10 Step Korean Skin Care Regimen

Referring back to the layering of hydrating products, this can be applied within the 10 Step Korean Skincare Routine. Each step is vital and offers skin benefits on an individual level. The ten steps are not mandatory to apply every day, however, some steps must be applied at least two times a day; morning and night; i.e: cleanse, moisturize, and sunscreen(by day). This is a basic guide on why the ten steps are important, however, the links to each step provide an exhaustive guide for each skin type along with the best-recommended skincare kits on the market, again, per skin type.

Step One: Oil Cleanse - This step removes any makeup applied to the skin, excess sebum, and pollution accumulated throughout the day; preparing it to benefit from the following products.

Step Two: Water Cleanse - Also known as a Foam Cleanser. This double cleanse step eliminates dirt and oil residue left on the skin and ensures a squeaky clean surface of the skin for treatment products to follow.

Step Three: Exfoliator - An exfoliator is aimed at removing dead skin cells which reduces the skin’s ability to absorb helpful ingredients. It should also work to clear out clogged-up pores. The Korean Beauty Industry introduced the trend of chemical exfoliants which penetrate into the pores dissolving the build-up in them. As opposed to scrubs which merely scratch the surface and cause even more damage to the skin by stripping the natural barrier.

Step Four: Toner - Toner is not supposed to be a third cleanser, if so then you would be walking around with cleansing agents on your skin all day which is stripping your moisture barrier, taking you steps backward in achieving Glass Skin. Instead, Toner is aimed at balancing out your skin’s PH level at which it is the optimal state to absorb all the nourishment in the following steps.

Step Five: Essence - This is the step in which fermented ingredients are usually found given that it is the easiest formula to incorporate fermented elements given the size of its molecules. Therefore, it comes before the Serum as they are a lot thicker than Essence and will absorb into the skin on a deeper level when applied at this point in your beauty routine.

Step Six: Serum - As mentioned before, Serums have a larger molecular size than Essence and are therefore applied after it. Serums are the treatment products that address particular issues that the skin is experiencing at the time, such as dryness, redness, or acne. They contain the highest concentration of active ingredients and should be used with care.

Step Seven: Sheet Mask - These are much like Serums, however, the actives found in them are not as concentrated, yet the application method enables deeper penetration into the skin. While the mask is on your face for at least 20 minutes, it is actively feeding your skin with nourishment. Mask sheets, given their wetness usually offer a cooling effect to the skin that reduces puffiness.

Step Eight: Eye Care - Often neglected until it becomes an issue. Eye Care only gets treated once the skin starts to wrinkle. Prevention is really better than the cure when it comes to skincare. Eye Creams don’t have to contain an absurd amount of active ingredients unless there are particular issues you wish to address such as crow’s feet or dark circles. COSRX have some of the best eye creams for dark circles like the Advanced Snail Peptide Eye Cream.

Step Nine: Moisturizer - This step brings it all together and seals in all the goodness of the previous eight steps and allows the skin to do its work. It is normal to only do certain steps once or twice a week such as exfoliating or sheet masks or even serums, given the strength of those ingredients, that is ok. But Moisturizer is a daily in fact, twice a day - morning and night must for Glass Skin Goals.

Step Ten: Sunscreen - If you really and truly wish to prevent aging, this is the most imperative step as all your anti-aging efforts mean nothing if you do not apply sunscreen every day, every two hours, EVERY SINGLE DAY. Even when it rains outside with cloudy skies, the sun rays penetrate through the clouds and cause damage to unprotected skin.