The Hyper-Condensed Korean Skincare Routine

The Essential 3 Steps

There’s a difference between your aspirations and the day-to-day reality. We’re all for reaching for the highest standards when it comes to life – including our skincare routines. Life isn’t all or nothing, though. Sometimes, good enough is better than nothing at all.

Here’s a foundational skincare routine for the days when you really don’t have the energy or time to add all the bells and whistles.

Step 1: Cleanse well
Skin is hard to keep healthy when it isn’t kept clean.
There are two main things to keep in mind to cleanse properly:
1) be thorough
2) be gentle.

Be thorough: Oil-based impurities – your SPF, makeup, natural sebum that can trap impurities in the skin – can’t be removed unless you use an oil-based cleanser. Water-based cleansers might actually push those impurities deeper into pores causing more issues down the road.

Be gentle: Don’t strip skin dry. Don’t rub or tug. Mind your pH.

Lazy Korean Skincare Solution: Koh Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water
Here’s a highly recommended micellar water that can help you cleanse well – in one easy, no-rinse step.

How it works:
Micellar waters in general have little micelle clusters that are “floating” around in water. These clusters have surfactants – lipophilic (oil-loving) tails that are surrounded by hydrophilic (water-loving) heads. When the micellar water is put on a cotton pad the oil-loving tails stick out and grab the oil-based impurities off your face. Surfactants in micellar water are mild enough to be left on the face without needing a rinse-off. If you’re feeling motivated, rinsing off regardless is never a bad idea since surfactants, however mild, can at times be an irritant to skin.

The Koh Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water: We recommend this one for those lazy days because it will get all your makeup off (tip: for stubborn waterproof mascara, leave the cotton pad with the spa water over your lashes for a little longer, then gently wipe off) in a way that not all micellar waters can. To boot, this spa water doesn’t sting eyes like some do. Best of all, it’s formulated with mineral-rich hot spring water and six essential herbs that really strengthen, soothe and nourish skin – while you’re cleansing (so great when you’re feeling lazy to do much else). We also appreciate that there’s no alcohol in this beauty water. Other micellar waters can come formulated with alcohol, which can be a skin irritant. This one lets you be lazy daily and you can use it to your heart’s content without worrying about the downside on your skin. Finally, it is pH balanced, so no need for a toner afterwards.

Step 1 Summary:
Koh Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water removes makeup, all oil-based impurities, nourishes skin, tones it, and can be used daily. Great for even super sensitive skin types.
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Step 2: Get in your “multi-vitamin” serum
Getting in a good dose of antioxidants each day is not too hard when it comes in one multi-tasking serum. For the extremely lazy days, you can skip this step, but this one extra step shouldn’t be so bad when you consider all the benefits, especially in fighting off free radicals.

First, what are free radicals? Free radicals are charged chemical particles of oxygen that can form destructive chemical bonds with the proteins in our bodies/skin. This results in oxidation – chemical burning – destroying these cells. To make matters worse, there could be residual substances left behind from the oxidation. Simply put, free radicals end up breaking down your skin leading to wrinkling, sagging, and can lead to more dangerous things like cancer.

So, what causes free radicals to form? Unfortunately, it doesn’t take much: exposure to sunlight, stress, excess aerobic activity, pollution, second-hand smoke, the list goes on…

What can stop free radicals from damaging our body’s cells? Antioxidants are one powerful solution. They essentially slow down or prevent the oxidation process.

A daily dose of antioxidants for the skin is highly recommended – even on those lazy days.

Mizon Snail Repair Intensive Ampoule: We picked this one for all the benefits you get in one go. And also because it’s great for all skin types. This silky texture soaks right into skin and doesn’t have a scent. It’s packed with snail mucin, which can help keep acne at bay and can help with acne scarring and brighten skin; hyaluronic acid is added to boost hydration; and antioxidant-rich cocoa is smartly added to the formulation to make sure you get that daily dose of free-radical-fighting-power.

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Step 3: Seal it all in (and pack in more benefits)!
A moisturizer is an important last step to make sure that you’re sealing in all the moisture in your skin and the serum you just applied. Since this is the lazy Korean skincare routine, we wanted to pick a moisturizer that would have as many benefits as possible while you’re sealing everything in.

We recommend the Lagom Cellus Mild Moisture Cream for this job because it’s lightweight, making it great for the spring/summer/fall and suitable for all skin types, including those with sensitive skin. We also picked this for you because of the Nobel Prize winning science behind it: hero ingredient, DermaFlux, delivers hydration into the cells of your skin, not just to the outermost layers, making the moisture yours to keep. It also includes antioxidant-rich (hooray, more antioxidants!) green tea and rose oil to repair and protect skin. Bergamot, grapefruit and orange oils brighten the complexion; and moringa oil soothes skin.

For those days that you can’t muster a full-blown skincare routine, this lazy Korean skincare routine packs a punch in just 3 easy steps.

Cheers to radiance!
PIBUU