Some new K-Beauty faves!

It's testing time for serums, lip pudding pots, and an overnight mask

I’ve been double-cleansing, layering essences and using snail mucin for many years. But in the past year, I’ve really leaned back in to all things Korean beauty again in a big way, so I wanted to share some recent finds.

I scroll around on K-beauty sites like Stylevana and Yesstyle every now and then to see what’s hot and this brand Axis-Y is pretty consistently in the top 10. The Dark Spot Correcting Glow Serum caught my eye a few years ago so I dropped it into my basket. The Glow Serum is packed with 5% niacinimide, squalane and other good stuff. It comes in a nice big tube and lasts me a long time.

The brand’s Vegan Collagen Eye Serum is a newer find for me. Together, Axis-Y calls the pair their Glass Skin Duo.

The Axis-Y Glass Skin Duo

The eye serum, with “vegan collagen,” is lovely and comes with a rollerball applicator which feels nice and cooling. For day if I’m planning to wear eye makeup, I sometimes choose a more gel-like eye serum instead of eye cream. This has been a great option.

The eye serum has a gel texture that absorbs quickly

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Can I Get a FWEE?

I’ve been loving Fwee’s cute little Lip & Cheek Blurring Pudding Pots (I mean, how could you not adore the name??). One enduring trend in Korean lip products is the matte, blurry lip and these pots really perfect that ombré look.

The texture is unlike anything I’ve found here in the States: bouncy, cushion-y and mousse-y all at the same time. Blot on with a clean finger or the brand’s fingertip-mimicking silicone lip brush.

fwee lip & cheek blurry pudding pots

This shade is called My (good for warm-toned folks); there are 30 shades in all. I’m wearing a thin layer of lip balm underneath because I have dry lips but the color still wears matte on top. It also feels a lot lighter than matte lipstick but gives a similar effect. You can buy the Fwee lip pudding pots here. Can’t wait to hear how you like them.

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Testing the Viral Overnight Sheet Masks

You’ve probably been seeing the overnight sheet masks all over social media. Biodance is the brand currently racking up lots of views but Luvum also makes a similar one. On a recent trip to NYC, I gave the collagen one try.

At first, it feels like a typical, juicy hydrogel mask. I laid down for the first 20 minutes to give it time to really adhere to my face. After that point, it felt like it would stay put. It didn’t move around at night and didn’t make a mess of the pillow.

The Luvum overnight mask...8 hours later

The next morning, all of the essence/serum had transferred to my face and what was left of the mask was the texture of a fruit rollup! And oh my god, my skin was soooo soft. It reminded me of having a great paraffin hand or foot treatment: when it all gets peeled off, your skin feels soft in an otherworldly way (it looked like my pores were somehow blurred for the first few hours). The masks are not easy to find in U.S. retail yet but you can buy them here on Olive Young.

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OK, this isn’t technically beauty related but I do believe that mental health and beauty are linked (in fact, I’ve been contemplating whether I should start a podcast called Moisturized and Happy), so I wanted to share this. I’ve been feeling stuck in a pattern of doomscrolling on social media lately. It’s habitual and frankly, just not healthy.

This week, I made a pact to replace 50 percent of that mindless (and mind-numbing) scrolling with book-reading instead. I downloaded the Libby app and signed up for an e-card with my local library, which lets you borrow e-books, audiobooks, and magazines (you can easily transfer to them to read on a Kindle too). This morning, I finished Connie Chung’s wonderful memoir, Connie, which fed my soul in a way I forgot that I needed.

Any good book recommendations?