Korean serums : draw the line at snail slime?

[learieonthewildmoor]

I have recently started using some Korean brand creams and serums. I really like the ones I’ve tried/ am using: cheaper price, lovely quality, easy to find ones that suit my needs and fantastic names.
Snail mucin is always being advertised and promoted, and I have a little box of sample size serums; one of which is ginseng and mucin. I’m going to give it a try because I can pretend it’s NOT snail slime, but I can’t bring myself to try the ones that are 100% slime.
I’m needing a moisturising serum, and have been using a birch sap one from an Australian retailer here; and it’s been better for me than hyalauronic acid. However the cream that is my No.1 has birch sap in it, so I’ve been looking at others.
Rice serum seems to be the winning non-slime formula, but then I think - rice water? Really? Why am I putting it on my face?
I should probably go into the Naughty Corner with the other consumers who ask too many questions.

Snail Mucin is one of my staples!! It's a great product, and so cheap! I used to spend a fortune on Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair. SM is much better and a fraction of the price. Enjoy ☺️

But umm, it’s slime. Perhaps I’ll pour it into another bottle that says “Very clean efficacious sciencey stuff”. Cosrx make a hyalauronic acid serum in the same type of bottle.
That could work.

I’ve literally JUST got some of the snail stuff today and even after one use I can see what people are talking about. Embrace the slime!!!

Really? What did you buy?

I think you just need to get past the idea, it's a lot more benign than other things out there.

A lot of skincare ingredients have some odd origins, hyaluronic acid used to be derived from cock combs (or the waddly red bits, can't remember exactly), urea came from urine, etc.

But everyone has their own boundaries, I can't get on board with horse oil (rendered fat from slaughter) and sea cucumber in Asian beauty products, not sure it's really any worse than snail mucin but I mentally put snail mucin somewhere on par with honey 🤷

No, I’m with you, OP. The idea of snails is repellent. It makes me feel so sick. I’d try everything else though.

Are you vegan ? In which case I understand why you’d say no to snail. There are some ingredients that I have avoided without reason like placenta and bee venom but I have used and enjoyed snail products.

Rice water is what’s been used in East Asian beauty for centuries - it’s apparently good for hair too.

Cosrx?
I do admire the way they’ve got things I would never have thought of as skincare. Green tea? On my face? And where do galactomyces come from?
I think I’ll ease in with the gingseng and mucin.

The use of galactomyces came from the fact that sake workers all had very young looking hands. They researched what ingredient was likely causing the effect and it turned out to be the galactomyces that are a byproduct of the sake making process.

I’m not vegan; I just find it a bit - icky.
I’m baffled by putting bee venom in products. Does it come with an epipen?
I know rice water has been used for years. On reddit there are women who say their mothers and grandmothers used to save the water when they drained the rice to wash their faces. But let’s face it, we’ve been told a lot of dumb shit over the years about cosmetics.

botemp: clearly rice has a lot more going for it than I knew!

I actually prefer rice toner to snail muchin, this one lasts me ages and I use daily

There are definitely a lot of gimmicks and what can best be called skintertainment in Asian beauty. With a tendency to jump from one wonder ingredient to the next so being skeptical is healthy.

I do rate it for the hydrating and anti-pigmentation products that utilise the more 'classical' Asian beauty ingredients like rice, soy, centella, ginger, etc. that have some evidence behind it and tend to ignore the things with a lot of noise around them. It's very easy to get caught up in a consumption cycle of hyped products with Asian beauty with far too many steps in your routine and bathroom cupboards that struggle to fit it all in.

The Cosrx snail serum and foundation - the dogs had me up half the night but after a coat of this I definitely look like I’ve had at least six hours sleep, gives a lovely glow. Could be confirmation bias, but I’m impressed. My skins very soft!!

bryceQ: I’ve looked at the serum of that. Toner wouldn’t be enough for me now, I need a serum plus moisturiser.

botemp: I find there’s a direct correlation between how much misogyny there is is a culture and how burdensome the “beauty” expectations are. I’ve had a strangled laugh at reading how you don’t need 12 steps in your routine, 6 is enough. The online company I buy from is sending me advertising for a 10 step routine. The time spent! The money! Half of it is water!
I like treating myself to nice skincare, but spending more than two minutes slapping it on is not part of my plan.
I will put the I’m From rice serum back in my wishlist in case I chicken out of the slime.

I used it and loved it for about 3 weeks but then felt my skin was lacking so probably needs to be combined with something else. It definitely made my skin look more even in texture and colour

It isn't slime, it's the stuff that snails use to repair any damage to their shells.

Interestingly I fell down a skin care rabbit hole and the concensus (sp wrong) is that most skincare is a waste of money and all you actually need is a sunscreen in the morning and to wash your face in the evening. All other products are optional. In fact some actually damage your skin so you have to buy more stuff to put it right.

So agree.

I was in Duty Free the other day and saw some expensive brand...Dior maybe? Selling aerosols of...water. For about £35.

We have a few unwanted slug guests that visit us every night downstairs and leave their slimy trails everywhere. Slugs being the uglier cousins of snails with the same slime. No way could I bring myself to put this on my face!

GettingStuffed: you’re quibbling now 😂 In the ingredients list they call it snail secretion filtrate. There’s no way of hiding that it’s slime.

Intrigued. Which website are you buying these products from? Any recommendation?

I’m in Australia. We have Nudie Glow, W cosmetics and Boniik to choose from: all legit sellers. I buy from Boniik because they have the Round Lab, Cosrx and I’m From products I’m interested in.
I started off buying lip tints. I was a bit overwhelmed by the huge number of skincare products, but after the prices of my usual products starting skyrocketing/a bout of contact dermatitis I started reading reddit and looking through brands for what I want.

My very good friend has a large 'port wine stain' birthmark that covers half of her face and she was prescribed a cream that was made with snail 'slime' about 30 years ago. She sweared by it and I think if it was considered effective enough as a prescription creme then I would have no qualms with it