Korean Skincare - Good gift idea?

[xsquared]

My sister is 40 soon, and I know she likes Korean skincare but I've not asked her what brand she uses.

I was thinking of getting this beauty box from Boots for her, but if it were you, would you be disappointed? I know people generally don't like gift sets.

https://www.boots.com/boots-korean-beauty-skincare-box-10361550

ABSOLUTELY! Sulwhasoo and history of whoo are aimed at older skin. Try the sulwhasoo ginseng revitalising sleeping pack, you can buy sample packs on ebay 😄

Just make sure you spot test everything on your forearm before you invest in it. I asked Boots to give me a sample of a Vitamin C serum and they just opened a bottle and stuck a sample sticker on it so I could try a pump on my wrist to see if it reacted over the next couple of days (it hasn't).

Thank you. My lord, they are not cheap 🤣.
Are they any stores (in London) that sell Korean beauty products? I’m quite nervous of buying online.

I purchased one and it arrived today. I'm looking forward to using it and would have loved it as a gift.

Good job that my sister and I are East Asian then!

On a serious note, who says it's not suitable for Northern Europeans?

Not at all!

I received mine as a gift and I’m very happy with it! Most of these products are things I use already and they’re great sizes. Often with beauty boxes it’s sample sizes only but these are all full sizes except one. I’m not suprised it sold out so quickly. Your sister will love it, I’m certain. Not sure what the comment from previous poster is about…

That's great to hear. I'm wishing I treated myself to a box now!

I love gift sets, especially from brands I don't usually use! I tend to stick with the things I know and play it safe when buying for myself. With gift sets, you have nothing to lose! I've often found new favourites from brands I hadn't considered before.

Oh shit! I've been eating Chinese, Indian, Thai, Mexican, North African and Mediterranean food for years - I'm of white Northern European heritage! Am I doing to DIE?? I need answers.

As long as you don’t use the whitening range then it’s good .
Lota of the Korean skincare is rice based and much has probiotics in it so suits sensitive skin .

Well, I picked my box up earlier and you certainly get a lot for your money! I bought a Boots face wash at the same time for 9 quid for context!

Will be having a good perusal tomorrow but generally don't like to open stuff unless I know I'm going to use it up in time, but we shall see.....

@Ddakji - there are branches of Pure Seoul in London:

https://pureseoul.co.uk/pages/store-locator

I have been to the one on Charing Cross Road.

You sometimes can find Kbeauty products in Korean supermarkets such as Oseyo too:

https://oseyo.co.uk/

I’ve been to the branches in Kingston and on Charing Cross Road.

TKMaxx also stock KBeauty products at random intervals!

What bollox.

I have quite sensitive skin (flakes rather than redness if I use anything too harsh) and have been fine with the majority of K-beauty brands. I’m also almost 50 but you might have meant older or younger lol. Sephora stock a lot of K brands so you can read reviews so you’re not going in blind.

For anyone looking at K-beauty brands get Picky app and look at reviews/start discussions etc. I have tested for them for a good few years now (but they’ve mostly moved onto TikTok style which isn’t my bag) and would recommend basically all K sunscreens. They seem to do these remarkably well!

Thanks @IlovePond, I’ll check that out on my next day off.
Stuff that’s good for sensitive oily skin with good spf sounds right up my street.

What antiscientific wokeism! I don't mind idiotic wokeism in social sciences, but not to know about the role of ethnicity in dermatology is pure numb skull material.

@MightAsWellBeGretel, Yes,'fraid so. Same here.
DH is mixed ethnicity, and his skin and hair is quite different to mine, but he still uses my stuff. He'll die too.

😭

Olive Young Global website is great to order from. It's not the cheapest of the asia based sites but shipping is fast (a week or less via DHL), they have good sales and their special BOGO packs are good. They also bring out special value boxes similar to the Boots one.

Other sites I've tried

YesStyle - Not my favourite, I don't care for the website layout and shipping can take a while, sometimes has good offers but isn't always the especially cheap.

Stylevana - My 2nd fave after Olive Young. They have had a bad rep for shipping but I've had a good experience so far with orders arriving in about 2 weeks. I prefer the website layout to YesStyle and they have good coupon deals often with free products. To get the best deals follow their social media for codes. Product information is very limited on the website so sometimes you have to cross ref with another site for more details.

StyleKorean - Only ordered once from here to get one of their special value box deals which are good. I think the minimum spend for free shipping is a bit higher than some of the others. They have a Time Deals section which is quite good and also seem to do a lot of brand collabs with influencers which are decent.

Jolse - Purchased from here once to try it out. Good prices and they put a lot of samples in the box. You will most likely get custom charges from this site. I spent around £50-60 and had to pay £20 in customs charge. Probably wouldn't bother again if I can get the same products elsewhere.

Also agree with @IlovePond about TKMaxx. They sell a lot of K Beauty now on the website and in store so worth looking.

ASOS also sell quite a bit of K beauty now. This is their current edit, not as good as the Boots one but still quite nice for £30

https://www.asos.com/beauty-extras/asos-korean-skincare-beauty-bag-worth-98/prd/207633017#colourWayId-207633018

Thank you Farmer factor 50 sunscreen is the best. It feels like skincare not simply a sun barrier and I like it enough to use it in autumn and winter. It’s also really effective.

😂

I bought the “With Love” Boots beauty box and it arrived yesterday.
I was very, very impressed with it.
I was really tempted by this one though!