Fifty Shades of Snail
Finding the best skin care products since 2014. Started with a focus on Korean skincare and grew from there. Skincare tips and beauty tips that work, maybe some hamster butts too
recent posts
- Protected: Fluorescent bulbs and SPF
- How I Grew My Thinning Hair Back Thicker and Stronger Than Ever Before (with no drugs or medical treatments)
- Sponsored: The Best of Skin1004
- How to Ask for Skincare Advice Online, Part Two: What Questions to Ask to Get Helpful Answers
- How to Ask for Skincare Advice Online, Part 1: What Not to Ask
about
Category: Korea
Korean skin care and makeup hauls, reviews, swatches, and how-tos.
-

Lately I keep thinking about how long I’ve been using and writing about Korean skincare. It’s been a looong time. Almost ten years, to be exact. I wandered into Reddit’s Skincare Addiction community sometime in 2013 and very quickly followed the mysterious mentions of “Korean snail essence” to the much smaller but already fervently dedicated…
-

It’s been a big couple of years for COSRX. They’ve expanded beyond their beginnings as a small and relatively unknown brand focused on bare-bones AHA and BHA products, into a global name with a presence in brick-and-mortar retail chains like ULTA. Last year, the big COSRX news for me was the expansion of their Advanced…
-

Ingredient trends come and go (anyone else remember when starfish had a brief moment in the sun?). That’s why I’m so grateful when a trendy ingredient that works well for me ends up getting popular enough to stick around. Like propolis, the featured ingredient in the serums I’m going to compare today. I love propolis.…
-

High protection with a weightless, invisible finish: Missha All Around Safe Block Aqua Sun Gel almost has it all.
-

Serious issues deserve serious consideration and serious responses, not hot takes and snap judgments. And the current controversy over the Purito Centella Green Level Unscented Sun sunscreen is a serious one indeed.
-

How does the new COSRX Advanced Snail Radiance Dual Essence compare to the beloved Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence?
-

I’m upset. I’m upset to have fallen in love with a product. I haven’t been this upset since the last time I fell in love with a lavishly priced Sulwhasoo mask, the Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Creamy Mask, and that was back in 2017. The only reason I’m not more upset right now is that while…


