder puff to apply loose powder. (In this case, I do use the puff that comes with this powder.) Using a puff usually creates more coverage and pore coverage. I tend to use a shampoo to gently cleanse the powder puffs.
If you like this powder (I am not sure which shade you have though), then it is quite likely that you will like Kiss Mat Chiffon Powder as well. Let me know what you think if you have a chance to try it.
Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts! :)
Hey!
I just want to ask, is the container reusable?
Hi Aileen,
Yes, the sifter can be removed so the container is certainly reusable.
Thank you for your question! :)