When I came to HK, the first thing that caught my attention was the huge number of Sasa shops. In Europe I never heard about Sasa, that’s why I was super curious to get in. I found out a lot of korean brands: this was the moment I started my research about korean skincare routine.

I found out that korean girls are skincare products addicted and they are famous for their 10 step-routine, that refers to the way products are layered onto the skin. But which products they choose? In which order they use them?

First of all, the number of steps is very flexible – and it will change not only depending on your skin type but also the seasons. These steps are: cleansing (oil cleanser and foam cleanser), toner, essence, emulsion, serum, sheet mask, eye cream, moisturizer, sunscreen for morning routine and sleeping mask at night.

Let’s talk about every step in particular.

The first step is to cleanse twice: once with oil and once with a foaming cleanser. Why? Because each kind of cleanser gets a different kind of effect for your face. Oily cleanser are effective against oil based impurities but not very good for dirt, that’s why they wash with a second cleanser.

The second step is applying the toner, a light moisture, mostly full of botanical ingredients, that are meant to regulate your pH and soften your skin for the steps that will follow.

The third step is applying the essence that is a very thick layer like the toner and allows the skin to breathe. After the essence, you can apply the emulsion (4th step). This one is a little bit more viscous than the previous layers because it starts to build the richness we are going to see at the end. Also these products contain botanical extracts and other power-packed ingredients.

Step number 5 is to apply the serum, a very rich and concentrated product but, if your skin is greasy, I think you can skip some steps if you don’t want to feel super greasy!

The sheet mask, the 6th step, is a big problem for me because it’s not easy to choose the right one. I tried many of them and, in the end, I always had small pimples and redness. I use mask just one a month when I come back late at night or fly back home to Europe.

Then, you have to apply (and I should say, I always did it since I was young!) the eye cream! Eye cream’s aim is to moisturize the ultra-thin skin around your eyes where crow’s feet and lines are bound to appear. If you are younger than me, you can start to apply this cream to prevent wrinkles from showing up!

We are approaching the end of the list… stay with me for other 3/4 minutes!

The step number 8 is the moisturizer. Korean moisturizers come in a wide variety of textures and thicknesses but it’s quite easy to find the right one for your skin, even if you have oily skin!

After this step, you can apply finally the sunscreen before the make up! In Asia, we have very high UV rays and it’s super important to protect your skin from them. This can prevent wrinkles and also skin cancer.

If you are following these steps before going to sleep, you can apply, as a last step, the sleeping mask which is designed to work while your body is at rest.

And now? Is it finished? Absolutely not for me! After doing all these steps spending 15/20 minutes in the bathroom, you have to complete the routine using a luxury silk pillow case and bedsheets. This will prevent all this skincare routine from being vain because it retains moisture. Good night!!!