u/Nin-me-sar-ra

I have combination skin and live in a high altitude dry climate. I used to love the Kiehl’s ultra face cream, but somehow it became irritating on my face after I started a tretinoin routine. So I switched to Korean moisturizers and was blown away by how gentle they felt! I got most of the highly recommended ones for comparison, here are my thoughts:

Beauty of Joseun Dynasty Cream: I’ve used this in the morning under sunscreen and makeup (no pilling). Love the texture and lack of odor, I give it a 10 out of 10.

Purito Oat-In Calming Gel Cream: I’ve also used this in the morning, no pilling under makeup as well. Personally I’m not fond of the gel texture even though it is moisturizing and gentle and has no odor. 8 out of 10.

SKIN1004 - Madagascar Centella Probio-Cica Enrich Cream: I’ve used this over tretinoin and azelaic acid at night. The texture is wonderful and the formulation is very calming. Unfortunately for me, the cream has a slight strange odor, I also despise the deceptive slack-fill packaging. Will not repurchase as long as I have better options. 7 out of 10.

Aestura Atobarrier 365 Cream: This feels like a richer version of the Dynasty Cream, I can use less on my face and it’s very easy to spread out. No pilling under makeup. I’ve read about people breaking out from this cream, I have not experienced that. It’s a bit pricier, I’ll still give it 10 out of 10.

Dr. Althea 345 Relief Cream: This cream is more watery than the other ones. It’s also gentle, moisturizing and odorless. I don’t love the metal tube packaging though, I’m afraid it’d be prone to cracking with use. It’s also a bit pricier for its size. 7 out of 10.

Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Concentrate Cream: Zomg the size of this! And only for $16.29 from Stylevana! I just got it in the mail today and tested on my wrist. The texture seems similar to Aestura, also odorless. I see no reason why it won’t work well on my face. If it does, I might settle on it as my night time moisturizer for the sheer bang for the buck factor. Scoring reserved for now.

P.S. My lovebird Halloween says Hello!

Before I started a tretinoin routine this past November, I used to cycle through a number of exfoliants for smooth skin texture. After I started on tretinoin, I learned that azelaic acid is a great companion product on alternate nights to reduce irritation and also that the other exfoliants like glycolic acid and lactic acid were now too harsh or unnecessary for my routine. It took a bit to find an ideal azelaic acid for my skin.

My very first azelaic acid back in the day was from Paula’s Choice and it’s just gotten too pricey. The Ordinary and Good Molecules are both wallet friendly, but their azelaic acid products share a similar cream like texture that feels heavy on my skin and even stings. I settled on the Naturium azelaic acid in a glycinated form, it’s a clear liquid that works very well for me and the price point is still good. I just restocked the other day and decided to grab their BHA 2% as well for body exfoliation. What’s your go to azelaic acid product that complements your tretinoin routine?

I've been shopping for a sunscreen for my body that has the newest sunscreen filters at a good price. I already have sunscreens that I like for my face (BOJ sun relief for example) and I am planning to rely on sunglasses, an UPF 50 hat and face cover to circumvent the hassle of reapplying sunscreen over makeup. Which means for the body sunscreen I don't have to worry over whether there'll be a white cast or if it'll pill under makeup or if it has potentially irritating essential oils and other plant extracts. In fact, mineral sunscreens might be a better choice cause they offer instant protection upon reapplication, whereas you have to wait 20 minutes for chemical sunscreens to absorb into the skin surface.

I spent the afternoon compiling a chart of most of the best selling Japanese and Korean sunscreens on Yesstyle (since that's my go to for Asian products) and included the prices as of today. The prices will change overtime of course so this is just to get a rough idea. I find that a lot of these sunscreens are offered as twin pack on the website which is cheaper than buying a single item, so I based the price per ml or g on those prices if that's an option. I did two versions, one sorted by price per ml or g and one by the brand + product names. I'll be taking my time to pore over the chart myself. Hope this helps others too!

Note 1: There are currently 3 sunscreen filters that are 100% broad spectrum: Zinc Oxide, Tinasol S and Tinasol M. The latter 2 are approved in Europe and Asia but not in the US yet.

Note 2: A sunscreen should ideally have at least one full broad specturm filter.

Note 3: Octinoxate, octocrylene and oxybenzone can damage coral reefs according to some studies.