Whether you take a minimalist approach to skincare or love to multi-step, facial essences are products you’ll want to get your hands on. First, let’s zero in on what facial essences really are and what they do for skin.

The Korean beauty movement ushered in the multi-step skincare routine in a huge way. Multi-masking, skincare cocktailing, and layering are commonplace skincare practices these days. The current favorite of the Kb skincare world, facial essences, are making a particularly big splash.

What are Facial Essences?

Not a toner. Not a serum. Not a facial oil. What are these mysterious liquid beauty treatments?

At first glance, facial essences look similar to toner. Yes, they are watery, but they contain different ingredients and have different effects on skin. Facial essences are formulated with powerful actives and moisturizing ingredients. Unlike your average toner or micellar water, which are used to clean and clarify the skin, essences are highly concentrated floral water, botanical, and natural oil blends. Think of them as a facial serum in liquid form.

How to Use Facial Essences

Due to the watery nature of facial essences, you may be tempted to swipe the face with an essence-soaked cotton pad post-cleanse. They do go on after you clean your face and before adding your treatments and moisturizer, but since these formulas are meant to treat the skin, rather than cleanse, you want to make sure every drop soaks in.

There are two ways to get the most from your facial essence. Either add a pump or two of essence to the palm of your hand and pat into skin, or mist onto the face and pat it in. It’s the patting in part that is important. This way your complexion reaps the benefits of those healthy ingredients and no precious drops are wasted.

Another way to use facial essences is to combine them with another product, like a serum or facial oil. This is a great way to decrease the oiliness of a facial oil, and boost the nourishing and reparative properties of a serum.

5 Reasons to Use Facial Essences

1. Perk Up Skin: Glowing skin is never a bad thing. Dryness is one of the main glow-sappers and facial essence is moisture rescue in a bottle. Try Aurelia Probiotic Skincare Calming Botanical Essence to boost radiance and banish dullness due to jet lag, lack of sleep, and other skin stressors. Made with pure glacier water to balance the skin and rose quartz for balancing the spirit.

2. Soften and Moisturize: There are many causes for dehydrated skin. Adding in a floral essence with hyaluronic acid, like Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence, will help to keep skin moisturized. Stock before winter arrives.

3. Prep the Skin: Facial essences help other skin treatments, like serums and moisturizers, more easily soak into skin. They also act as a hydrating facial primer, so foundation looks smooth and even. In Fiore Vitale Toning Floral Essence is an aloe-based option, suitable for all skin types.

4. Plump & Smooth: A facial essence that firms the skin and softens lines? That’s In Fiore Régénerant. Made with rose water, natural humectants, and plant actives, it plumps the complexion while kicking dryness to the curb.

5. Balance Oil: Facial essences are a dry-skinned girl’s dream. That doesn’t mean they can’t be used by those with oily skin, too. Adding a pump or spritz of facial essence to your favorite serum or moisturizer, instead of layering underneath, works best on oilier skin types. Give Odacite Mint + Green Tea Treatment Mist a try, formulated to soothe skin and reduce breakouts.

*Disclaimer: Help support EcoSalon! Our site is dedicated to helping people live a conscious lifestyle. We’ve provided some affiliate links above in case you wish to purchase any of these products.

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We’ve been doing the cat eye for a while now. Feline is way femme, but what’s cuter than a little puppy? Nothing! Which is why Korean beauty gives us puppy eyeliner.

Yep, it sounds weird. Not denying that. But leave it to K beauty to come up with something a teensy bit strange-sounding that turns out to be absolutely adorable. The latest Korean beauty trend is called “puppy eyeliner” and it is too sweet. Where cat eye is pure sexy, puppy dog eye is a more innocent and adorable look.

Still can’t get behind it? Think of the last time your pup peered up at you after ripping apart your favorite (and expensive) shoes. Yeah, that. Okay, now that you get the picture, let’s talk how to get the puppy eye look. It’s fairly simple and so darn lovable.

How to Create the Korean Beauty Puppy Eye

1. First, apply shadow from lash line to crease in a warm beige. Kjaer Weis Eye Shadow in Grace is a great powder option. If you’d rather go with a cream shadow, try Ilia Beauty Silken Shadow Stick in In Between Days.

2. Of course, you’ll need a black eyeliner. Actually, this look requires two black liners. Following the natural contour of your upper lid, apply a line of pencil along your lash line. When you get to the outer edge, extend the line slightly downward (opposite of the upward line with the cat eye). Now, go over the pencil with liquid liner. Two to try: Vapour Mesmerize Eyeliner pencil and Benecos Natural Liquid Eyeliner.

3. The puppy eye look requires a healthy coat or two of black mascara on both upper and lower lashes. Kjaer Weis Mascara in black will have you baby golden doodle-ready, no problem.

4. A touch of highlighter applied to inner corners of eyes finishes up the look. Go for a bright highlighter, like RMS Beauty Living Luminizer or Vapour Halo Illuminator.

You can check out the how-to video below, too for more info.

*Disclaimer: Help support EcoSalon! Our site is dedicated to helping people live a conscious lifestyle. We’ve provided some affiliate links above in case you wish to purchase any of these products.

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You know how the right Instagram filter can make your skin look picture perfect? C’mon, we’ve all done a bit of selfie enhancing at one point or another. What if you could walk around IRL looking like your complexion had undergone your favorite Instagram filter? You can! And it’s called “blurring”.

Yet another Korean beauty trick in the books. This one goes by the name of “blurring” and it is the art of diminishing flaws, in a natural looking way, with a few makeup tricks.

Gone are the days of thick layers of foundation and highlighter used to mask pimples, spots, large pores, and redness. This cool procedure utilizes makeup and skincare products applied with a light touch, to sort of blur imperfections out of sight. Think: Taking the spotlight off of zits, wrinkles, and redness, rather than completely covering them up.

Originating in Korea (where beauty geniuses are born, apparently), the makeup trick has made its way stateside in a big way. If you walk by department store beauty counters you’ll likely encounter several blurring products. Try one on the back of your hand and you’ll see it creates sort of an air brushed effect that is super soft and smooths skin tone.

If you want to try blurring without the synthetic junk ingredients, and we know you do, here are some natural products for achieving the blurred look.

The Korean Beauty Blurring Technique in 5 Steps

1. Start with clean, moisturized skin. Soft and supple creates the ideal canvas for this look. Juara Sweet Black Tea & Rice Moisturizer

2. Primer will create a smooth finish and give skin a luminous look, and help makeup to stay put. Vapour Organic Beauty Stratus Soft Focus Instant Skin Perfector

3. Choose a foundation that creates a dewy look rather than a matte surface. The key to blurring is patting makeup onto skin instead of swiping. ILIA Beauty Vivid Foundation

4. Now, before makeup has completely soaked into skin, go over with a soft brush. This will give the complexion that blurred look. RMS Beauty Skin2Skin Foundation Brush

5. Skip the powder. It can make skin look dry, and draw attention to wrinkles and imperfections. We are going for bright and glowing, here.

That’s it! Five steps to your best-looking skin. No filter needed.

*Disclaimer: Help support EcoSalon! Our site is dedicated to helping people live a conscious lifestyle. We’ve provided some affiliate links above in case you wish to purchase any of these products.

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In our Americanized world of fast, faster, and even faster, a ten-step skincare routine sounds sort of absurd. Let’s face it, many of us can’t even imagine taking the time to apply a serum pre-moisturizer. Alas, the multi-product Korean Beauty hype has hit the U.S. Find out if it’s worth your time.

Be honest. How often do your good skincare intentions dissolve into an ultra abbreviated rinse and swipe type of deal? Most of us don’t even feel like working up the energy for a quick suds before hopping into bed. So the idea of the skincare steps en masse situation that is Korean Beauty can sound, well, like a big no-can-do. As with most things, if it is worth it we will find time to do it. Is the Korean Beauty routine one such gem?

The 10 Steps of Korean Beauty

Korean beauty consists of 10 specifically ordered steps, tailored to individual skin types. The routine is a many layered process, intended to be done each night. Think of this as a ritualistic regimen that you can adjust to fit your needs. All of the following product choices are suggestions and may be swapped out with your preferences.

Step 1 Oil cleanse: We know the virtues of oil cleansing – binds to dirt, oils, and makeup, gently removing them from skin. Use Aster & Bay Cleansing Oil to remove eye makeup and all over face. Rinse with warm water and a soft cloth.

Step 2 Foaming cleanse: Most of us don’t feel completely clean without a little foaming action. Use super mild One Love Organics Easy Does It Cleanser for that squeaky clean feel without the dry, taut skin. Or you may opt for a cream cleanser on dry skin to retain some of the moisture from the oil cleansing.

Step 3 Exfoliation: It’s no secret that regular exfoliation rids the skin of pore clogging dead skin cells is essential in keeping the complexion clear. But too much of this good thing can stress skin and cause irritation and premature aging. For a kinder version of the every night exfoliation, try using a granular exfoliator, like Pai Kukui & Jojoba Skin Brightening Exfoliator, once or twice per week and sticking with a fruit acid product the other nights. If your skin is very sensitive or becomes irritated, tone back to exfoliating just once per week.

Step 4 Toner: Think skin refresher here. This step is for removing any excess cleanser, tightening pores, and readying skin to receive moisturizing products. Anti-aging YULI Metamorphic Elixir acts as a base layer for your next step.

Step 5 Essence: This step is viewed as essential in Korean beauty. Essence is a blend of concentrated ingredients said to brighten and firm the skin. You can’t go wrong with Lotus Wei Flower Elixirs.

Step 6 Serums: Serums are highly concentrated, potent ingredients that deliver deep down support to skin. It is important to use a serum targeted to specific skin types. I love this guide to choosing a facial serum. When in doubt go with MUN No.1 Aknari Brightening Youth Serum.

Step 7 Mask: Sheet masks are a big deal and Korean beauty does not exclude them. This step is intended to deliver a whopping dose of nutrient rich ingredients to skin. And what is more nutrient rich than sea veg? WHAMISA Organic Sea Kelp Facial Sheet Mask contains sea kelp to improve hydration, elasticity, and glow factor. If masking every night seems like overkill, sub in a facial massage 3-4 times per week.

Step 8 Eye cream: Gently pat on an intensive eye cream, like Kahina Giving Beauty Eye Cream. Swiping and pulling on this delicate area can create lines and wrinkles. This goes for Korean beauty or otherwise, obvi.

Step 9 Moisturizer: Since this routine is all about the layering, think light, gentle skin quenching for this step. Fermented ingredients play a big role in Korean beauty. Lightly massage Organic Flowers Water Cream, with Natto Gum extract, into face and neck.

Step 10 Night cream: The final step is yet another layer of skin nourishing moisture. Go for a rich night cream, like WHAMISA Organic Fermented Flower Nourishing Cream, that will soak into skin while you sleep.

Now that you have the deets on Korean beauty, what do you think? Will you give it a try?

*Disclaimer: Help support EcoSalon! Our site is dedicated to helping people live a conscious lifestyle. We’ve provided some affiliate links above in case you wish to purchase any of these products.

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