Heart & Seoul

You Have Heard The Lore, The Hype, The 10-Step Routines. But The Truth About K-Beauty Might Be Even More Intriguing. Jenny Bailly Travels To South Korea To Learn An Entirely New Language In Skin Care.

- Jenny Bailly

1. Makeon Magnetight 15 facial massager ups the serum-application game.

2. Innisfree Pore Clearing Clay Mousse Mask pumps out pulverized volcanic rocks from Jeju Island—plus a few AHAs and BHAs.

3. Banila Co Clean It Zero Cleansing Balm Original melts from silky solid into smooth oil, with a bonus fresh rose scent.

4. Beauty gods willing, Laneige’s new Finger Graphic Liner will one day come Stateside—the brilliant design gives incredible control.

5. A new toner-moisturizer hybrid that we’d also like to see around these parts: Laneige Cream Skin Refiner.

6. The ultra luxurious AmorePacific Time Response Skin Reserve Serum, Eye Creme, and Creme are all infused with the brand’s potent, homegrown green tea.

7. Some Korean women soak (organic, unbleached) White Rabbit Plain Premium Cosmetic Cotton Sheets in their favorite essence to create a DIY sheet mask.

8. In Korea, even babies use cushion compacts: Meet Primera’s Baby Sun Cushion SPF32 PA++.

Seoul is a beauty lover’s Shangri-La—a paradise where cutting-edge skin care and cosmetic kitsch live in harmony. A place where foundation is served up in “cushions” and cleansers morph from mud to oil to foam. A place where you can achieve glass skin, baby feet, and “eye smiles.” A place that will surely never live up to the hype.