Korean skin care routine has been a rage since every other beauty site on the internet started promoting K-beauty. Even before that, we have all loved the glass-finish flawless skin of Koreans. But how do they get that?
It’s because Koreans and the indigenous manufacturers of Korean beauty products focus on the health of the skin. They never use harsh elements that interfere with the natural appearance or qualities of skin. This fundamental belief or attention to skin health or nourishment reflect in their beauty or care regime.
To be more precise, you will see the presence of vitamins and green tea seeds, Bulgarian rose, and many other naturally sourced elements in Korean skincare products.
Taking one step further, if you delve deeper into Korean skincare routine order, you will see it’s more about a clean lifestyle. They eat well, drink plenty of water, and sincerely work on the ecosystem of the skin. So, there is a lot of emphasis on keeping the skin clean, nourished, hydrated, and guarded from damage.
Want to know more? Here I am with the complete guide.
Korean Skin Care: The Key To Getting Glass Skin?
Glass skin or luminous skin is closely related to skin health. It’s not about some foundation tricks or makeup skills to make your skin appear dewy on some occasions. The buzz around getting a glass skin became more prominent when Michelle Choi took Instagram by storm with her selfie.
Nevertheless, Korean skin care steps are the keys to getting that flawless and healthy skin. If I try to define Korean beauty or skincare routines, I find many preventive and nourishing activities involved.
And you know what the best thing is? No beauty brand or particular beautician came up with this idea. On the contrary, the entire concept or routine had undergone a lot of evolutions before it started enjoying so much popularity.
Like almost every Asian skin care regime, Korean skincare tells you to be gentle and respectful to your skin. You cannot just apply anything and everything.
There is a reason why the Korean beauty market’s biggest segment is the skincare segment. This segment has a market volume of US$7.63 billion in 2023.
A lot of info to get you inclined to learn how to get Korean skin! Let’s get into the guides.
Korean Skin Care Routine
Korean skin care routine follows multiple disciplines. Though the 10 step skin care routine is the most common, you will also come across five, seven, or twelve-step guidelines. I am sharing all the variations in the guidelines. Try and see which one works for you.
5 Korean Skin Care Steps
Are you in a jiffy but don’t want to miss your Korean beauty regime? Follow this simple five-step guideline.
- Clean your face using an oil-based cleanser. If you have oily skin, it may need double cleansing.
- Use a water-based cleanser to get rid of dirt on your skin.
- Apply a toner.
- Moisturize your skin.
- Wear sunscreen with high SPF, and you are all set to go.
7 Steps Korean Skin Care Routine
The 7-step Korean skin care routine is ideal for evenings. It’s not feasible to follow the full-course ten or twelve-step regime every day. So, it’s a shorter and smarter version.
- Use an oil-based cleanser.
- Clean your face with a water-based cleanser.
- Use a toner.
- Apply essence for hydration.
- Use serum for treating specific problems.
- Apply eye cream to protect and rejuvenate the skin around your eyes.
- Moisturize your skin.
Korean 10 Step Skin Care Routine
The 10-step Korean skin care routine is extensive, and there are specific reasons why these steps are included in the routine. Here, I will share brief accounts of the significance of each step in the Korean skin care regime.
1. Cleaning Face With Oil Based Cleanser
All these years, we have mainly tried water-based cleansers. But Korean skin care highlights how a water-based cleanser can fail in removing the natural oil or sebum from your skin. To put it simply, you need an oil-based cleanser if you want to get rid of those layers of makeup and natural sebum build-up.
But don’t worry, these cleansers do not wipe out the good oils your skin naturally has.
2. Using Water-Based Cleanser
Even if you are using an oil-based cleanser, you will surely need a water-based cleanser, as sweat and dirt particles cannot be removed with oil-based cleansers.
3. Exfoliation To Get Rid Of The Dead Skin Cells
Exfoliation is an evening regime, as I said before. And all the skincare experts I consulted suggested exfoliation should not be done more than twice a week. You can use peels, scrubs, or pads.
This stage is essential to remove sebum and dead skin cells.
4. Toning To Balance The pH Level
As you cleanse and exfoliate your skin, there will be a pH imbalance. Toners help to restore that balance and the moisture in your skin.
5. Applying Essence For Hydrating And Protecting Skin
Korean skin care routine puts a high emphasis on protecting the skin. This stage is skillfully placed between applying the toner and serum treatment so that your skin receives more hydration and protection.
6. Treatment To Remove Acne Or Wrinkles
We all have seen those serums in beauty blogs. These are also known as treatments in the Korean skincare regime. These serums are enriched with the goodness of various ingredients, concocted in a high concentration.
These serums treat or alleviate specific skin problems, including acne and wrinkles.
7. Application Of Sheet Mask
I find this part of the Korean skincare discipline the most rejuvenating. You take a sheet, get it soaked properly in serum, and put it on your face. Now, you just need to relax for fifteen to twenty minutes.
Use a sheet mask twice a week for the best results.
8. Application Of Eye Cream
You must have noticed how thin the skin around your eyes is. So, that area of your face needs special attention in your Korean skin care routine.
You need to use eye cream in those areas. Thus, you will get rid of dark circles and puffiness. This is also an essential practice if you want to keep fine lines and wrinkles at bay.
9. Moisturizing Your Skin
We think that we are adding moisture to the skin when we apply moisturizing lotions or creams. But actually, a moisturizing lotion or cream helps to seal all the elements you have applied through the previous stages.
Further, a moisturizer will make sure that your skin gets the time and chance to absorb all the things applied or used.
10. Using SPF
Wear your SPF right. The harmful UVA and UVB lights of the Sun can cause tan and radical damage. Thus, your skin ages faster. So, you cannot skip this step.
See, there are a lot of products today, including compact powders and foundations, which claim to have SPF. But for your safety, make sure to wear SPF.
12-Step Korean Skin Care Routine
Suppose you thought the 10-step Korean skin care routine was pretty exhaustive. There is even a 12-step guideline to take care of your skin.
Once you are done with the ten steps, as just mentioned, you will need to do misting and get maintenance facials.
11. Misting
Misting is a rejuvenating exercise if you have understood the Korean skin care routine by now. It imparts a refreshing feeling. At the same time, when you apply mist in proper intervals, you reactivate the essential things applied on your skin.
12. Maintenance Facials
You will surely adore this part. You need to get a proper facial every week and a massage too. This is rejuvenating for your skin and will also make you feel relaxed.
Korean Face Routine For Different Skin Types
Though a Korean skin care regime can have as many as twelve steps, you may need to skip one or two, depending on your skin type. Also, you need to keep certain things in mind to make this care regime ideal for your skin type.
Tips For Acne-Prone Skin
Don’t listen to anyone saying you can follow a Korean skin care routine with acne-prone skin. All you need to do is avoid exfoliation until all the acne breakouts on your skin are not cleared up.
Korean Skincare For Oily Skin
As I said before, many express their doubts about the effectiveness of oil-based cleansers for oily skin. In truth, these oil-based cleansers are more effective than water-based cleansers in removing sebum and oil accumulated on your skin due to the application of makeup. If you need the oil-based cleanser you use that cannot cleanse all the oil in one go, try double cleansing.
You really need to be careful about the toner in Korean skincare if you have oily skin. Choose one that is less humectant.
Tips For Dry Skin
If you have dry skin, it’s going to get massively benefit from the use of oil-based cleansers. The key to choosing the right cleanser for your dry skin is understanding how your skin feels after the application of a certain product.
In toner, obviously, you will need hyaluronic acid or anything that has higher moisturizing properties.
Balancing Out Combination Skin
It’s not difficult to follow the Korean skincare regime if you have a combination of skin. Just consult a skincare expert or dermatologist to ensure the maintenance of the right pH balance.
Perfecting The Morning and Night Korean Skin Care Routine
The Korean skin care routine will never seem overwhelming if you understand what you must do in the morning and what is most suitable for the evenings or nights.
To explain further, simple cleaning, toning, moisturizing, and wearing SPF are enough for your morning routine. You can leave the more elaborate parts like applying essence, serum treatments, eye cream, and exfoliation for the evenings.
Again, do not go overboard with regimes like exfoliation, sheet mask application, or maintenance facials. These can be done once or, at maximum, twice a week. As they say, going gentle is the mantra of Korean skincare.
Final Thoughts
Korean skin care routine is well-defined and inclusive of multiple activities, taking care of your skin. You can make your choice among the five, seven, ten, or twelve-step routines according to your schedule and what your skin demands.
However, these routines are much beyond some simple practices to improve the appearance of your skin. On the contrary, the idea here is to enhance your skin health through the process of inculcating self-care and healthy lifestyle practices.
Do you follow a Korean skincare routine? Tell us how it has improved your skin.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
1. Is Korean Skincare Better Than American?
Ans: Yes, many users find Korean skincare products better than their American counterparts. Korean skincare products are made keeping the Korean philosophy of protection, prevention, and nourishment in mind. So, you will see the use of naturally-sourced or harsh-free ingredients in Korean beauty products.
Further, the formulas used in Korean skincare products are passed through generations. And these products aim to improve skin health with proper nourishing ingredients and formulation.
Ans: No, it’s not just the genes why Korean girls have the most beautiful skin. They strictly follow a clean lifestyle. So, they eat a balanced diet, drink plenty of water, and are very sincere about how they are taking care of their skin. This discipline helps them to get beautiful skin that is healthy from within.
Further, if you know Korean beauty and skincare products, you will find an abundance of hydrating and nourishing elements and naturally-sourced ingredients. Korean indigenous products are more about going gentle on the skin and fetching a long-haul effect achieved through healthy practices.
Ans: You can get skin like Korean celebrities by following proper Korean skincare regimes. There are a lot of popular Korean skincare versions available these days. You can choose a 5-step, 7-step, 10-step, or 12-step regime according to how busy you are and what kind of care your skin demands.
Additionally, you need to bring good changes to your diet. Koreans have really good stuff, including spicy and fermented cabbage, seaweed soup, and barley tea to get healthy and beautiful skin. They also drink a lot of water to keep their bodies and skin hydrated.
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