A beginners guide to Korean beauty and skincare

What is K-Beauty?

The core of korean skincare and beauty is focused on nourishing and making your skin healthy and glowing, the dewy skin has come to be known as glass skin. Although many may associate K-Beauty with the 10 step skin care routine, many suggest it's not necessary to do quite as much. Here are some tips on setting up a korean skin care routine and makeup routine and which products are best for the job.

Skincare:

1. Cleanse, Cleanse, Cleanse

Arguably one of the most important steps in your skincare routine is cleansing, so don't skimp on the significance on putting some extra time on cleansing your skin. Within Korean skincare many will often recommend cleansing your skin 3 times:

1st Cleanse: Use cleansing tissues to clean or similar to remove stubborn impurities and makeup. Make sure to remove the worst visible impurities, don't forget eyes and neck.

2nd Cleanse: Use an oil cleanser to remove oil impurities and build ups in the skin.

3rd Cleanse: Wet your face and hands and using a foaming cleanser, spend a few seconds building the foam in your hands and then cleanse your face for about 30 seconds. This will remove water based impurities.

Doing this before applying your makeup as well as at the end of the day, will help get rid of impurities and leave your skin clean, fresh and primed for skincare products.

2. Nourish

Nourishing your skin using serums, toners and essences will help nourish, rehydrate and heal your skin. It may seem like there are many products to keep track of but these are the top three to add to your routine that will make a big difference.

Toner: This water based product removes any last trace of impurities from your pores, as well as helps prime your skin to absorb more of the coming products in your skincare routine. You can add an essence to your routine after applying your toner but before your serums, it is sort of a mid way product between the two.

Serum: Serums come in many different shapes and sizes, but are essentially highly concentrated products that fullfil a specific function and adresses a specific issue such as redness, ageing, dryness, blemishes and so on. Find serums that will align with the result you're looking for. Remember if you're using several serums to do some research on product compatibility as some serums can cancel out another ones effect, the order of which you apply the products is also important and can give vastly different results.

Moisturise: The final step in your skincare routine should be to moisturise and lock in all the products you have applied to your skin. The moisturiser you use will depend strongly on your skin type and what your skin needs. Find one that works for you and that helps your skin the best, don't forget to take into account season, weather and climate.

A pro tip is to tap on water based products as it will help with absorption and improve blood flow in your face.