I Switched To A Full Skincare Routine Only Using Korean Products For A Month — Here’s What Happened

As you may have noticed from recent posts, I have been in a K-beauty discovery spiral for the last six weeks or so. My curiosity was sparked by listening to a few podcasts that featured female founders of international beauty brands inspired by Korean skincare and beauty culture.

I have no self-control when it comes to exploring new beauty and skincare products. So I jumped in to give Korean skincare a proper trial for 30 days and see what happens to my skin. Is the hype surrounding K-beauty justified? I needed to know.

How I found products (in Thailand)

I turned to the Soko Glam website to look for products. It allows you to search and filter for products by skin type and skin concern. There are so, so many Korean beauty brands and products, it’s hard for the average person to know what to look for exactly so I found Soko Glam and the filter function extremely helpful. And add to that living in a foreign country (Thailand) that is not Korea, I had limited options in terms of availability. So I basically cross-referenced the filtered products results for my skin concern (acne-prone) on Soko Glam and searched on Lazada Thailand to see what was actually available to me.

I also wanted to see if Korean skincare products are more affordable because I know skincare products in general can get very expensive. So after finding a range of Korean products available on Lazada Thailand, I narrowed down the search further by price and tried my best to create a whole skincare routine’s worth of products including sample sizes, minis and testers, priced under US$25 (750 Thai baht) that would last me at least 30 days.

Here are the products and the exact sizes I purchased:

Oil-based / balm cleanser
Banila Co Zero Cleansing Balm Purifying (7ml – sample size – lasts about 2-3 weeks)
Price: 79 Baht

Water-based cleanser
COSRX Low PH Good Morning Gel Cleanser (150 ml – full size)
Price: 370 Baht

Acne treatment (whenever required) 
COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch (24 patches per sleeve)
Price: 120 Baht

Physical exfoliator (once a week)
Skinfood Black Sugar Mask Wash Off (100g – full size)
Price: 300 baht

Toner
Son & Park Beauty Water (60ml – travel size)
Price: 178 baht

Essence
Missha Time Revolution The First Treatment Essence (24 Tester Sachets)
Price: 250 Baht

Emulsion 
Etude House Moistfull Collagen Emulsion (180 ml – full size)
Price: 520 Baht

Moisturiser
Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Cream
Price: 740 Baht

Switching from my regular routine to Korean products 

I have to start by stating this: I did not just quit my current skincare routine cold turkey and substitute all the products at once for the Korean counterparts. I never switch multiple products at once because then I won’t know which one is and isn’t suiting my skin.

I switched over my whole routine over the course of about 10 days. And here’s what it looked like:

Day 1: Change to Korean gel facial cleanser.

Day 3: Add toner.

Day 5: Add essence

Day 7: Add exfoliator

Day 9: Add acne treatment

Day 11: Add oil-based cleanser and emulsion / moisturiser

This really helped me evaluate and see how the product interacted with my skin and what effect positive or negative, if any, it had.

Week 1: What I noticed after switching to facial cleanser, toner, and essence. 

Cleanser:

• Feels mildly grainy to the touch
• Foams with water
• Feels like it penetrates the skin to clean, afterwards skin feels slightly drier than my regular cleanser

Toner:

• I was using too much at the start and it irritated my skin causing some mild breakouts
• Switched to dabbing with a cotton pad
• Breakouts settled within one week or so and skin also adjusted within one week

Essence:

• Skin responded to the serum well — no irritation or break out
• Skin feels plump and hydrated

Overall effects from Week 1:

• There are more breakouts but cleared up by week 2
• Feels like the toner didn’t actually irritate the skin, but cleared out the impurities from inside which might have resulted in a breakout i.e. skin purging impurities
• Skin texture feels smoother

Week 3: What I noticed after adding an oil cleanser, emulsion and acne patch. 

Oil cleanser:

• Melts makeup off the skin really nicely
• Feels hydrating
• Does not clog the pores and very light on the skin

Emulsion

• Very runny formula — didn’t love it
• Extremely hydrating on the skin — stays wet for a minute or two before absorbing in
• Strong scent which I don’t really like but doesn’t cause breakouts or any issues

Acne Patch

• Used as an overnight spot treatment on whiteheads and nodules
• Helps to dry up active breakouts and reduce redness
• No reactions or sensitivity

Overall effects from Week 2-3:

• Skin has a natural glow and radiance
• Skin texture is smooth but hasn’t changed much from Week 1.
• Acne seems to be under control. No new breakouts.
• Skin feels very clean

Week 4: Switched from emulsion to a regular cream moisturiser while keeping everything else the same

Emulsion:

• While the emulsion was very wet and hydrating on the skin, I don’t think it did anything for my skin texture and “plumpness” — I really didn’t like the way it felt so I decided to change the moisturiser

Moisturiser

• Rich cream formula and very hydrating

Overall effects from Week 4:

• Skin is glowing and clear
• Skin texture became plump and smooth within days of changing the formula of the moisturiser
• Acne is the same

What I liked

Banila Co Zero Cleansing Balm Purifying

I think this product surprised me the most and in a good way. I didn’t expect to like an oil-based cleanser balm because I just assumed it wouldn’t suit me. I tend to stay away from oily / balmy products due my to my acne but the Banila Co Zero Cleansing Balm Purifying really suited my skin. It melts away makeup easily and leaves the skin feeling soft and supple after use. It’s definitely a product I’m going to incorporate into my normal daily routine.

COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch

I am very suspicious of products like this, which claim to offer a kind of one-stop solution for acne. But the COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch actually works. It definitely won’t make pimples disappear overnight but it does a great job of reducing redness and inflammation and clearing the impurities from acne, helping it heal faster. I used the patches right after cleansing and toning the skin and left them overnight and they worked really well to reduce the appearance of pimples. I would say it helps breakouts clear within two-three days.

Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Cream

This product was a pretty late addition to my Korean skincare routine because I wasn’t liking the emulsion moisturiser formula I was using and wanted something else. So I decided to try the Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Cream because it is a cult favourite and I understand why: the skin just drinks up all the moisture from the cream and it feels supple and smooth almost instantly. My skin texture feels smoother after just a few days of using this cream and I think it’s going to get a permanent spot in my routine.

What I disliked

Etude House Moistfull Collagen Emulsion

I really dislike the formula of this product — it is extremely liquid and runny and sits on top of the skin for a while before it is absorbed. It is also incredibly heavily scented and that’s a huge deterrent for me in skincare products. After using the Etude House Moistfull Collagen Emulsion for almost 3 weeks I just don’t think it did anything for my skin. And I disliked it so much it drove me to find another moisturising product!

What I felt neutral about

COSRX Low PH Good Morning Gel Cleanser

The COSRX Low PH Good Morning Gel Cleanser left my skin feeling slightly more dry than my usual cleanser after use. I didn’t love or hate it either way — I think it does a good job of cleansing the face and you get major bang for buck with the product because there is so much of it in the tube.

Missha Time Revolution The First Treatment Essence

I think this product did exactly what it was supposed to do: hydrate the skin and prep it for more moisture. I think the Missha Time Revolution The First Treatment Essence left my skin feeling plump and supple like any essence / serum could but I just don’t see why it is so highly raved about. I couldn’t figure out the magic factor even after a month of use.

Son & Park Beauty Water

This is the first time I incorporated a toner into my skincare routine and I was really afraid it was going to cause breakouts but it didn’t. I think the Son & Park Beauty Water is a nice, gentle toner for acne-prone skin. I want to give it more time to see if it truly does make a huge difference in my skin texture and clarity. 

Skinfood Black Sugar Mask Wash Off

I really enjoyed using this product as a physical exfoliator but due to breakouts I had to be very careful using a scrub on active pimples and acne. So for that reason I am a bit hesitant to use it too frequently. But when I did use it my skin was visibly brighter and more radiant.

My final thoughts

After switching to and adjusting my Korean skincare routine over the course of a month, here are my final thoughts.

First and foremost: I learned A LOT. Diving into the world of Korean beauty and skincare revealed new concepts, theories, techniques, products and brand that I had never even heard about. And so many of them make so much sense to me.

Second, switching to a full Korean skincare routine didn’t suddenly fix all my skin issues and concerns. But two things did improve: my skin looks clearer i.e. my skin tone and texture is more even and there is an overall glow that wasn’t there before. I think this is due to adding a toner and following the “seven skin” essence technique and it’s something I plan to continue doing.

Third, I am a firm believer that even people like me with acne-prone skin can safely use a gentle oil cleanser, if it is followed with a gentle water-based cleanser i.e. double cleansing and it’s something I plan to continue doing. My skin has never felt so clean!

Fourth, my acne breakouts and scars didn’t change much using Korean skincare products but I did discover an acne spot treatment that actually works.

Overall, I think that trying a full Korean Skincare routine introduced me to new techniques and some great affordable products. And I do think some of the products from my old skincare routine do perform better for my acne issues. So my plan now is to slowly go back to my old skincare routine and integrate in some of my new K-beauty discoveries. I’m hoping a combination of the two will continue to keep my skin dewy and clear.