Obsessed with Asian/Korean stuff - taking your skincare to the next level!

[FrugalFashionista]

Asian and Korean skincare products seem to be a big thing in skincare and beauty right now.

Interested in the following?

• finding a great sunscreen
• tailoring a multi-step ritual to your skincare needs
• talking about geisha beauty rituals
• learning what snail slime, bee venom and starfish have to do with beauty
• plumping up your skin with sheet masks and sleeping masks
• experimenting with essences

Please come here and share your questions, experiences, links and best shopping tips!

ooooh, eye mask update. I've just realised it's been more than half an hour & I didn't fancy leaving them too long even though the packaging said you could sleep in them.

I'm wondering if they would have gradually dissolved away overnight if I had left them on - they're noticeably thinner than when I put them on and there are little bits that have nearly gone . Wonder what dp would say to me sleeping in them to test this out

I haven't looked in the mirror yet because I'm too lazy to shift but from a feel, under my eyes feels plumper and my eyes are refreshed.

One other thing - there wasn't any of the essence leftover to pat into my skin when I took them off, and no dribbley-ness so I'm guessing under my eyes was very thirsty for moisture.

I stuck one to the back of my hand out of curiosity, it carried on vanishing away.

From looking in the mirror they seem to have worked too! Under my eyes is definitely plumper than before, although I still have black suitcases bags but they're much improved.

Since they're so much improved, I'll stick a pair on earlier next time to give them more time to vanish.

Morning! Wow, so many posts! So happy that Lucysmam and Wombat had such great sheet mask and eye mask experiences, really intrigued!

I wore to bed some Laneige White Plus Renew Original Cream from the trial kit. The scent was fantastic, subtle but soothing, and it absorbed quickly. On top, some Mizon Good Night sleep-in product. These two felt really lovely together. The cream is just as nice as Missha, both are just right for my skin - neither too much nor too little. Just silky smooth happy skin!

Very curious about other Laneige products, will try others from the starter kit this week. Just wish I had had time to stock up on Laneige cream at Target while I was in the US last month! Really hope that some EU-based big retailers will start offering these. In the US, you can buy Asian beauty stuff in Walmart, Target and Sephora.

Midlife the masks I recommend should be £2ish. I'm not into pricey skincare any more Innisfree, Missha, or if you believe Wombat and the AB community, My Beauty Diary are good starter sheet masks but I'd imagine that just about anything goes! When you've tried a couple you will have a better idea whether you like these and whether they work as promised.

My I haven't tried the Missha Cho Bo Yang BB cream (have to use up the ones I already have) but would love to. The Missha M Signature is fab stuff.

Posting a link of the Laneige trial kit.

Well, I can't say I look all bright eyed & bushy tailed this morning thanks to dd2 waking me at just before 6 but under my eyes is still nicely plumped up.

Update on the Missha BB shades: tried half a face of 21, half of 23 and I was wrong, the 21 is definitely a better colour match for me than the 23.

Clearly I will be staying in today

I'm imagining one of those black and white masks My!

I've had a brief read about glycolic peels today...didn't get much further than an initial search but wondered if a course might be worth it (diy, am not flush enough to pay pro's).

Also had a mooch at reddit but am . There's a wealth of info on there though so I'll persevere.

Just going to do some pasta for dp's lunch tomorrow at work and then sit down to a sheet mask. Hopefully there's enough essence in this one to keep and use again later in the week.

Lucysmam I use the superdrug glycolic peel and think its great.

I spent sometime today searching for something for my dark circles. Even the expensive eye creams didn't seem to get the miraculous results I would want for shelling out so I have resorted to the diy approach. I'm sat here with gelatine on. Well if I can stick snail slime on my chops why not gelatine

Word of warning for anyone else wanting to try this: remove contact lenses first and don't slap it on right under your eye because it then drys stuck to your eyelashes (I really should follow my own advice). As it made so much I thought I would stick it on my whole face rather than throwing it out and I'm now hiding from dh.

I'm also going to see if some diy vit c serum and some tretinoin help with the dark circles. I know there probably isn't much that anything can do about them as they are hereditary but you never know!

Frugal, I shall report back on the Missha Cho Bo Yang BB cream, ended up ordering it from the German web shop because it wasn't that much more than ordering from Korea and I cba to wait

I also ordered some of the Biore sunscreens from Japan, the watery gel and the perfect bright milk. I don't think I dare read any more posts on this thread!

Oh, and I changed my stupid username to something far more sensible and befitting my age

What's tretinoin? I've seen a few of you mention it now. I'll add it to my list 'to google'.

m0gz, I bought the Superdrug Clearly Youthful glycolic peel a while ago - been too chicken to try it yet though so it's just waiting for me...

Oh! I've been reading more about green tea too...turns out tea bags should be ok so I can sneak those on my shop along with glycerine...since they live in the kitchen they don't count as 'beauty' spends

MoominMamma love your nickname (need to start reading those books to DC). I like the convenience of EU based shipping too, and companies that respect EU's strict cosmetic legislation. Hope your order arrives soon!

I've browsed the Active Formulas site too and seriously considering ordering some Vit C. Loving the sound of ferulic acid - it refers to the ferula family of plants, and one of them is galbanum, one of my all-time favorite aromachemicals (the top note of Chanel No. 19).

Lucysmam tretinoin is a form of Vitamin A, a potent drug that is used to treat acne, certain types of cancer sometimes also aging-related skin changes (sun damage). It has lots of side effects (and can harm the baby during pregnancy), so anti-aging cosmetics often use its weaker sister molecules, retinoids in skincare. I'm pretty conservative with medications so it is not a part of my routine but many people (including some of my family members) have found it very helpful.

I was pleasantly surprised by the Missha shampoo, despite boasting a high oil content it was not a greasy mess and I really enjoyed the tsubaki smell. Might consider buying some more in the future.

Has anybody got a good source for buying Biore UV Aqua Rich as I think I need to start with a sunscreen?

Although I'm going to get some BB samples from the German store so I don't know if I need sunscreen and BB cream though?

I went to order the Biore from Amazon.com but the postage was really high (about $14).

I made a compromise and asked for the Missha sunscreen from Germany and have been using it for almost a week... I also ordered the Biore sunscreen using the same link upthread others used: it has been shipped from Japan but mine hasn't arrived yet. Some people
can get away with just BB cream, I am not taking chances (doing chemical exfoliations) so I use a daily sunscreen under the BB crea,

Thanks Frugal, I hadn't knowingly heard of it before. I've just had a look at a few articles about it, will do some more reading but it sounds a bit hard-core for me

I'm still undecided about the coconut oil as a cleanser. There are many many conflicting articles out there as to whether it will or will not clog pores & I don't want to do that since my face is looking better lately.

I might try is as a mascara remover though and use it for my weekly hair mask again. I used to buy HUGE pots for a quid or so in Superdrug when I was younger but they're easily around the £7 ish mark these days - the pot I looked at the other day was dinky.

Mid I would always use a separate sunscreen, you don't actually apply enough of the BB cream to make it effective as a sunscreen.

I ordered some today from an eBay seller in Japan called sugoi-desho, chose the seller purely based on feedback rating and the fact that I could pay a little extra for faster postage. You should be ok customs wise as long as you keep the product value under £15.

lucy I use tretinoin every other night. It is supposed to be the single most important thing you can use to reverse/slow signs of ageing.

Popped into 99p shop today and stocked up on loads of clearsil pads( one of my teenagers uses my supply!) and got some copper tone.
I also got some lush cream highlighter. Not Asian, but I love the way it makes me look younger!

Really? I just had a quick skim. I'll do some more reading.

I have £4 ish of this week's spends left now I have adjusted my ebay/Tesco baskets ...no idea what to use it on though. If I order a bb cream & it isn't right then I'm stuck until next time I have something to spend.

Was the cream highlighter in the 99p shop? I never look at make up in there.

Thanks I found the link up thread for the sunscreen although I'm really scared of ordering from overseas and in a foreign currency. Have you brought from that site before? Sorry to be a bit pathetic!

No sadly, it was from lush, not 99p store( I bloody wish!). Now I am happier with my face I am taking an interest in makeup. I wasn't interested before, no point painting on a crappy canvas

No, I haven't ordered from that site before for the sunscreen. ebay is safe.if it doesn't arrive I will get my money back so I don't worry !

ah, shame...wishful thinking on my part maybe

I didn't know Lush did make-up. Might have to have a mooch at some point.

Woke up to happy plumptious skin this morning post sheet mask, wahoo! I don't think it lasted long, but my makeup seemed to go on more smoothly.

A friend dropped off some photos of us today, from a gathering a couple of weeks ago. They weren't v flattering at all, but I did notice that my skin looked creamier and more even toned than I've ever seen it in photos before. It could be the snails, or it could be the nars sheer glow foundation...

bigbuttons and lucysmam I'm considering a v low dose tretinoin. Do you have to wait after cleansing before applying? And then again after applying it and before moisturiser? Holy snails seems to think so..but I'm not sure, I think hot and flashy YouTube lady says differently.. All this waiting time business is such a faff!!

I have no idea Wombat, I only had a quick google and skim read about it.