If there’s one thing that crosses everyone’s mind while binge watching Korean drama is how in the world do these Korean girls have such impeccable skin? What’s the secret of their porcelain skin? While the world wonders, Koreans continue to be on their best beauty game. But it doesn’t come easy to them as well. They pay a lot of attention to their skincare routine, diet, beauty products and more to keep their skin well-maintained and flawless. Women are groomed since childhood with beauty knowhow and skincare hacks passed on from generations. Well, it is just a part of the Korean beauty culture.
Take a look at 9 Korean beauty secrets you didn’t know could help you get glass-like skin that Koreans seem to be blessed with.
Take a steamy Shower
Steams and facial massage can revive and repair your skin and Koreans know it all too well. They pamper themselves with a quick DIY facial every morning in a steamy shower. While steam open pores and help clear any dirt and grime settled in them, massaging your damp skin ensures younger-looking and glowing skin. Take steamy shower and massage your face and neck while in the shower to get dewy and healthy skin. Massage with your fingertips in a circular motion and upward direction for about 5-7 minutes and use an oil cleanser or an essence for extra benefits and hydration.
Tea is the key
Koreans love their cup of tea and not just for its taste but for umpteen skin and health benefits. These beauty teas include ginseng tea, roasted barley tea and green tea to name a few. They are rich in antioxidants and fight acne and other pesky skin issues which help them to have clear and radiant skin as ever. These brewed drinks are also good for weight loss and blood circulation which further contribute to their youthful beauty. A cup of any of these teas on a daily basis can give you healthy glow and spotless skin with time.
Try facial exercises
If we have learnt anything about Korean women and their devotion to their skin is that they would do anything and everything to get it perfect and toned. The most striking feature of Korean women is their V-shaped jawline and this is a result of face workout. Yes, they practice brief mouth stretches to keep their skin firm and bright. Face exercises like puckering lips and moving sideways, saying vowels out loud in an exaggerated way, smiling and swallowing with your chin up help lift droopy and saggy skin and tighten it. Repeat these facial stretches daily to get a naturally contoured face and you’ll notice the difference.
Trust charcoal for clear skin
We know charcoal as a miracle ingredient for clear skin and we trust it blindly for getting rid of those annoying blackheads but did you know Koreans were the ones who introduced and singlehandedly popularised the charcoal face masks. Started as a Korean beauty trend, charcoal masks are now everywhere. It exfoliates skin and nix the blackheads and whiteheads in one go. They rely on charcoal sheet masks or prepare a DIY face mask with activated charcoal and other natural ingredients to make their own blackhead-clearing mask and thus have the skin we all envy.
Tap it till you make it
The right way to apply your skincare products is as important as the quality of them. Thus the women in Korea make sure they get the added benefits from the products by slathering them on right. They do not smack their moisturisers and serums and rub it on, rather they dot the product or rub it on their fingertips to warm it up and then apply all over their face in a circular motion. They tap their face after to lightly massage as they believe that by doing this the product absorbs better and give extra beauty benefits. They also tap their toner with their hands instead of swiping it on their face for better absorption.
Exfoliate with a damp cloth
Koreans have taken exfoliation a step further and thus flaunt better skin than most of us. A quick and effective skincare hack that they swear by is to use a soft cloth dipped in warm water to scrub their face. This is gentle on skin and gets the job done just fine. It gets the dirt and oil on the nubby cloth and makes your skin clearer and brighter in minutes. Also, this helps keeping wrinkles and fine lines away. Soak a cotton cloth in hot water and squeeze the water out. Gently swipe it across face in an upward motion to exfoliate your face.
Don’t forget the neck
Ask any Korean and they will tell you the secret to look flawless from head to toe is to take care of your skin from head to toe. Korean women take their skincare very seriously and won’t miss out on any spot to be wrinkly or saggy. They take equal care of their neck as they do for their face. There’s one thing we all absolutely need to learn from them. They slather on neck cream and massage their neck area in an upward motion to keep it as young-looking and smooth as their face, because, well, what’s the point of having a radiant and flawless face when you have a wrinkly and dull neck under it, right?
Double dosed skincare
If you want maximum skin benefits, you need to maximise your efforts as well. Korean beauty advocates double dose of skincare products to seal the benefits and preserve the skin’s health. This is why Korean women live by the rule of double cleansing, double eye mask and double hydration in their skincare regimen. The step cleansing method includes a foaming face wash followed by an oil-based cleanser. This clears the skin of every last bit of makeup and dirt from face. They also use double eye masks to target crow’s feet and fine lines. For their hydration need too, they swear by a lightweight, water-based moisturiser and a rich creamier lotion to give an extra boost of hydration to the skin. This ensures locking the moisture in the skin which results in soft and smooth, younger looking skin.
Sleep with an overnight mask on
Your skin goes into recovery mode at night and that’s the time it rejuvenates and does all the repairing work. It repairs skin cells, boosts collagen and revitalizes skin when you are asleep. This is the reason Korean women take their beauty sleep very seriously. Not only that, they also almost never go to bed without a moisturizing overnight mask on. It helps retain and lock the lost moisture in the skin and make it look brighter and fresh in the morning. It also fights ageing signs and dullness and gives you a brighter complexion when you wake up the next morning.