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Artemisia is also know as mugwort and is somewhat of a wonder ingredient. It helps calm and soothe redness and assists with preventing acne/breakouts. It’s also rich in Vitamin C which is a skin brightening and antioxidative ingredient!
If you are into K-Beauty, then you’ve probably heard of Centella Asiatica or Cica in skincare. Korean skincare brands have come out with many Cica products in recent years. Centella Asiatica extract is able to penetrate the skin well enough to be utilized effectively and has been known to treat wounds and burns for centuries. This has been shown in both in vitro and in vivo studies which back its effectiveness in wound healing. The way it does that is by promoting fibroblasts proliferation and collagen synthesis, as well as inhibiting the inflammatory phase of scars. It has also been observed that the triterpenoid components stimulate glycosaminoglycan, especially hyaluronic acid production.
An anti-ageing ingredient that reinforces your skin’s barrier and increases hydration — giving you plumper, smoother, firmer-feeling skin with fewer visible lines and wrinkles as well as fewer signs of sensitivity. A strengthened skin barrier protects your skin from damaging environmental stresses as well as keeps hydration in.
Hyaluronic acid. Although somewhat difficult to say (and even harder to spell), the skin-care ingredient commonly found in your favorite serums, sheet masks, and moisturizers, is an important addition to your daily skin-care regimen. That’s because HA, a molecule that occurs naturally in the skin, binds to water to plump up your skin and give it that dewy, glowy effect.
Also known as vitamin B3, niacinamide is a very effective skin-restoring ingredient that offers multiple benefits for ageing and acne-prone skin. Among these benefits is the ability to visibly improve the appearance of enlarged pores and uneven skin tone, diminish fine lines and dullness as well as strengthen a weakened skin barrier.
Oryza sativa (rice) bran extract is a plant ingredient used in cosmetics to condition and soften skin. The bran is the brown outer layer of the rice kernel. It’s a by-product from milling of rice, but don’t take that to mean it’s a throwaway ingredient: rice bran is a rich source of over 100 antioxidant compounds, including vitamin E, ferulic acid and oryzanol.
The bran also contains moisturising amino acids, polysaccharides, omega-3 fatty acids, and micronutrients like calcium, selenium, phosphorus, iron, and zinc. Additional to the brightening and hydrating benefits of rice in skin care, it also has anti-inflammatory and calming effects.
Snail Mucin or Snail Secretion Filtrate is probably one of the best known K-Beauty ingredients. Snail mucin is a mega multi-tasker, with the ability to do everything from moisturise to boost the production of collagen, the protein responsible for strong, youthful skin.
Moisturizes the skin: Snail mucin contains moisturising agents that work to repair the barrier function of the skin, both locking out irritants from the environment while also simultaneously locking in moisture.
Stimulates collagen production: Snail mucin is comprised of ingredients meant to repair or protect from injury. These include growth factors, which work by triggering the growth of new skin cells and new collagen. And, as we know, more collagen equals fewer wrinkles and younger-looking skin.
Soothes irritation: Allantoin is another key component in the secretion, an ingredient with healing properties that calms irritation, as well as smoothes the skin and stimulates cell regeneration.
Delivers important vitamins and minerals: Snail mucin is loaded with a list of good-for-your skin nutrients, including anti-inflammatory zinc and healing manganese. It contains copper peptides, also lauded for their collagen-increasing and wrinkle-decreasing effect, as well as vitamins A and E, both of which are great antioxidants.
Tea tree oil is an essential oil derived mainly from a plant native to Australia known as Melaleuca alternifolia. Unlike many other essential oils, it’s non-comedogenic and won’t clog pores and when formulated correctly in skin care it can assist to treat acne with its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effects. Some of its benefits include: Kills bacteria – True acne is caused in part due to the presence of p. acnes bacteria on the skin. Tea tree oil has a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity. This was even scientifically-proven in a study published in 2020 in the Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences, “Terpinene-4-ol is the active ingredient in the tea tree oil that destabilises the cell of the bacteria, essentially killing it”.
Anti-inflammatory – At the same time, it decreases the inflammatory cascades that stimulate inflammation and redness, a major benefit for acne-plagued skin. The science is there to back all of this up as well; in a study, a five percent concentration of tea tree oil was shown to be an effective treatment for mild to moderate acne.
It treats a wide range of acne – Here’s the other nice thing: It can work on both comedonal acne (blackheads, whiteheads, smaller blemishes) and inflammatory acne (big, red, angry pimples). While the anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory effects make it a slightly better option for the latter, “tea tree oil improves both comedonal and mild to moderate inflammatory acne, reducing the number of acne lesions as well as the severity of these lesions”. So much so, that it’s even been compared head-to-head with another antibacterial acne-fighter, benzoyl peroxide. A study published in the Medical Journal of Australia looked at the direct effects of a five percent concentration of tea tree oil versus five percent benzoyl peroxide. The results? Both treatments effectively addressed comedonal and inflammatory acne. Tea tree oil was a bit slower to work, but, it did win out when it came to having less irksome side effects associated with it.
It’s anti-viral and anti-fungal – Tea tree oil is not only effective against bacteria, but also helps decrease funguses and viruses on the surface of the skin.
Heals minor cuts and scrapes – Accord to a 2006 study, tea tree oil helps kill S. aureus, a type of bacteria that can cause infection in open wounds. It also increases white blood cell activity, helping to reduce healing time.
There are many different forms of vitamin C used in skin care. In general, this ingredients helps to support the skin’s ability to fight free radicals, leading to younger looking and brighter skin. It also regulates the over-production of melanin, which has the potential to reduce dark spots (especially those that pop up as a result of photo-aging caused by exposure to pollutants and UV rays) resulting in a more even skin tone. It also helps support the healthy function of collagen, one of the main skin proteins that determines skin’s elasticity and strength. With more collagen, skin is less likely to experience fine lines and wrinkles, and will appear tighter with more elasticity.
Acne prone skin is skin that has a propensity to develop comedones and pimples. It is often oily and appears shiny. This is because the sebaceous glands produce more sebum than in other skin types. Age often determines whether the acne is bacterial, hormonal, or hereditary and depending on the severity, consistent topical care can clear skin.
Depending on age and environmental factors like sun exposure and stress levels, ageing skin can show symptoms ranging from a dull grayish tone, pigmentation spotting and blotching, fine line and wrinkle formation, and sagging that comes with collagen loss. Stabilized vitamin C is considered the antioxidant standard for brightening dull complexions, while peptides are the workhorses of wrinkle and fine-line reduction.
You’ll know that you have combination skin if some parts of your face are dry, while other parts are oily. Specifically, you may notice that your T-zone (the central part of your face, including your forehead, nose, and chin) is oilier since your skin’s oil-producing glands are more concentrated there. Meanwhile, your nose and chin may appear dull and rough because of a buildup of dead skin cells. Your cheeks and the skin around your eyes may also be drier than the rest of your face.
First, beware that you’re not confusing dehydrated with dry; dehydration is caused when water is stripped from skin by products and environmental factors, and dryness defines skin that produces little to no oil naturally. While dehydrated skin needs products that replenish water levels with a powerful humectant like hyaluronic acid, truly dry skin needs oil-based (albeit non–pore clogging) ingredients to keep the moisture barrier intact.
‘Normal’ is a term widely used to refer to well-balanced skin. The T-zone (forehead, chin and nose) may be a bit oily, but overall sebum and moisture is balanced and the skin is neither too oily nor too dry.
‘Oily’ is used to describe a skin type with heightened sebum production. An over production is known as seborrhea. Oily skin is characterised by enlarged, clearly visible pores and a glossy shine. Oily skin is prone to comedones (blackheads and whiteheads) and to other varying forms of acne.
Sensitive skin is generally used to describe skin with reduced tolerance to the application of cosmetics and skincare products. Sensitive skin is caused by nerve endings in the top layer of skin becoming irritated often resulting in rashes or redness. This occurs because your skin’s natural barrier function is weakened and has broken down due to triggers. Some of these triggers can be certain ingredients in skincare products. Products designed for sensitive skin will often not have many ingredients in them, contain simple ingredients and not have any fragrances.
For the first step cleanse with an oil-based cleanser. In chemistry “like dissolves like”, so the oil-based cleanser works to remove oil based makeup, oil based impurities such as sebum, SPF and pollution.
For the second step follow oil cleansing with a water-based cleanser. Double cleansing is recommended by aestheticians and dermatologists and works to gently remove the oil residue and water-based impurities such as dirt and sweat which then reduces breakouts.
For the fourth step apply a toner or mist to the skin to balance the skin’s pH levels and to prep the skin for the next steps of the routine. To get scientific: after all the cleansing and exfoliating, your skin’s pH goes out of whack and needs to be returned to its natural acidic state. Toning helps restore this balance and starts to bring moisture back into the skin. Think of it as priming the base for all the good stuff you’re about to put on it.
For the third step use a gentle enzyme or bead-based exfoliator twice a week to remove the dead skin cells. This will restore luminance to your complexion and unblock pores, enabling key product ingredient absorption.
For the fifth step apply an essence to nourish, repair and hydrate the skin. Essences contain active ingredients that penetrate deep into the skin. They are generally formulated with fermented ingredients which are meant to aid in cellular rejuvenation and turnover.
For the sixth step apply a super charged serum called an ampoule to your skin at night. These face serums contain highly concentrated ingredients meant to target a specific skin concern like dullness, wrinkles and acne.
For the seventh step, use a mask. There are many different types of masks but the most popular/famous for Korean and Japanese skincare are sheet masks. A sheet mask is a face-shaped sheet of material with cutouts for your eyes, lips, and nostrils. This thin layer of material is soaked with serums containing nutrients. Because the mask is in contact with your skin for a while, 10 – 15 minutes normally, your skin has a chance to absorb these serums more effectively than when you just apply the serum to your skin. The mask also prevents the serums from evaporating allowing your skin to absorb more of it.
For the eighth step, use an eye cream. It’s never too early to start! Eye creams are applied to diminish any dark undereye circles and help fight signs of ageing where they show first. It also helps to moisturise the most delicate area of your entire face and reduce puffiness from late nights!
For the ninth step apply a moisturiser. An additional line in your skin’s defences, moisturisers protect against dehydration and environmental attack by bolstering your complexion’s natural oil content. Available in many different guises whether you opt for a cream, serum, gel or intensely nourishing balm, the right moisturiser will help minimise water-loss, nourish your skin and assist those all-important cell functions to grant you a healthy, luminous glow.
For the tenth and final step don’t forget your sunscreen. If it didn’t register when your dermatologist and mother said it, it bears repeating: sunscreen is the number one product for preventing spots, wrinkles, premature ageing and skin cancer. NEVER FORGET THIS STEP!
All the must-have accessories to compliment your skincare routine.
The skin care community has been divided about the presence of fragrance in skin care products for a long time. On the one hand, it makes the products smell so good! But on the other hand, fragrance can be really harsh to sensitive skin and may cause irritation and redness. Here’s a round-up of our top favorite fragrance-free Korean beauty products.
Get started with the K&J-Beauty skincare routines with our specially curated sets.
For those wanting to be more ethical in their purchase decisions, our Vegan Friendly collection of J & K Beauty is the perfect choice. The products in this collection contain no animal or animal-derived ingredients.
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