As I have lived into these middle aged years, I've started noticing changes in my skin and decided it was time to up my skincare game. I was at my public library recently and happened upon this book, which I am absolutely devouring:
The author, Charlotte Cho, is a Korean American, raised in the sunshine of Southern California. As an adult, she took a job in Seoul and was amazed at the dewy, glowing skin of the women of South Korea. She took it upon herself to learn their ways and she has turned it into a wonderful tutorial of a book that is very readable and fun!
This page of the book outlines the Korean 10 step Skin-Care Routine. At first 10 steps sounded ridiculous, but then I realized that I was already incorporating many of them, and some are not for every day. Below, I will share the specific products I have purchased and found to be beneficial, as I have been incorporating this skin care routine into my life.
Steps 1 and 2: The double cleanse: You mean I have to wash my face twice? Yes. Cho recommends cleansing twice--the first is an oil cleanse and the second is a water cleanse.
For the oil cleanse, I have been using this Neutrogena Ultra Light Cleansing Oil. It might seem strange to our western minds to put oil onto our (possibly already oily) faces, but the oil actually bonds with the oily build up in your skin and other toxins and washes them away, leaving your face baby soft and clean! Massage the oil onto your dry face and then rinse away with warm water. When the warm water makes contact with the cleansing oil, it becomes a white soapy liquid and rinses off effortlessly.
The second cleanse is a traditional water based "soapy" cleanser that we are accustomed to. I use this CeraVe hydrating cleanser, since my skin is more on the dry side.
Step 3: Exfoliator
This step is just twice a week for me, and I usually exfoliate my face when I am taking a bath or shower. Most of the products I use can be found for pretty reasonable prices, but this one is a splurge that I will continue to splurge on because I just love the way it leaves my face feeling so soft and smooth after using it! I buy it here from Pomifera
here.
Step 4: Toner
Trader Joe's has some wonderful skin care products, many of which I have included in my skin care routine. I love the feel and scent of this Rose Water Facial Toner. I just spray some on a cotton swab and run it over my face to get it prepped and ready for the rest of the skin care to follow.
Step 5: Essence--To be honest, I haven't purchased any Essence yet. Essence is considered by many Korean women to be the heart of their skin care routine--think of it as a very light (watery) hydrator. Essence is still mostly widely available in the Asian marketplace, but you can also find it on Amazon. I'm planning to purchase
this one soon!
Step 6: Serums
There are a wide variety of serums on the market, and each one is meant to target "problem" areas on the skin. I am loving these two serums--a Vitamin C serum that I purchased at Target and a Hyalauronic Acid Moisture Boosting Serum from Trader Joe's. (Shout out to Trader Joe's: they have done an excellent job of researching products people are loving and making them available at an affordable price point. Thank you, Trader Joe's! I was buying a much more expensive Hyalauronic Acid from an online company and have found the Trader Joe's version to be a practically identical product!)
Step 7: Sheet Masks
Sheet masks are a "when you feel like it" product (Cho recommends twice a week) meant to add extra hydration and nutrients to the skin. I recently used this "juicy watermelon" mask from Target while on vacation in Italy to rehydrate my face after a long flight. It was cool and refreshing!
Step 8: Eye cream
Currently using this eye cream from Trader Joe's. Just a dab'll do ya, patted into the skin around that orbital bone.
Step 9: Moisturizer
Two more Trader Joe's products! I moisturize with a pump of the facial moisturizer mixed with 5 drops of the Marula Facial Oil. It leaves my skin feeling so nourished!
Step 10: SPF
Cho advocates for SPF as the most important part of your daytime routine, as preventing skin damage is so important, not just to prevent the premature again of our skin but for our health and longevity, as well. Depending on how natural I want my look to be on a given day, I will use either of these products. If I'm going for a no makeup look, Elta MD is a sheer mineral-based SPF 46 face moisturizer recommended by my dermatologist and available on Amazon, and it lets my natural skin show through. If I want a medium coverage "foundation", I use this It Cosmetics CC cream with an SPF 40.
The thing I like most about Charlotte Cho's book is that it is less about makeup and more about having healthy, glowing skin. Makeup is seen as the supporting actor, allowing your own beautiful skin to be the star of the show!
2 comments:
YAY! A blog post from Tracy! I'm going to be all old school and comment here instead of on Facebook.
My daughter is very good about taking care of her skin. She uses all of these steps, I expect. In her mid-20s, she is way ahead of the game, but I'll bet that her skin will be amazing later on, especially based on the fact that she ALWAYS wears sunscreen.
I recently had a facial, my first in many decades, and I was shocked at how relaxing it was. I LOVED IT. Expensive, so not something I will do often, but I may do it a time or two a year. She told me about the oil based cleanser, too. Confession time...I hate washing my face. I use a make up remover wipe before bed and usually that is it. I know my skin will look better if I treat it properly. I am going to try to be better, and look at all of the MANY products I have around my house, and how they would fit into this routine. Thank you for the detailed post. :-)
Love this Tracy! Fun to read and I love all the Trader Joe shout outs! Great job!
Post a Comment