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
The natural pH of a healthy skin barrier is slightly acidic. Cleansers that are too alkaline–that have a high pH–disrupt the skin barrier, allowing the natural (and vital) protective lipids to be stripped away, leading to excessive moisture loss and dehydrated skin. High-pH cleansers also help foster a friendly environment for the bacteria that lead to breakouts.
Among the AB community, there’s a pretty commonly held belief that Western makeup is better than Asian. Asian skincare offers far more variety and customization than Western, which is why many of us find that it works better to solve our skin problems, but Western makeup brands tend to offer more color choices, allowing for a greater diversity of looks. Asian brands’ foundation choices are typically limited to a narrow range of pale-to-medium shades, and only a few brands offer point makeup in shades that venture farther than the conventional.
I like Asian makeup better anyway. My preferred makeup looks are classic (I’m conventional. Sue me), and since I actually am Asian, I’ve had much better luck finding matches to my skin tone from Asian brands. I’ve had way too many color matching fiascos in my years of making do with Western cosmetics. Here are some of my current favorites! Consider this a preview of my upcoming makeup reviews.
Ever since I started learning about skincare in general and Asian skincare in particular, few common practices have made me cringe as hard as the practice of not removing one’s makeup at night. If you want your skin to be as clear, healthy, and radiant as possible, then consistent cleansing is a must. If you wear sunscreen and/or makeup during the day, then cleansing alone may not be enough. To get your skin truly clean and ready for your evening actives without destroying its natural lipid barrier, it’s highly likely that you’ll need to make double cleansing one of your healthy skin habits. And to double cleanse, you’ll need some type of oil-based first cleanser, such as Innisfree’s Green Tea Pure Cleansing Oil.
You can find the Banila Co. hydrogels here and the Botanic Farm Syn-Ake hydrogels here.
Memebox ships from the US and offers free shipping for orders over $30. I am not affiliated with Memebox and do not earn any revenue from linking to them.
The skincare industry thrives on the frustrations of consumers struggling to find real solutions to their skin problems. That’s why such a wide selection of products exists: consumers jump around from serum to serum and cream to cream, disappointed by one and hopeful the next will work in a sometimes endless cycle that may not lead to success.
Every person’s skin has its own individual needs and sensitivities, making skincare very YMMV. There’s no single universal solution to any skin issue, and no responsible blogger or beauty writer would claim there is. (Anyway, how boring would that be?) Unless they have access to appropriately large and randomly selected bodies of human test subjects and the ability to conduct experiments with the right controls in place, then any blogger is only speaking from personal experience and anecdote. That includes me 🙂
But here’s some good news! Ingredient awareness can help you break the cycle of disappointment. Today I’ll be focusing on a promising ingredient in the fight against wrinkles: adenosine.
While I’ve got you here, be sure to click on over to my new piece on Fashionista! How to Find a Korean Sheet Mask for Every Skin Issue covers the reasons you might want to use a sheet mask and recommends a few (tested and approved) options for each reason.
Thanks as always for visiting my blog! I love to share my Asian skincare thoughts, and I hope you enjoy reading them.
I’ve been in the AB game for long enough by now that not every parcel I get is cause for excitement. Sometimes they’re just restocks, and sometimes they contain items that, while new and interesting, just aren’t all that exciting.
But then there are the ones that are. The ones that make me hover creepily behind my mail carrier as he tries to ignore me while putting the mail in our complex’s mail boxes. The ones that put a little extra nitrous in my step as I carry them back home.
The one that came yesterday was one of those parcels.
I don’t know why we don’t hear more about Banila Co. skincare. With the exception of the well regarded Clean It Zero cleansing balm, it seems the company’s products don’t get much attention, at least in the Western-based AB blog world. That’s a shame. A peek at the ingredients list for the Essence Oil reveals a pretty impressive product.
Niacinamide. Honey. Royal jelly. Propolis. Adenosine. Sodium ascorbyl phosphate (SAP), a stable and gentle form of vitamin C. It’s like everything I love, all in one amazingly gorgeous package.
SHINY.
I’m not yet very familiar with many of the plant oils and extracts in this product, but they sound like an enchanted garden for my face. I’m already doing the research to give you the full rundown on this bevy of botanicals in my full review of the Essence Oil, coming in about one month, once my testing period is over.
What I can already tell is that it is going to be a glorious testing period.
The Banila Co. Miss Flower & Mr. Honey Essence Oil is an oil-and-water serum-type skincare product. You shake the bottle to mix the oil and the water ingredients before application. It’s quite thick and rich-feeling, a lot like honey; it makes my skin feel deeply moisturized and incredibly supple (new favorite word: SUPPLE), and it smells exactly like the most delicious honey that any bee could ever make.
No lie. It doesn’t smell like honey fragrance. It doesn’t smell like artificial honey fragrance. It just straight up smells (and feels) like some magical luxurious honey of the gods.
I’ve been using this in a couple of different ways. I use it undiluted as one of the serum steps in my morning and evening skincare routines. Then, at night, I mix an extra drop or two into my COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream. Doing this makes the cream extra rich, and I woke up this morning unable to stop patting and touching my cheeks. If I ever manage to tear myself away from my new Hera UV Mist Cushion, I’ll also try adding a drop of the Banila Co. Miss Flower & Mr. Honey Essence Oil into my Missha M Signature Real Complete BB Cream as well.
What I’m trying to say is, you guys should definitely stay tuned for the full review.
And what’s that other thing in my haul, you ask?
It’s the Miss Flower & Mr. Honey Essence Stick.
I haven’t quite figured out the best way to use this stuff yet, but don’t worry. I will.
Gotten anything new and exciting in the mail lately?
Crazy Snail Lady editorial note: Redditor /u/GiveMeABreak25 is back with an unboxing and review of the 2015 My Beauty Diary Black Pearl masks!
I have struggled with how to tell you all this since my last time reporting to you with the help of the Crazy Snail Lady. This is not so much a good news/bad news situation as it is good news…and better news. So like a band-aid, let’s just rip this off.
My Beauty Diary is not making hydrogels. Yet, that is. I hope you are not too disappointed, because if you are, I am to blame. I am innocent! I got excited! I don’t speak Taiwanese! There were pictures of water droplets and side by side comparisons that showed the old sheet makes and……..new masks! With more water! The ultimate squirt, guys.
So let’s start off with how I acquired them. I have gotten to know many lovely people in the Asian Beauty subreddit, Crazy Snail Lady included. I was lamenting about not wanting to wait who-knows-how-long before a website or seller I was familiar with would have these new masks for sale. I got a message from a fellow user who gave me the contact information of a Taiwanese buyer. I was skeptical. The buyer used a Hotmail account, after all.
We did some introductions, and I sent her a link to the product I wanted and asked her about pricing. Within a day, she emailed me back with the price, minus shipping, and I couldn’t get my PayPal account open fast enough. Just like that. I had no idea who this person was or any way to know that she wouldn’t just take my $24 and run, but I considered it an acceptable risk. For science.
Two more days passed. She had the masks and informed me of shipping costs. Being that I was still anxious to get my grabby hands on these masks, I ponied up the EMS rate. I sheepishly told myself, “You only live once!” I am sure that phrase was never meant to be applied to skin care products. Unless, of course, you are an addict. Guilty.
In 13 days, I had my masks. It was a very good day indeed.
So, let’s get down to the unboxing so we can take this journey of translation loss together.
They’re here! They’re here!
It was the end of my work day and I needed a shower. I work from home, okay? Please don’t judge me. It was still kind of early to start my routine, but I knew the time of day wouldn’t matter much. I showered, put on my C serum and got dressed. I was starving as I somehow missed lunch, so I ran to get some chicken. There were two things on my mind: a fried chicken breast and,trying out these masks. By the time I got home, I decided I couldn’t wait any longer and tore into them. (The masks, not the chicken breasts.)
The box is extra sparkly!
I didn’t have an old box to compare it with, but I am certain it is extra shimmery.I did have an old Black Pearl sheet mask to compare it to, though.
On the left is the old sheet mask. The right is the new. Also (important to note before you get yours and freak out), the notches for opening are at the bottom instead of the top of the envelope. Or at least on the ones I got. If you are not familiar with My Beauty Diary, they manufacture for many different markets, and the packaging varies. Although some counterfeits do circulate, it’s important to know that if yours looks different from what you’ve seen online or gotten before, you may not have a fake so much as a package for a different market. It would be great if they just stuck with one design for all markets to limit confusion.
Back side.
Ok so, here is where things made a sudden change.
First observation: this is not a hydrogel mask. What?! What did I do all this international espionage for? But this is different than the My Beauty Diary Black Pearl sheet masks you’re used to.
Is it the new No-Face design? Nope, just the new My Beauty Diary mask shape.
The eye, nose and mouth holes are not the traditional ones I am used to with MBD, so that was a curiosity. Hopefully improved, although I was a tad worried, as their masks usually fit me pretty well. I hoped I wasn’t going to lose that. Now, to the moment of clarity…
Well this is different.
This is not hydrogel. It is something, but not a traditional hydrogel mask as I have known them.
According to the little bit of English on the package, this is a trademarked material called Cosphingotm X Aquaroutetm. This is a hybrid, folks. They are much thinner than the traditional sheet mask, yet not as thin or the same composition as their My Beauty Diary Platinum Series masks, which are also not the regular sheet masks. This is something else entirely.
The mask is also dripping with essence. This point cannot be understated. I was wearing a V-neck, and I was literally spending the first 15 minutes of wearing the mask rubbing the essence down my neck and all over my chest, which to me is a super bonus. The fit was also different. Now we get to the part where I embarrass myself with a sheet mask selfie.
Don’t judge me, guys.
I tried to get as much natural light as I could. But I feel like this was trying to make my skin underneath look worse than it is for the viewer. (Crazy Snail Lady note: I don’t see anything bad.) Or, I am just a little neurotic. (Crazy Snail Lady note: Yes.) Anyway, I DO have lip tint on. I mean, my hair is frizzy from the rain and isn’t even all the way dry, isn’t that bad enough? (Crazy Snail Lady note: Shh bby. You look beautiful. No tears. Only mask.)
The fit was good. The extra crazy amount of essence and the new thinness were all great and made for a great cling. You will NOT need your silicone mask to keep these on. All the face holes were good. The biggest change was in the chin area. It basically ended right at the bottom of my chin. Usually the old sheet masks on me would go about another 1-2 inches, wrapping below my chin. Did I mention you will drip in essence?
As for the essence itself, it seems to be basically the same as the old Black Pearl mask. The fragrance may be a tad stronger, but not a lot. The ingredients could have changed, but if they have, I could not find that information anywhere. Not surprising, as it was hard enough to find these masks in the first place. I look forward to them being widely available.
As for the effects, I would say they were a bit better than usual at the temporary brightening/whitening. But the absolute best part is, I was able to wear one for an hour and fifteen minutes without it drying up on me. AN HOUR without the aid of a silicone mask or it falling off from the essence drying up. Granted, it had rained quite a bit and so the weather was humid, but still. When I took it off, it was not because it felt dry, but because I couldn’t wait any longer to eat my fried chicken.
Oddly, it did not feel dry, but when I peeled it off, this is what it looked like.
Huh.
As you can see, this is not hydrogel at all. It feels like a sheet fiber, injected with hydrogel. Like the cotton fiber helps hold the hydrogel part on your face and together until it dries up.
If you cannot wait for your usual seller and do not want to seek out a private buyer, one of our lovely friends over in the Asian Beauty subreddit found they are now for sale on the BGO site if you would like to try your hand at that. Personally, I got a stomachache from trying to figure the site out. Others did not find it that difficult, I should add. They are also available on eBay; sort by “new” and look for the word “NEW” in the upper left hand corner of the box itself.
As for me, I will be hoping another more user friendly (for me!) site carries them before I run out of these two boxes.
Well hello, honey. It’s good to see you back. ლ(´◉❥◉｀ლ)
Ever since I discovered the joys of honey and propolis, I’ve been finding more and more ways to get the sweet stuff into my routine and loving just about every bee product I try. But as great as serums and ampoules and sheet masks are, they’re just not as integral as moisturizing creams. A good moisturizer is one of the foundational components of a well rounded routine: everyone needs one. That’s why I’m glad a nice number of Korean brands also make honey creams. I’ve been testing and comparing two such honey creams for the last several weeks.
On the left we have I’m From Honey Cream, from the makers of my beloved I’m From Honey Mask. On the right, COSRX’s contender, the Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream. And on top, we have a Minecraft chicken.
I’m From Honey Cream vs. COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream
The humectant and emollient components of honey make it a natural fit in moisturizing creams, and the sky’s the limit for brands to blend in additional skin-friendly actives and botanicals. Both of the honey creams I tested provide intense moisturization, but I’m From Honey Cream also focuses on brightening and anti-aging, while COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream aims to strengthen skin’s moisture barrier. Here are the contenders’ ingredients.
Our first step when looking at any skincare product should be the ingredients, so I ran both of these lists through COSDNA.
I’m From Honey Cream: Uh-oh! CosDNA analysis of I’m From Honey Cream pops up quite a few warnings, so people with acne-prone or sensitive skin will want to use this cream with caution. Cocos nucifera (coconut) oil gets a whopping 4 in the acne column, meaning that it is likely to cause breakouts if you’re acne-prone, and glyceryl stearate SE gets a 3. A whole bunch of other ingredients score 2s for acne as well: cetyl alcohol (a moisturizing, rather than drying, alcohol), stearic acid, simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil, olea europaea (olive) fruit oil, and stearyl alcohol, which is another moisturizing alcohol. Butylene glycol gets a 1. CosDNA also identifies several ingredients in I’m From Honey Cream as potential irritants: coconut oil, cetyl alcohol, glyceryl stearate SE, jojoba seed oil, stearyl alcohol, and carbomer. Beeswax is also noted as a potential acne trigger and irritant. Bottom line is that if you want to try I’m From Honey Cream, definitely patch test for at least a few days first.
COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream:CosDNA analysis of COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream shows that it has a much blander, objectively safer formulation than I’m From Honey Cream. Cetearyl alcohol is the only ingredient to score higher than 1, with twos for both acne and irritation, while the very common ingredients butylene glycol and dimethicone get 1s in the acne column. COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream does also contain beeswax, which CosDNA notes may be an acne trigger and/or irritant in the 0-2 range.
The winner: COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream. This isn’t surprising, given COSRX’s stated goal of using minimal ingredients in the production of high-performance skincare products suitable for sensitive and acne-prone skin.
Round 2: Actives
Moisturizing creams can be a great vehicle for the delivery of proven actives to improve skin condition. In this round, we’ll take a look at what proven functionality the contenders offer.
I’m From Honey Cream: Wishtrend’s lengthy and ridiculously capslock- and exclamation point-filled I’m From Honey Cream product page makes a lot of claims about the cream. In addition to hydrating and nourishing, which are baseline expectations for any cream, I’m From Honey Cream also supposedly calms, firms, and whitens skin. The nice thing about this product is that it has the actives to back up the claims. Niacinamide will both brighten and improve elasticity, arginine shows significant promise as an anti-aging ingredient, menadione (vitamin K3) activates epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFR), and the anti-inflammatory adenosine has been shown to significantly improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. All in all, this is a great mix of actives for a moisturizing cream.
COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream: Adenosine is the only active to note in this cream. The ingredient commonly appears near the end of product ingredient lists, and here it’s allllll the way at the end, indicating that there is only the tiniest bit of it in COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream. To be fair, however, COSRX doesn’t make any claims about this cream that aren’t backed up by its ingredients. This is just a simpler product overall.
The winner: I’m From Honey Cream. That list of actives is just too good to ignore.
Round 3: Performance
Now we get to the fun part. What’s it like to actually use these honey creams?
I’m From Honey Cream has an interesting texture. It’s a stiff, silky cream that’s easy to scoop out of the jar. Upon contact with my face, it softens up quickly into a melty, very spreadable oil texture with a faint sweet scent. I like the rich feel of the cream, but it takes quite a while to absorb–as Wishtrend warns on the product page–and leaves a very glossy finish afterwards, even with extended patting sessions. For this reason, I only use I’m From Honey Cream at night. It adds too much shine for daytime, even for a dewy skin lover like me.
To be honest, when I first opened the package, I felt the jar was upsettingly tiny–but this stuff does last.
As far as effects go, I’ve enjoyed I’m From Honey Cream a lot. When I use it, I wake up to soft, firm, and supple skin, and in conjunction with the rest of my skincare routine, it keeps my skin looking even and bright. I’ve been quite happy with this product.
I’ve also been happy with COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream, however. Like I’m From Honey Cream, COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream is a fairly stiff and silky cream, but unlike I’m From Honey Cream, it has a waxy rather than oily texture, pats in quickly, and dries matte, making it more suitable for daytime use as well as nighttime. The matte finish and lack of scent remind me strongly of Cerave in the tub. This will be a good thing for Cerave users wanting to try out some Asian products.
You could almost consider it a sweeter Asian version of Cerave, if that’s what you wanted to think.
The ceramides in this cream give it barrier repairing capabilities, which I was able to put to the test several times. My neck is very prone to overexfoliation, and I always forget whether I’ve used acids on my neck the night before, so my neck gets irritated, itchy, and overexfoliated quite a bit. Few creams help alleviate the discomfort, and the I’m From Honey Cream hadn’t, but I’ve found that a single application of COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream will completely calm the irritation and help my skin feel like it’s back to normal. The soles of my feet were also feeling unbearably dry and tight after a Tony Moly Shiny Foot Super Peeling Liquid molting session. Not even Neutrogena hand cream was helping, but COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream did. And on my face, it keeps my skin smooth, lustrous, and velvety soft.
The winner: COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream for superior versatility and fast, impressive barrier-healing results.
Conclusion: For those of you who know of my passion for niacinamide, it may be surprising that I picked COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream as the winner in this competition. Here’s the thing. I love niacinamide (and my other favorite actives) so much that I’ve built an entire extensive routine around it. The ingredient features prominently in so many other things I use that I don’t really consider it critical in my moisturizing cream. I can live without it for the sake of the faster absorption and skin-calming powers of the COSRX.
That’s not to say that I’m From Honey Cream is an inferior product, however. All those actives really are compelling, and the glossy finish may be attractive if you’re looking for much more glow than your current products give–in fact, Wishtrend advertises it as a benefit.
When choosing between these creams, ultimately it will boil down to your skin type and your product needs. If your skin is sensitive, acne-prone, or suffering from a compromised barrier, then the COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream will most likely work better for you. On the other hand, if you can handle the ingredients in the I’m From Honey Cream and want a richly moisturizing multi-tasker that will help brighten and firm your skin while it softens, then I’m From Honey Cream will be your winner. Both of these creams are very good products, and I’d be happy to use either one of them again.
Ratings:
I’m From Honey Cream: 4/5
COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream: 4/5
Rating scale:
1 – This should be taken off the market.
2 – Caused me some problems; would not buy again.
3 – Meh. Neither great nor bad.
4 – Pretty good. Would buy again unless I find something better.
5 – I’ll never be in the market for a replacement unless this one is discontinued.
Where can I buy COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream?
A 50ml jar of COSRX Honey Ceramide Full Moisture Cream is available from the following Crazy Snail Lady-approved retailers:
I’m From Honey Cream appears to be exclusively distributed by Wishtrend* (affiliate link), where a 50ml jar currently sells for $31.90.
But wait! There’s more!
My honey cream adventure isn’t over! Sometime in the next couple of weeks, I’ll be receiving a trio of products I’ve been dying to try for ages. Remember how much I love the Banila Co Miss Honey & Mr Flower Hydrogel Mask? I’m getting the Banila Co Miss Honey & Mr Flower Essence Oil, Essence Oil Stick, and Cream! So stay tuned, because I’m sure I’ll be bursting with excitement to tell you all about those honey products as well!
What’s your favorite honey product? Tell me about it in the comments!
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