Regardless of our age, when it comes to our skin, we’re all on a quest for the same thing: a plump, glowing, and healthy complexion. In Korea, they call it choc-choc. Far from the elaborate, 12-step K-Beauty skincare regimes you’ve heard about, Ooi believes that skin like this can be achieved with half the number of steps. All you need is to know how – and in what order – to properly apply your products. Here, she shares her six-step skincare regime for your juiciest skin ever.
Cleanse
As with any good facial, your first step should be cleansing the skin effectively. To remove your make-up, look to a formula like Augustinus Bader’s The Cream Cleansing Gel, or Comfort Zone’s sumptuous Sacred Nature Cleansing Balm to lift grime from the face, and use a muslin cloth to wash it off. Next, Ooi recommends using the AHC Aqualuronic Cleanser to double cleanse. It’s very different from most foaming cleansers – it starts foamy, but add some water and it has a very creamy texture, which means it doesn’t dry out your skin. Looking for cleansers that, like this one, contain hyaluronic acid molecules in a number of different sizes, as they create water pathways through which subsequent active ingredients can successfully make their way into the skin.
Tone
If you thought toner was a thing of the past, think again. Toning is one step that has been neglected in the UK for far too long, but in K-beauty it’s extremely important. After you’ve cleansed your face, your skin’s pH will be all over the place – especially in England where the water is hard. When water is hard it means that even the gentlest of cleansers can be quite harsh to skin. Toning helps to balance out the skin’s pH (it is naturally slightly acidic), which is important for a strong skin barrier.
The toning step is also a chance to hydrate while the skin is still warm and pores are open after cleansing. Look for ultra-hydrating toners – avoid anything astringent or with alcohol – with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, coconut water and vitamins. A few drops into the palms of hands and then patting and pressing it into the skin. This will help ensure all the formula sinks into the skin, rather than sitting on top of it, evaporating and taking the water in the skin with it. If you think about the motion of tapping and pressing, you can imagine how molecules will just roll into the pores. It’s very important.
