Korean skincare focuses on healthy skin. Their 10-step regimen typically entails cleansing, toning, serums, and moisturizers for optimal results.
Beauty of Joseon offers cutting-edge skincare technology coupled with traditional Korean beauty recipes. Try its Glow Serum for powerful antioxidant benefits that help acne-prone complexions heal with propolis extract and niacinamide; additionally, it features anti-aging benefits provided by ginseng extract.
1. Oil Cleansers
As most of us understand, cleansing is essential to a skincare regimen. Oil cleansers can effectively remove makeup and sebum while also naturally balancing the oils of your skin’s natural oils. Gentle Korean cleansing oils are water-soluble, making them easy to rinse away with water if not already added to your routine! So be sure to add this step for maximum skin health! If cleansing oil hasn’t already made an appearance in your routine then add one now!
Many options are available, but I love Elizavecca Milky Piggy products. With masks to cleansers that have proven successful at brightening complexions and increasing hydration levels – including their 24K Gold Snail Cleansing Foam! – Elizavecca Milky Piggy products stand out as being popular choices among customers.
Laneige’s Perfect Pore Cleansing Oil is another popular pick. Packed with ingredients such as tangerine peel oil and apricot kernel oil to gently cleanse pores without stripping your face of moisture, this light oil contains mugwort extract that diminishes their appearance.
Other nourishing cleansing oils to consider are iUNIK’s Calendula Complete Cleansing Oil and COSRX Mild Acidic pH Cleansing Oil, both free of fragrance, mineral oil, and parabens – making them suitable options for those with sensitive skin thanks to ingredients like mugwort extract, cananga odorata flower oil and jojoba seed oil.
If you want to explore Korean skin care products for yourself, plenty of online K-beauty stores offer everything from snail sheet masks and cleansing oils down to snail masks! My three favorite sites for shopping for Korean skincare are Peach & Lily, StyleKorean, and Wishtrend; each has an exhaustive curation process that selects quality products!
2. Toner
Koreans know all about balancing skin using toners with soothing, hydrating, and antioxidant-packed ingredients to restore harmony to their complexions. These toners help remove any residue left by an oil or water-based cleanser and penetrate deeper into pores to work their magic. Depending on your skin type, specific options may be tailored specifically to you – for those with dry skin, including products containing ceramides and hyaluronic acid. In contrast, those suffering from acne-prone skin could benefit from products, including witch hazel and salicylic acid formulas.
Many toners feature ingredients such as yam root extract, rice powder, lotus flower extract, and centella asiatica to reduce dullness and even skin tone, regulate oil production, and provide gentle hydration for sensitive skin types. Artemisia, snail mucin, and green tea extract could all provide soothing ingredients.
Some toners resemble serums in their texture and application process; one such toner, Klairs Supple Preparation Toner, is popular with K-beauty fans thanks to its serum-like consistency that instantly moisturizes your skin.
As there are various toners available on the market, you should easily be able to find something tailored specifically to your skin type. For an intensive routine, combine toners and facial masks. Once your skin is fully nourished, use a lightweight moisturizer or use intensive eye cream treatment for puffy and dark circles around your eyes.
3. Sheet Masks
Sheet masks have become the darlings of skincare routines everywhere – an invading trend taking over K-beauty for good! A sheet mask consists of a serum-soaked fabric affixed to your face that covers every part with holes for the eyes, nose, and mouth. Cream masks were once popular, but sheet masks are the latest K-beauty trend to take hold.
Sheet masks are packed with powerful ingredients designed to address specific skincare concerns and then secured to the face using a flexible sheet, which allows the formula to penetrate deeply into the surface layer of the skin. Sheet masks provide hydration, shrink pores, improve acne symptoms, and may even give an illusion of tighter skin!
Many of Cho’s masks contain snail mucin for its soothing and comforting benefits. Other popular ingredients are green tea extract, peptides, and hyaluronic acid to plump and firm the skin for a younger-looking complexion.
K-beauty is well-known for its 10-step skin-care routines, but adding weekly sheet masks to your regimen can quickly enhance its efficacy. “Sheet masks can keep skin hydrated, brighten it up, soothe it down, and even resurface it!” Cho said.
If you suffer from oily or acne-prone skin, search for masks formulated with exfoliating ingredients like willow bark, niacinamide, and tea tree oil that contain exfoliators such as willow bark. They should help to reduce excess sebum, control breakouts, and keep pores unclogged. For dry skin types looking for a moisture boost, look for masks made of shea butter, honey, or hyaluronic acid to moisturize and promote more youthful-looking collagen production while locking in all their goodness after the show has done its work – while for sensitive complexions, they might contain ingredients like niacinamide, shea butter, and aloe vera for a gentle, soothing formula that could give relief from breakouts and breakouts alike.
4. Moisturizer
After cleansing, toning, and exfoliating your face, the final step of the Korean skin care routine should include using moisturizer. This step helps maintain balance in pH levels on your face while clearing out pores for clear pores – essential elements in beauty routines! It will also prepare the skin for future steps of the beauty regime.
No matter your skin type – dry, oily, or somewhere in between – there’s sure to be a Korean moisturizer explicitly tailored for you. Finding one with lightweight formulas that won’t clog pores or weigh your complexion down with too much product is critical. The Living Cleansing Balm by Then I Met You is an excellent option for dry skin thanks to nourishing ingredients such as olive oil, apricot kernel oil, and tangerine peel extract that help soften and smooth it over time.
Korean moisturizers for oily skin feature sebum-reducing ingredients like phytic acid and rice bran seed extract to help minimize shine. One such day and night cream, Neogen Vita Duo Joan day/night cream features both green tea to protect from oxidative stress and free radical damage.
When it comes to sensitive skin care products, you want to avoid anything that might irritate or cause redness. Look for cruelty-free options made of natural ingredients. One great choice is Beauty of Joseon; their Hanbang recipes inspire while modern innovations combine for effective skincare products.
Another popular product is Innisfree Jeju Green Tea Moisture Cream. This lightweight formula includes Jeju green tea seed oil and extracts for optimal skin hydration, helping reduce redness, inflammation, scarring, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and hyperpigmentation while diminishing scars, wrinkles, and combating hyperpigmentation.
5. Sunscreen
The skin serves as the body’s natural defense against germs, pollutants, and UV rays; however, prolonged sun exposure can result in painful symptoms, including redness, inflammation, and peeling, as well as long-term damage and an increased risk of skin cancer. Applying sunscreen regularly protects skin against UV rays while helping reduce fine lines, wrinkles, and age spots – offering essential protection.
Korean sunscreens are designed to offer UVA and UVB ray protection while offering skincare benefits. Many Korean sunscreens have a lightweight texture that works well under makeup without leaving an oily film, which won’t clog pores or leave behind white casts. Plus, many Korean sunscreens contain ingredients for nourishment and brightening that offer additional defense from harmful UV rays.
Sunscreen can provide multiple advantages for the skin beyond simply protecting against sunburn. Sunscreens may help balance out the natural flora of the complexion, anti-age effects, and improve circulation – all benefits sunscreens offer users. When taking care of your skin, it’s essential that only products made with high quality, safe ingredients are used – among the top Korean skincare brands such as COSRX, which integrate traditional South Korean beauty rituals with cutting edge science to deliver practical, safe products suitable for all skin types at an affordable price point.
Some by Mi is another must-try brand, offering various products for treating multiple skin concerns. Their best-selling viral product, Joseon Relief Sun Cream, contains ingredients like rice extract and probiotics to strengthen your skin barrier and ginseng root extract to increase blood circulation for a healthier complexion.
If you’re curious to try Korean skincare for yourself, numerous K-beauty stores online offer an assortment of products and deliver to the US. Some of our favorite places for double cleansing and snail mucin purchases include StyleKorean, Wishtrend, and Peach & Lily, which provide highly curated collections featuring only trusted brands like StyleKorean or Wishtrend.
