South Korea is obsessed with perfectly healthy, glowing, and lustrous skin, and it's evident in the products and routines they've developed to achieve Korean beauty standards. The 10-step Korean skincare routine is more than just a routine. It's a lifestyle. It was developed to cover all aspects of skin care to produce the best results. While a 10-step skincare routine might seem like a lot, and you may wonder if you even have time, it's definitely worth every step.
Why Does Korean Skincare Have 10 Steps?
Koreans take pride in the health of their skin and believe in protecting and preventing skin issues instead of using treatments only when a problem arises. The 10-step skincare covers all aspects of what your skin needs to be healthy, from removing impurities and products through double cleansing to exfoliation to remove dead skin cells. By layering the treatments in a specific order laid out, you can get the most out of every Korean skincare product to ensure your skin absorbs the ingredients and improves hydration.
The Simple 10-Step Korean Skincare Routine
What's great about the 10-step Korean skincare routine is that you can completely customize your products and even eliminate steps you don't really want to do. Here is the 10-step skincare routine K-beauty enthusiasts swear by.
Step 1 – Oil-Based Cleanser
The skincare routine starts with a double cleanse, beginning with an oil-based cleanser. The oil-based cleaners will help remove makeup, SPF, moisturizers, and any products left on your skin while keeping your skin barrier intact.
Step 2 – Water-Based Cleanser
Following up with a water-based cleanser is a gentle way to remove any remaining water-based impurities that the oil-based cleanser didn't catch.
Step 3 – Exfoliate
Exfoliation is an important step in the Korean skincare routine. It helps rid your skin of dead skin cells and allows other products and moisturizers to absorb more easily.
Step 4 – Toner
Using a Korean toner can help balance your skin's pH and hydrate your skin.
Step 5 – Essence
Essence is a way to further hydrate your skin to give you a healthy glow.
Step 6 – Serums
Once your skin is refreshed, adding serums can help you target any problems you have, whether it's acne, aging, or more. Find a serum to help target your problem areas and use it during this step.
Step 7 – Sheet Masks
Sheet masks are another way to enhance your skin's hydration and are a great way to soothe your skin while you relax.
Step 8 – Eye Cream
Your undereye can get puffy and dark circles can appear without the proper care. K-beauty understands how sensitive the undereye skin is, and most eye creams are gentle and non-irritating to replenish your undereye and reenergize the skin.
Step 9 – Moisturizer
Perhaps the most important step in the Korean skincare routine is using a moisturizer that locks in hydration and fortifies the skin barrier to protect it from the elements.
Step 10 – Sunscreen
At any time of the year, you want to be sure to use sunscreen to protect your skin from harmful UV rays, even on cloudy days.
You can use these steps as a baseline to create your own skincare routine using the most beneficial ingredients for you. Start out small by adding one step at a time and work your way up to all 10 steps to achieve the best results.
For more, check out our Korean Skincare Tips to add to your 10-step routine. You can also use our Intro Guide to Korean Beauty to get a full overview of this emerging world.