One thing Korean skincare is known for is the “10 step skincare routine”. There are hundreds of articles that detail exactly what those 10 steps are, with some taking it to a further 12 and 15 steps with yet others paring it down to much less.
This becomes very confusing to those who are new to Korean Beauty. Many would be forgiven for thinking that they need to follow all 10 steps twice a day, every day, when that’s not the case at all. It’s even more confusing when you see people on Instagram using so many different and ever changing products in their routines on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.
3 Steps
With any skin routine, not just the Korean Routine, it is basically 3 steps with additional steps in between. For some it may only require 3-4 steps, for others as high as 15-20. It all depends on what your skin needs.
The 3 basic steps in a Korean or any skincare routine are: Clean, Treat, Protect.
If we take those 3 steps and map it to Korean beauty functional products, it’s a lot simpler to understand. The basic steps of a skin regime can be divided as follows:
Daily
CLEAN
TREAT
PROTECT
Extras
Some additional exfoliating or treatment steps are specific to skin concerns as they arise and are used in the Treat step above as applicable. Eg. Retinoids/Retinol might be used for anti aging, pigmentation or acne; AHA or BHA for exfoliating, cell renewal and pore cleansing; kojic acid for hyper pigmentation; vitamin C for additional brightening; anti-oxidant products for anti-ageing, pigmentation or acne treatment as prescribed.
The additional steps depend entirely on your skin’s needs. Some of us only get PMS related or hormonal acne and only need to use acne actives at that time of the month, so it wouldn’t make sense to use acne targeted products every day. This is why it’s important to not simply follow someone else’s regime as their skin’s needs at that time might be different from yours at any given time.
Exfoliators
Certain products are only used weekly or biweekly, again, depending on your skin’s needs. An example is exfoliation. You can exfoliate skin using a physical, chemical or enzymatic method once a week or more if your skin can handle it.
Physical exfoliation is when you use a manual exfoliator or a scrub that has specific exfoliating granules in the product which works by the movement of your hands to remove the layer of dead skin on your face. Physical exfoliation can also be achieved by using a cleansing device such as a Clarisonic or any other sonic cleanser.
Chemical or enzymatic exfoliators are products that contain specific ingredients such e.g. Glycol Acid, Salicyclic Acid, Lactic Acid etc which loosens trapped sebum and dirt and sloughs off the top layer of skin.
Masks
Masks are a staple in any Korean skincare routine. They come in many forms like sheet masks, clay packs, modeling masks, sleeping pack masks etc. It can be used as often as your skin needs it to target specific skin concerns, with some Korean actresses even claiming to use one every single day! It’s always important to make sure that the mask you use will not clog your pores and is suitable for your skin type.
Monthly
Many South Koreans visit estheticians or skincare spas at least monthly, with some going as often as weekly. Monthly treatments can include more in depth skincare treatments such as chemical peels, skin rejuvenation, laser treatments, or simply a luxury facial to pamper the skin. It’s not necessary, but dependent on your own needs and budget.
Conclusion
That’s basically what the “10 step Korean beauty routine is”, which isn’t actually 10 steps as you can see. Your routine can include as many or few steps as your skin needs. The best way to get to know your skin and what routine works for you, is to test products by introducing one every 2-3 weeks and selecting treatment steps based on your skin’s needs.
It’s also okay to mix and match different brands as it has not been proven that using only one brand yields any better results than using a few brands. What matters are the ingredients inside the products.
As long as you’re cleaning, treating and protecting your skin, it doesn’t matter how many extra steps are in your routine to treat your specific concerns.
Mindy Idaspe
I have been using good skincare techniques for several years now and I am just now using Korean products. I am following you treatment plan as you mention above and for the first time I truly understand how to do it
This was a great lesson and I thank you