If you’re interested in skin care, you have definitely heard about the “10-step korean skin care routine”. This beauty regimen, that could be considered a lifestyle, consists of 10 steps divided into 4 parts: cleanse, prep, nourish and protect. Everyday you’ll use a makeup remover and oil cleanser, followed by a water based cleanser and an exfoliator, this is the cleansing part.
After this, apply a soft toner and then follow with an essence, treatments (specialized for each skin), sheet masks and eye cream. Finish up with protection: a moisturizer and a sun protector (or night cream, if you’re getting ready to sleep). As anyone can see, this routine is quite hard to achieve and might require some self-knowledge, so I decided to gather some tips and share it:
However, always remember to make an appointment with your dermatologist: she is the most indicated person to help you on this journey.
1. Know your skin
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Although the routine may seem complicated, it gets way easier when you know your skin type and needs. Especially for the nourishing part, the products will help your skin accordingly to it’s necessities, acting directly onto the problem area.
2. Search carefully for every product
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Koreans are known for taking really good care of their skin, searching deeply every ingredient and component of beauty products and knowing just what is and what’s not healthy for their complexion. You should, for example, avoid ingredients such as alcohol, which dries and may irritate your skin.
3. Baby steps
This is really important. Since it’s a very long regimen, people tend to struggle maintaining it. If you have a problem adjusting to a routine this long and complex, try starting out with five steps and then evolving it, or sticking with a more compact set of steps. There are also plenty of sites that offer quizzes and kits with the best products for your skin type, like SoKo GLAM, that could help you to change your routine
4. Sheet Masks
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If you’re not familiar with any of the steps, a good way to start is getting used to sheet masks. They are a very popular, and quite essential, product in Korea and are also becoming very famous worldwide. Sheet Masks are a very quick and effective option when you need a face mask, and you can find one for just about any skin type and any problem you want to fix.
5. Get to know k-beauty and what’s the philosophy behind it
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It’s important to know what k-beauty is all about and what you’re getting into. Look up reviews, youtube videos, specialized sites, interviews and more.
6. Follow your own steps
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The korean skin care routine may be known as a 10-step regimen, but as long as you follow the essential ones for your own skin, it’ll work out perfectly. Prioritize what’s best for yourself.
7. Test out new products
The korean beauty market is always evolving and innovating, this means that the products you use while doing your routine are also going to evolve. Change and test out new product whenever you can, and work with what’s best for your skin.