Understanding Serums And Essences – Essence has been slowly introducing a number of vegan products into their regular range and I had the opportunity to try out a few skincare and makeup products from the Hello, Good Stuff collection. From what I tried, I liked it. I think it’s a very affordable drugstore vegan option for those interested.
It is a glass bottle with a dropper. I like dropper systems for skin care products because they allow you to apply the exact amount of product you want.
Understanding Serums And Essences
It is made from 97% natural ingredients. There’s water, pineapple fruit water, glycerin, panthenol, sodium hyaluronate…so basically water based with lots of nice moisturizing and hydrating ingredients.
What Is The Difference Between Essence, Serum And Toner?
The texture of the yellow viscous serum is very smooth and spreads easily. It leaves a nice glow on the skin and is a little sticky at first, but later gets absorbed completely.
The sweet pineapple scent smells like pineapple hard candy to me and gives me cravings whenever I smell it. No fragrance is added, the scent is from pineapple fruit water.
I love that it’s light but still has a smooth viscose texture that clings to the skin and leaves a soft glowy layer on the skin. This leaves the skin looking hydrated and moisturized with a very healthy looking glow. Since these are such lightweight products, I feel like this would be suitable for most skin types.
It’s like a white gel cream that again has a very smooth spread but is still light. Contains 98% natural ingredients. It leaves a more velvety surface on the skin and is quickly absorbed.
Sunhillsgrace Personal Skin Care Ceramide Collagen Firming Serums Energy Essences Ampoules Revitalizes Rejuvenating Skin Firms Tenders Lightens Fine Lines On The Face2ml
This is basically a lightweight moisturizer. You could call it a hydrating primer, but it’s a moisturizer, and moisturizers are actually makeup primers, you don’t need a separate product. It hydrates the skin and leaves it nourished, but not weighed down. Again, this is one of those products that would probably work on most normal to combination skin types.
It’s a light cream with 90% natural ingredients that spreads well and applies like a tinted moisturizer – very sheer. This will give you light coverage and leave a hydrated creamy finish on your skin.
It smells the best to me out of all of these because it has such a cozy sweet powdery scent. However, it is an artificially added fragrance.
Sadly shade 20 Medium is too dark for my skin tone so I only used it as a cream bronzer on top and under the base, can’t say how it works on its own. But it looks like a light cream that seems a bit moisturizing.
Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence
The mist comes in a plastic clear container with a sprayer that actually gives a pretty nice mist. Not the best, but better than some I’ve had in the past.
It’s a hydrating spray. The third ingredient is glycerin. They say it has a matte finish, but it definitely isn’t. It leaves a sort of satiny sheen on my skin.
You can spray it on before, after, or just whenever you want to add a veil of moisture. This on top of my makeup gives me that worn out look which means my natural oils have come through and my skin looks very hydrated and a bit shiny.
Did it blow my mind? Not. It is good? Yes. The ingredients are really nice, all the products apply super smooth and work well. The serum is a very basic hydrating serum that smells amazing and it’s all natural scent. A face primer is a good basic moisturizer that can be put under makeup. I wasn’t impressed with the tinted beauty cream as I generally don’t like this kind of product, but I think it would be nice for someone who wants something very light with a bit of colour. The face mist is also a very basic moisturizer, but can be used before or after makeup. I think this collection is for anyone who wants a cheap, vegan option and doesn’t wear a lot of skincare or makeup, or is pretty new to it. The perfect gift for teenagers if you ask me. KOREAN SKINCARE 101 | WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KOREAN TONERS, ESSENCES, SERUMS AND AMPOULES? May 18, 2016 4 comments
Essence Hello, Good Stuff! Primer Serum Hydrate & Plump, 30 Ml
I think most of us are clear about the initial and final steps of our skin care; cleansers and moisturizers are pretty self-explanatory, but when it comes to Korean skincare, the mess in the middle can be quite confusing. Why are there so many different names for toner? What exactly are the differences between an essence, a serum and an ampoule? What on earth is a softener/emollient/treatment essence, when and how can I use it and how do I recognize it? Today, I’m going to try to clear up the confusion surrounding some Korean skincare products and their names by sharing some of my favorite recommendations so you’ll know a little more by the end of this post!
TONER | More traditionally, toners are liquids with the same viscosity as water, used to balance the skin’s naturally acidic pH after using soapy/alkaline cleansers. Nowadays, however, cleansers are much more “skin-friendly”, so toners have taken on a slightly new role, providing your skin with the first level of hydration after cleansing and starting to deliver beneficial active ingredients. For example, the Cosrx AHA BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner contains lactic, glycolic and salicylic acids to help with large pores, sebum, blemishes, brightening and acne scarring, I literally love it (check out my Before+After here).
Korean toners have many names. Emollients/softeners/treatment lotions/treatment essences are all forms of toners, although you can think of them as “super toners”. These products are often more viscous than regular toners, meaning they are not as runny as water and can be milky or translucent from plant extracts. They provide a base layer of hydration, replace the hydration that may have been lost during the cleansing process, and prepare the skin for the serums/essences/ampoules that will follow (in Korean it’s called “skin texture arrangement”, I think it’s a pretty cute description) . Many “super toners” are mildly exfoliating, leaving your skin extra smooth, and contain antioxidants, moisturizers, and botanicals to resurface, brighten, reduce pores, and more. These toners are best applied to the fingers and then tapped into the skin. than by coating with a cotton swab. Toners generally come in a bottle with a cap rather than a dropper, and often have “First” in the name, such as Missha Time Revolution First Treatment Essence, to indicate that this is the first step of skincare after cleansing.
Note “Super toners” are not part of the cleaning process. They should not be the last step of cleansing, nor are they used to remove any residue from your skin, your skin should be completely clean before use.
Life Plankton™ Essence
ESSENCE | Here things are a bit more complicated. All serums used to be called essences in Korea, but now serums and essences coexist and there is some blurring of the lines when defining them. In general, an essence has a thinner consistency than a serum and is not as expensive as a serum/ampoule because it has a lower concentration of active ingredients (they often come in larger bottles and are used more liberally). Sometimes known as ‘treatment waters’, essences primarily hydrate the skin but contain skin-beneficial ingredients such as niacinamide, antioxidants, humectants and plant extracts and often have a ‘water break’ where you can feel a ‘burst’ of hydration. when you tap them into your skin. Nowadays, the words essence and serum are largely interchangeable and are more of a marketing tool than a definition, as both products are applied to the face in the same step of a skin care regimen and both produce similar results. Koreans would generally not apply both an essence and a serum, as modern essences are often very serum-like.
SERUM | I think this is what we feel most comfortable defining. Korean serums, like Western alternatives, contain high concentrations of active ingredients that address specific skin concerns such as brightening, anti-wrinkle, skin care, pore control, etc. They often have smaller molecules than a moisturizer and are able to penetrate the deeper layers of the skin, providing internal care, which is why they are so effective. Korean serums usually come in a glass dropper bottle and are usually 50ml in size, although some come with pumps and are creamier in texture (a bit like Good Genes Sunday Riley).
AMPOULE | Ampoules are considered a “super serum”. They are often more concentrated in their active ingredients than a serum, which is why they are the most expensive item discussed in this post. The small molecular size and high concentrations of active ingredients penetrate the skin and make short work of specific skin care concerns. Sometimes sold in individually packaged applications or in a pipette bottle (often 30 ml), Koreans traditionally do not use ampoules on a daily basis, but more often they are used temporarily for stressed skin, or when your skin is “uncooperative”, such as after a stressful time, before an event etc. Ampoules are used before essences/serums to ensure they hit the skin first to deliver maximum
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