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This post shows you the complete Korean skincare routine for dry skin.
The days are long gone where we have to suffer with dry and flaky skin.
This is something I’ve struggled with for a long time, especially since incorporating retinols into my skincare routine. I’ve tested and tried so many different products – some working fantastically for my skin and some not so great.
But now I’ve created the perfect skincare routine using top Korean skincare products that will leave your skin feeling hydrated all day long!
I know it can be overwhelming when trying to find the right products for your skin, which is why I’ve put together this guide to show you exactly which products will work!
A good skincare routine happens both in the morning and in the evening, and this is especially for dry skin. Sacrificing one of these skincare sessions could leave your skin feeling like the Sahara dessert the next day. This is why it’s so important to keep to a schedule and know exactly which products to use and in what order.
For dry and flaky skin, a good morning routine should leave your skin nourished with a smooth base to layer your makeup over. A good night time routine should leave you feeling like a moisturized glazed doughnut.
Let’s explore the best Morning Korean skincare routine for dry skin:
1. Start with a water-based cleanser
Dry skin requires a moisturizing cleanser to start off your day time routine. The ROUND LAB 1025 Dokdo Cleanser is perfect for this. It removes all impurities and skincare from your nighttime routine without over-drying your skin. It has a slightly acidic pH (5-6), which keeps your skin hydrated and prevents irritation that could eventually lead to dry patches. Other hydrating ingredients include various oils, hyaluronic acid, and a range of amino acids to keep your skin carrier intact.
2. Use a hydrating toner
For the second step of your Korean skincare routine, use the Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Hyaluronic Acid Toner. It has an extremely lightweight formula and doesn’t feel like it’s sitting firm on your skin – it actually absorbs into your skin! The special ingredient – Oryza Sativa extract is a rice extract at 2,000ppm (ppm = parts per million) that helps with softening skin and anti-aging. This toner also contains Scutellaria baicalensis root extract which is commonly used in Chinese medicine to treat inflammation, so you know you’ll get a calming effect when using this toner!
3. Brighten with Vitamin C
After using a toner, it’s great to add some vitamin C into your Korean skincare routine for dry skin, and the best product for this is the Vitamin C Glow Jelly Pad by Needley. Vitamin C is great for brightening and fading dark spots to make your skin flow. The mesh jelly pads have a soft and rough side, which work perfectly to get the vitamin C deep into your skin, as well as exfoliate some dead skin cells off.
4. Use an Ampoule
Centella asiatica is an ingredient that has taken the Korean beauty space by storm. The SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Asiatica 100 Ampoule is ultra-concentrated with Centella Asiatica which helps to keep skin soft and moisturized while repairing scars and combating redness. It’s lightweight and works well when layering makeup and other products on top of it, so give it a try!
5. Remove fine lines with a hydrating eye cream
The Cos RX Snail cream is the perfect eye cream to use. I’ve been using it for a very long time and have replaced this product countless of times – it’s never failed me! It has a lightweight formula with its main ingredient being snail secretion filtrate. Putting snail slime on your face might be off-putting to some of you, but don’t knock it until you try it! It’s honestly a fantastic ingredient that keeps your undereyes feeling plump and moisturized. This eye cream also helps with dark under-eyes and helps to give a fresh and wide-awake look when you wake up in the morning.
6. Use a moisturizer packed with ceramides
I first came across this moisturizer during my time in South Korea, and it’s honestly never left my routine. If you have dry skin, it’s very likely that your skin barrier is being compromised – either by your environment or from specific products you are using. The Dr Jart + CeramidinTM Skin Barrier Moisurizing Cream contains ceramides, a type of lipid, which helps to maintain the skin’s natural barrier by regulating water retention in the skin. It’s a fantastic Korean moisturizer for dry skin that I highly recommend.
7. Protect your skin with a strong sunscreen
My favorite sunscreen EVER is the TOCOBO Bio Watery Sun Cream SPF50+ PA++++. I cannot stop raving to everyone I meet about how great this sunscreen is for dry skin. It’s super moisturizing and the perfect product to finish your skin care routine with. The ingredients include hyaluronic acid and a mix of traditional Chinese herbs that create a light-weight, sun cream perfect for those with dry skin. Not only is it great for moisture, but at SP50 and PA+++ your skin will be extremely protected during the sunniest of days. It also holds any makeup on top of it well, so you won’t be left with dry, cracking skin underneath your makeup.
What to use in your evening routine:
1. Start with an oil-based cleanser
After a long day running around, the first thing you’ll need to do is effectively remove your makeup. If you live in a large city, it’s very likely that you’ll have a layer of unseen pollution on your face – I know this sounds grim, but it’s a sad reality in our industrialized lives! You’ll need an oil cleanser to remove all of this, and the best is SKIN1004’s Madagascar Centella Light Cleansing Oil. This cleanser is especially good for dry skin because not only does it effectively remove all the makeup and dirt, but it leaves your face feeling moisturized due to the Centella extract. Centella is used a lot in makeup for products to target dry and sensitive skin and also protects your skin’s barrier to prevent further loss of moisture.
2. Use a water-based cleanser
Double-cleansing is a must for the perfect Korean skincare routine for dry skin at nighttime. After using an oil cleanser, you’ll need to opt in for a water-based cleanser such as the Haruharu wonder Black Rice Moisture 5.5 Soft Cleansing Gel.
This cleanser helps remove any left over residue that wasn’t caught when using the oil cleanser. It’s particularly great as it’s special black rice extract helps to maintain a good skin barrier, which can help to calm irritation, and has an unscented, light-acidic formula that also works well with sensitive skin types!
3. Go in with an exfoliant
Exfoliants are great to use as they remove dead skins cells from your face that would otherwise clog your pores and prevent sebum regulation, which contributes to overly dry skin. Needley’s Daily Toner Pad is the best I’ve ever used, and I highly recommend it. These pads are literally soaking in a formula of BHA (Salicylic acid) and PHA (Gluconolacone) mixed with various plant extracts to mildly exfoliate your skin and tighten pores whilst keeping your skin moisturised.
You’ll start to notice the effects of this toner pad almost immediately after incorporating it into your skincare routine, which makes it a fantastic addition to have. If you are also using a retinol products, make sure you don’t use this exfoliant on the same day. You should alternate daily between using an AHA/BHA exfoliator and your retinol, as the two should not be used together. It will cause very dry skin, so be warned!
4. Incorporate a Milky Toner
Once you’ve exfoliated, you’ll need a moisturizing toner. I highly recommend the Tirtir Milk Skin Toner, which leaves your skin feeling plump and moisturized. I prefer to use a milk toner in the evenings because it can be quite heavy to use under your makeup during the day, so keep this strictly to the nighttime! It contains a range of botanical extracts that can help to balance the skin’s pH levels and give you a nourished and glowing complexion.
5. Use an Essence
You may have seen this product all over social media recently – and for a good reason! The Mixsoon Bean Essence is a water-based treatment that is a staple in Korean skincare routine for dry skin to hydrate your skin and prepare your face before using other products.
It’s special ingredient, Soybean Ferment Extract, helps to exfoliate stubborn dead skin cells, along with a range of antioxidants to keep skin feeling fresh. You can also use this essence as an exfoliator by rubbing it into the skin in circular motions for about 15 minutes. You’ll start to see black and white clumps build up which show skin cells and dirt being cleared from your skin!
6. Use a Serum
After using an essence, you’ll need to seal it all in with a serum. The Beauty of Joseon Flow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide contains the best ingredients to target dry skin. Propolis is actually made by bees to help build their hives, but it used commonly in skincare for it’s moisturizing and anti-inflammatory properties. Niacinamide is a form of vitamin B3 also used commonly in skincare products that plays a role in reducing water loss from the skin, allowing your face to retain it’s natural moisture.
7. Go with an Ampoule
We’ve already touched upon the wonders of Centella extract for dry skin, so it’s no wonder that we’re coming across this ingredient again. You may think that ampoules are the same as serums, but actually they have some key differences – ampules are more concentrated and have a higher potency of active ingredients. You don’t have to use ampoules every day – 2-3 times a week will suffice. The SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Ampoule is the perfect ampoule for your nighttime routine!
8. Use an Eye Cream containing Retinal
Using an eye cream that contains retinal is great to use in a nighttime skincare routine. Retinals are a derivative of vitamin A which is used for it’s anti-ageing properties. It works by increasing the cellular turnover of skin cells which leads to a reduction in wrinkles whilst also helping to treat acne. It also helps to increase collagen production, keeping skin firm and smoothed. The Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum: Ginseng + Retinal is perfect eye cream to use as it has a silky, non-sticky texture that glides under your eyes. Ginseng is particularly good for reducing inflammation, making it suitable for dry skin.
9. Use a Soothing Moisturizer
This Torriden DIVE-IN Low Molecular Hyaluronic Acid Cream is fantastic for dry skin. It has a watery texture that can dig deep into your skin to moisturize the skin layers underneath. This leads to a complexion that leaves you glowing by targeting the layers underneath to reveal new, moisturized skin as your skin cells regenerate. This moisturizer also acts as a barrier, similar to using Vaseline, which keeps all the products you used before in place and allows them to work harder at targeting your skin cells to replenish.
10. Target ageing with Retinol
A great retinol option for your nighttime routine is the Skin2Soul Some By Mi Retinol Intense Reactivating Serum. It contains retinol and retinal which increase the rate at which skin cells divide, allowing your skin to look fresh and newer. If you’ve never used retinols before, it’s best to start off very slow with this product. Limit it to 1-2 times a week, and only once you feel your skin can tolerate it without getting inflamed you should use it more often.
If you follow this Korean skincare routine for dry skin, you’ll be left with beautifully hydrated skin in no time. If there’s something in the daytime routine that you’d prefer to use a night, or vice versa, then feel free to experiment and see what works best for your skin!
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