Leveling up Filipino Beauty: Issy & Co.’s Next Level Skin launch

Photography by Perkin Gotohio

This year has seen such a rapid development in the quality and diversity of local makeup product options and with just a little under two months left to 2022, Filipino brands do not seem to have any plans of slowing down.

Issy & Co. has definitely shown that they will be finishing this year strong with their latest launch that revealed a total of 48 products for all of us to enjoy!

This launch comes with a shade expansion for their well-loved Active Skin Tint and Active Concealer lines plus an addition of the True Flex complexion products that include a powder foundation and an illuminator.

I have always appreciated Issy & Co.’s efforts in working on inclusivity through expansions and developing shades with undertones that are more suitable for the diverse range of Filipino skin tones.

With that in mind, they have developed a shade matrix that categorizes the shades depending on the skin tone - Fair, Light, Medium, Tan, and Deep - and then by the undertone - Cool, Golden, Neutral, Olive, and Warm.

It is a major win that this collection included a number of options with olive undertones across the different skin tones. Olive options have not been as available or considered in the local market and this gives more of us the opportunity to find a better shade match.

T-B: Sienna, Epsom

With that being said, the Active Skin Tint (₱499, 35ml) is still the same tried and tested formula but now comes in a total of 12 shades from their initial launch of 6 shades. The new shades include:

Spruce - for those with light-medium skin tone and olive undertone,

Epsom - for those with tan skin tone and neutral undertone, and

Saddle - for those with deep skin tone and neutral undertone.

Next up, we have the very impressive shade expansion for the Active Concealer (₱399, 10ml). Apart from more concealer shades, the line now includes shades for colour correcting and contouring as well in the same formula we know and love.

t-b: PT4, YM3, OM3, SD4

Issy & Co.’s shade matrix also altered the shade names of the concealer to become easier to identify with the code being purpose + skin tone. For example, since I have medium-tan skin tone with a warm/golden undertone, my best pick would be PM3 for colour correcting, YM3 or YM3.5 for concealing, and SD3 for contouring.

t-b: Brûlée, Sienna

Onto the first of the two additions to the skin collection - the True Flex Powder Foundation (₱549, 9g)! This comes in nine shades with a skin-blurring and lightweight formula that comes in a unique compact component with a brush.

I have gotten to try this on bare skin and can attest to its medium coverage after patting on some product and watching my dark circles fade away. It also evens out the skin and even after layering on the product a bit, it really does remain lightweight and gives a velvety finish that does not leave me looking flat.

t-b: Ray, Flare

Finally, let us get into the True Flex Illuminator (₱349, 5ml) that comes in three shades! As a dewy-makeup enthusiast, this really piqued my interest because of my personal philosophy of “You can never have too many highlighters!”

Although this can be used as a highlighter, its main purpose is a complexion enhancer that you can either use as a glowy primer or mix into your Active Skin Tint, Active Concealer, or other base products to achieve a healthy glow to your makeup base.

I have tried this as a glowy primer and it is so easy to use and works so well with the complexion products of this line. The formulation itself is gel-based and designed not to mess with any base products you use underneath it.

Really excited to keep experimenting with the powder and illuminator considering how vital the other Issy & Co. products have become to my all-Filipino beauty routines.

It has been a great year for the local beauty community. I love seeing Filipino brands working on not only catering to more skin tones but also in helping us unlearn makeup and purchasing habits that foster a need to make one’s self look lighter. Cheers to embracing every beautiful tone present in our many islands!