Read the product review of Son & Park’s Beauty Water and see what makes this product a cult-favorite amongst Koreans and now, Americans, too!

Getting products from overseas can be a real challenge. Sometimes you have to go through crazy wait times and shipping fees, not to mention the worry of getting a fake from a non-official distributor (yeah, it happens more often than one would think!). One of our goals at Soko Glam is to cut all of that out, and it’s really important to start with a relationship with the brand. So we’re so super stoked to be the official retailer for Son & Park and bring you Beauty Water!

Back in 2015, I was getting my headshot taken by Cha Hye Kyung, a well-known Korean fashion and beauty photographer who regularly shoots spreads for Vogue Korea. My makeup was done by the talented Lee Ja Won, who’s also had her fair share of career highs—she’s worked with the top Korean celebs like Song Hye Gyo, Lee Hyori, and Lee Na Young.

Getting ready for the shoot. Moments before my life changed with Beauty Water.

It was an insane experience that I was lucky to have. But more than the photoshoot itself, I couldn’t wait for my chance to hang out with them so that I could bombard them with a million questions. They were insiders in Korea’s fashion and beauty industry—I knew I was sitting on a potential goldmine of knowledge about Korea’s latest cult products.

Before I had the chance to pounce, the makeup artist started prepping me and asked me if I used any makeup before I came in. I hadn’t, so I told her I did my morning skin care routine and of course finished it off with sunscreen.

She doused a cotton pad with something in this perfect little container and started to gently sweep it across my face. When I say “perfect little container,” I mean a super sleek and gorgeous bottle. The words “Beauty Water” were emblazoned in silver on the front. My eyes widened with curiosity. She was prepping my face with this magical solution and it left my skin clean, soft and hydrated.

“What is this? What did you just put on my face?” I asked (hmm…maybe “demanded” is more accurate). “It’s Beauty Water,” the makeup artist said.“I’m using it to prep your skin. It cleanses like a toner, and it also gently exfoliates and hydrates before I put on your makeup.”

This piqued my curiosity even more because I had been looking for a type of cleansing water that could do more than cleanse. Not to mention I’ve gotten a lot of requests for them, and they’ve been trending in Korea!

That day, I grabbed a bottle to start testing it. Since then, I absolutely had a “THIS-IS-A-HOLY-GRAIL-PRODUCT” moment, and that’s why we had to have it on Soko Glam!

Here’s more about why it made the list.

What is Beauty Water?
Beauty Water is a multi-tasker! It is a toner and exfoliator in one that has cleansing, brightening, softening, and hydration effects on the skin. It is gentle enough for daily use and good for all skin types.

How To Use

After your double-cleanse, douse a cotton pad with the formula and sweep it across your face gently. Since this is a very liquidy product, you can also just splash your hands with the formula and pat, pat, pat with your fingertips to help it absorb into your skin. Don’t forget the neck too! I personally like using a cotton pad because I like to add a boost to the exfoliation properties of this product plus, see all the impurities (a brown streak) stuck on the pad. Makes me feel accomplished, somehow. Ha!

Follow up with your essences, serums, treatment products and don’t forget to moisturize.

What Ingredients Do What?
・⠀Cleanse: Ingredients you can find in your own kitchen! Coconut, corn, potato, and wheat gently cleanse the skin.

・⠀Exfoliate: Willow bark and papaya extracts lift impurities and dead skin cells. Without that extra layer of dead skin cells, you’ll see improvements to your skin tone and texture. Say hello to brighter, smoother skin.

・⠀Hydrate: The second ingredient is rose water. Couple that with lavender and orange fruit extracts, and you’ve got intense hydration for the skin that will keep it healthy and happy.

More of What Makes This Product So Special

1. The packaging. Super sleek design. It looks beautiful on my vanity and in my bathroom. Haven’t seen anything this sophisticated in a while!

2. The pH. A gentle 5 is perfect as your skin is naturally a 4.5-5.5, so it will cleanse, tone and exfoliate without any irritation. See photo below…

3. The scent is very faint and smells natural. It reminds me of the Missha First Treatment Essence.

4. Made by artists, for artists, and now for everyone! The makeup masters and creators of Son  & Park have always believed in creating a smooth, clean and hydrated canvas for the dewy, fresh look with and without makeup. I love how this product was conceived by professionals that know the importance of good skin care and makeup!

5. Price! $30 a bottle for a multi-tasker and ingredients your skin will love? Love affordable Korean skin care!

Skin has a natural pH level of about 5.5, slightly acidic. After using an alkaline cleanser, Beauty Water will help reset to its natural balance

Additional Uses

You can also use this multitasker like this:

・⠀Put some in a travel spritzer and use it to hydrate on the go as a facial mist. At the office or on a flight.
・⠀Reach your Beauty Water to quickly cleanse and hydrate your skin pre and post workout.
・⠀Use Beauty Water to tone after a sheet mask sesh.
・⠀Going out at night and want to refresh before makeup? Use the Beauty Water to reset your face and start fresh and set the canvas before applying makeup.
・⠀Or soak a Q-tip to fix badly drawn eyeliner (we all have those days).

For those of you who are wondering, this product does not cut out my double cleanse as I feel like a proper cleanse using oil and water based cleansers is the foundation for good skin.

When I Use It
I’ve been reaching for the Beauty Water day and night, especially when I don’t have the time to do each step in my routine. Total holy grail status! I thank it for the bright, hydrated, and healthy skin I’ve got going now.

The post The Cleansing Water That Does (Way) More Than Just Cleanse appeared first on The Klog.

It’s a new year, and it’s time to reset your rituals and set new intentions for your skin. 

I’m a working millennial mom that’s raising a child during prolonged panicky pandemic times. Honestly, it’s not easy because at the end of the day, there’s only so much I can control.

But what I’ve realized during this challenging time is this: I need to be more intentional about the things I can control.

For example, I can control how I care for myself. My self-care is focused during the evenings when I can decompress and focus on my skin care ritual. My me-time starts at 8PM, when my daughter is down for the night. Sometimes it involves responding to DMs or texts from friends. Sometimes it’s finishing up some episodes of my favorite shows on Netflix. And sometimes, it’s a skin care ritual that makes me feel like I pressed the reset button for my skin and my mind.

The idea of resetting your mind and your skin was the intention behind the latest additions to the Then I Met You family: the Rosé Resurfacing Facial Mask and the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream.

They were formulated to be used together and to complement one another to produce noticeable results. The Renewing Duo, as they’re appropriately named, is for someone like me that’s starting to see signs of aging and looking to smooth out skin texture, buff away fine lines, and plump the skin with deeply nourishing hydration that your skin l craves after a powerful exfoliating treatment.

I’m excited to share that we’ve launched the Renewing Duo as an offering on Then I Met You and Soko Glam so that you can start incorporating this two-step power treatment into your new ritual. When purchased as the complimentary bundle that they are, you’re getting quite the value.

Now let me share the science behind the two products and why they make a difference in your skin when used together:

Rosé Resurfacing Facial Mask

This sparkling facial is a powerful exfoliating mask that has the optimal percentage of 6.5% AHAs (lactic acid) and 0.5% BHAs (salicylic acid), which ultimately resurfaces your skin for that soft, smooth and bright glow.

Apply a thin layer across your skin, and you’ll start to feel it tingle because it’s breaking down dead skin cells and dissolving some of the sludge deep in your pores that make them appear larger. A great effect of this exfoliation effect is that it allows your essence, serum and moisturizer to work better for you because they can penetrate better without having to fight through layers of dead skin.

Coupled with antioxidants such as resveratrol and natural hydrators, such as rose extracts and damask rose petals, just one treatment will give you that post-facial glow. And imagine the results if you continue to apply once or twice a week consistently, allowing your skin to renew in the healthiest way possible.

Renewing Rich Beauty Cream

With any powerful exfoliating mask, your skin will become a little more sensitized and compromised with the layers of dead skin cells that are removed from your skin. This bare, newly resurfaced skin needs a layer of deeply nourishing hydration, one that is more emollient and rich in the form of a cream.

My intention for the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream was for it to be the perfect complement to a powerful exfoliating mask, infusing it with the nourishing element of squalane and baobab, which also give it its unique, creamy and silky texture.

As the reviews have stated: this luxurious Beauty Cream will be your skin savior, because it’s not too greasy or heavy and locks in potent ginseng-antioxidants in with a cocoon of moisture.

I was also simultaneously answering the calls of our community who requested something much creamier and richer than the Calming Tide Gel Cream. This new formulation is suited for normal, combo to dry skin types, or for those that live in colder climates. Seasonal winter blasts of cold weather conditions that can make your skin look and feel chapped, dried and irritated from the elements, will be no longer with this cream in your arsenal. 

I highly encourage you to use the ultra-relaxing and intentional Glow Deeper 9 Point Facial Massage technique when applying the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream, as it can be used morning and night as a standalone moisturizer as well (not just after the Rose Resurfacing Facial Mask). The massage will lift a heavy weight off your facial and neck muscles, improving circulation, and will feel like a heavenly treat on your skin. 

+What’s your favorite skin care duo? Do you plan on exploring the Renewing Duo? Let us know below!

The post Glow Deeper Series: This Potent Skin Care Duo Resets and Renews Your Skin With A Gentle Blend of Acids and Ginseng Infused Hydration appeared first on The Klog.

Ahead of the release of Then I Met You’s latest innovation, we were granted a special introduction and behind the scenes peek from the brand’s founder (and our founder too!) Charlotte Cho.

In celebration of Then I Met You’s 3rd year anniversary, let me introduce the newest member of the growing Then I Met You family, our creamy, dreamy and dewy Renewing Rich Beauty Cream.

Fun fact: Then I Met You only drops two products a year, with each product usually having a 2+ year development process. We like to go deeper. We’re thoughtful and intentional because we know that we must rise above the rest of the millions of creams out there in the market (and win some awards along the way!)

Now, let’s take a look into what makes our hydrating, ginseng powered dreamy cream so special- and explore why it deserves a spot in your routine.  

Why Ginseng?

Ginseng became a hot topic for me personally and professionally. 

Dr. Claire Chang, a close dermatologist colleague, told me it’s her go-to ingredient that she recommends to her patients for skin smoothing and brightening benefits, especially for those concerned about fine lines, deep wrinkles and loss of elasticity. This intrigued me. On a personal level, my entire family drinks potent ginseng regularly through tea, so I was curious enough to dive deep into the research and learn more about the topical benefits of ginseng.

What I found was that ginseng, when harnessed the right way, can truly be powerful for your skin. Although it’s a popular medicinal ingredient in Asia, few brands feature the potent ingredient in their formulations. Korean brand Sulwhasoo, a luxury skin care line, is one of the few brands that have utilized the ingredient for skin care.

So, I went all in with research and development specialists to make a cream that would feature this innovative and powerful ingredient. Ginseng is rich in amino acids, flavonoids, phenolic compounds and polypeptides, and works incredibly well at reducing free radicals that could lead to premature aging. To top it off, there are many studies to show its impact on being a natural skin brightener!

We chose Panax ginseng extracts that were steamed and dried 9 times, (a process that is even used with ginseng that is consumed.) Panax ginseng, the highest grade ginseng, really enhances the potency of the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream. 

More on the potent effects of ginseng here.

Who is this cream for?

I didn’t make this cream for perfect skin. If you’re like me, 36, and seeing some signs of aging (fine to deep lines), dullness, dry/parched skin, and want to see more of a dewy, bounce and glow– I made this for you with the most natural, powerful ingredient available.

If you’re tired of “rich” creams doing nothing but sitting on the surface of your skin, or just making you into a grease ball– the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream will surprise and delight you. It feels like  the most hydrating cocoon of moisture that absorbs quickly, but gives you that deep and long-lasting moisture your skin is craving.

And although ginseng is an incredibly pricey ingredient, I made this at an accessible price point (nothing like the $100+ ginseng creams I’ve seen) and also made this a fragrance-free experience so that even sensitive skin types could enjoy it.

Not all moisturizers are created equal

Believe it or not, moisturizers are often not made correctly. At the very minimum, you need occlusives, emollients and humectants to make a great moisturizer, and oddly enough many moisturizers don’t strike the right balance. The Renewing Rich Beauty Cream has all of them, and complementary ones at that. 

It also features 3 power-hydrators: high concentrations of squalane, baobab and hyaluronic acid to ensure your skin both feels and is deeply hydrated.

Unreal Texture

In my years of development testing and curating for Soko Glam I’ve never come across a moisturizer that feels like this on my skin. I’m really proud of this experience that we’ve created, and I know it will stand out amongst many of the popular creams out there. Many focus group tests later, I know that the testimonials and reviews have spoken. 

Tips on How To Use:

It’s winter and your skin is parched! Here’s a pro-tip for getting the most of your moisturizer: apply on newly damp skin. Whether you are coming out of a shower, or damping your face with toner and essence prior to applying cream, moisturizers work longer and better in these conditions. 

You’ll notice this is a cream with a special slip to it that would be perfect for incorporating in a mini facial massage to start or end your day. We call this our Glow Deeper 9 Point Facial Massage, and we’ll share the entire technique soon! It’s incredibly invigorating and so necessary to invest in just 1-2 minutes of a facial and neck massage, with the strains of looking at a computer or smartphone all day. It promotes circulation, it brightens your complexion, and it helps sculpt and lift. 

You can use the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream morning and night! Though it has a special slip, I didn’t want it to make it so decadent that you couldn’t use it in the morning or your makeup would slide off. 

As you can see, we literally thought of everything when it comes to the Renewing Rich Beauty Cream and I can’t wait for you to try it, and share your experience with us.

With jeong, 

Charlotte Cho

The post Glow Deeper™ Series: Awaken Your Skin and Your Senses With Then I Met You’s Renewing Rich Beauty Cream, Their Latest Moisturizing Dream appeared first on The Klog.

Read the excerpt below from the first chapter of Charlotte Cho’s new book, The Little Book of Jeong, which is now available on Soko Glam and Then I Met You.

My Journey to Jeong 

My first brush with jeong took place more than 10 years ago. It was a warm day in late November when I, only 21, arrived at my hotel in Houston, Texas. It was my first time leaving my home state of California alone, and I had been expecting bare-bones accommodations since it was a no-name spot near the airport that catered to business travelers. But when I swung open the door I found, to my surprise, the most luxurious hotel room I’d ever seen.

I was used to traveling lean, without any of the frills. When I was growing up, my family and I would drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas and stay at one of those dirt-cheap $60-a-night hotels like Circus Circus. When I had traveled to New York the year before, I had crashed on the floor of a friend’s apartment with nothing but a thin blanket. In college, I slept on a mattress on the floor, and for one summer, I even slept under my friend’s dining table in exchange for cooking and cleaning their apartment. So to me, this room was pure luxury. In fact, it wasn’t even a room—it was definitely a suite. It had an entire living room and an enormous bathroom with sparkling white granite tiles. The towels were plush and fluffy like they had just come out of the dryer. There was a huge mahogany desk, where I plopped down my backpack. I sat on the soft queen-sized bed and stared at everything around me, wondering if the hotel had put me there by mistake.

Everything felt so surreal: Only two months after seeing an ad for an open position at Samsung in the Korea JoongAng Daily, an English daily newspaper, I had received an email from the company about my application. Getting a response was a surprise on its own. It was only partly written in English and I had trouble reading the rest of it, which was in Korean. After finally deciphering it, I figured out that Samsung wanted me to come to Houston for an interview the following week and that they would put me up in a hotel and pay for my round-trip flight. As someone who didn’t have a lot of work experience, I was a bit stunned. My family and my friends were also skeptical that I could ever land a job at one of the largest and most prestigious companies in the world.

But I was dying to get to Korea. I had become deeply interested in the culture and wanted to learn the language. Despite the fact that my parents had both been raised in Seoul, I had never visited growing up and felt I had a lot to catch up on. I was fresh out of college and depressed over the prospect of spending the rest of my 20s in the same state I had lived all my life. With no responsibilities tying me down in California and up for a new adventure, I jumped at the chance to go to Korea. Within a few hours, I had my fingers crossed and a flight booked to Houston.

My interview was set to take place the morning after I arrived, and as the novelty of the suite began to fade, I started to panic. I realized I was utterly, hopelessly unprepared. I wondered if I would have to speak Korean. Why didn’t I listen more attentively during those Saturday Korean language classes I took growing up? Better yet, why did my parents not speak Korean to me more regularly? I had friends who were fairly fluent, even though they had grown up in Southern California like I had; their parents and grandparents had made it a point to only speak to them in Korean. I was so nervous about what I was going to say and how I was going to sound in my interview that, even with the fluffy bed, I barely slept at all that night.

The next morning, I got up and got dressed. The only thing I felt prepared for was my interview outfit. To help me, I had watched a few Korean dramas that were playing at the time—All In and Full House—to get some clues as to what Korean fashion was like. I took some inspiration from Song Hye-Kyo, who played the lead in both dramas, and I opted for a mid-length black skirt with pantyhose and heels. Other than for a school play, I had never ever worn tights and was even confused about where to buy them (the mall or the grocery store?), but I did own a pair of black Steve Madden pumps and a white button-down. As I took a quick glance at my reflection in the full-length mirror by the hotel door, I felt a little more at ease. At least I looked suited for the position—though in hindsight, I probably looked more like a card dealer at a casino, much like the one Song Hye-Kyo played in All In.

Downstairs in the lobby, my heels click-clacked across the floor as I followed the Samsung signs to the conference room, where the interviews would be taking place. I was greeted by a friendly and chatty Korean man named Woo-Shik, who looked just a smidge older than me. He started to speak in Korean, but I must have looked like a deer caught in headlights because he immediately switched to English. “Are you here for the interview? For Samsung?” he asked. I nodded enthusiastically.

He led me to where I was supposed to wait with the other candidates and made small talk as we walked. “Hey, you live in L.A. right? Have you ever seen Nicole Kidman? What? No? How about Brad Pitt? Angelina Jolie?”

He started to rattle off names of celebrities like he’d just memorized the latest issue of Us Weekly. I tried to answer as honestly as possible—without disappointing him, of course—but the whole time I kept thinking, who is this character? Although he was smartly dressed, it didn’t feel like the start to a professional interview at one of the largest companies in the world. But I told him about how I did once see Barry Pepper from Saving Private Ryan at a grocery store and started to relax. Maybe the interview wouldn’t be so bad after all. 

When it was time, Woo-Shik (who turned out to be the Samsung international recruiting officer) ushered me into a room with a chair in the middle. There were three older gentlemen, only slightly younger than my dad, staring back at me. They did not look like they were going to speak English. My shoes were starting to pinch. Oh my God, I thought to myself, I’m not prepared for this. 

“Charlotte . . . Lee?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you for coming.”

“Thank you for having me?”

“한국말할수있어요?” (Do you know how to speak Korean?)

“조금 . . . 요.” (A little.) I pinched my fingers together to sign language my Korean.

“미국에서 태어났어요?” (Were you born in the U.S.?)

Crickets. 

“I was born in California. I’m sorry I don’t speak Korean that well.”

“It’s okay. Samsung is a global company. If you work for Samsung, everyone speaks English.”

A wave of relief washed over me as we switched to English, and they asked me about graduating from the University of California, Irvine and working at an ad agency. “It says here you graduated in 2006,” one of them said, reading off my résumé, “but you started in 2003.”

“Yes,” I said, nodding. “I graduated in three years. It wasn’t an accelerated program, I just took more units per semester and graduated early.”

They looked at each other and started whispering to one another. I tried, but failed to read the expressions on their faces. “Why would you want to graduate earlier?” one asked.

I swallowed and told them the truth. “It was cheaper,” I said. “I paid for college myself, and three years was more economical than four.”

More murmuring, looks, and nods.

“What do your parents do, Charlotte?”

I hesitated. I wasn’t sure if sharing my dad’s occupation was going to increase or decrease my chances of getting this job, but as soon as I caught myself hesitating, I felt guilty, as though I was ashamed of my parents. “My dad . . . he owns a store,” I said. “A liquor store in Whittier.” Then, maybe because of the guilt, everything else came pouring out. I told them how my parents could have paid for me to go to college, and in fact, they had wanted to so that I could completely focus on school. But I didn’t want them to—they worked really hard, and they had already paid for enough. Besides, I’d had a job since I was 16. I liked being financially independent, and I saw no need to stop.

Telling these strangers about my parents made my eyes prick with tears, and I blinked them back as quickly as I could for fear they’d well up and spill over. Do not cry during a job interview, I told myself. You’re going to look weak. 

If they noticed my tears, the men didn’t acknowledge them. Instead, they told me that they were sure my parents appreciated that; I nodded in agreement. There was one VP, sitting right in the middle of the group, who hadn’t said a word the entire interview. He had a kind face, like a soft, fuzzy peach. Now, he spoke up, surprising me with the fluidity of his English. “Charlotte, how do you feel about public relations or communications?” he asked. “I think you’d be great for that team.” I told him that yes, I was interested in public relations. “And don’t worry about the language,” he added. “Samsung is a global company, and everyone is asked to speak English. You’ll fit right in.”

I smiled and thanked him, while my brain was doing backflips. What had he just said? What did he mean I’d be great for that team? Did I get the job? It couldn’t be. They had hardly asked me any questions.

I stumbled out of the room in a daze and unsure what to feel other than relief that it was over.  Back in the lobby, Woo-Shik asked me how much I had paid for my flight. I told him $486. He rolled out an envelope and handed me $500. In cash. And I was done.

Later that evening, my dad called and asked me how everything had gone. I tried to sum it up for him the best that I could: They had asked a few questions about my family, it hadn’t felt like a real interview, and I hadn’t thought I had done well, to be honest. But at the same time, I couldn’t help but feel that I had the job.

My dad made it clear that he was happy for me either way. “That’s great, Charlotte,” he said. “Now get home safe.” Little did we know that what I had just experienced in that room would change my life forever. 

***

Within a few months, I found myself at LAX airport, clutching a one-way ticket to Seoul after getting an offer from Samsung. Everything still felt surreal. I didn’t know what to expect, so I started to set low expectations for everyone, just in case I failed miserably working in Korea. I told my friends and family that this would be a one-year thing and that I’d be back. I even told my brother he could borrow the new car that I had poured all my savings into (I had bought it prematurely, not knowing I would receive this unique opportunity) and to take care of it, so that it would be as good as new when I returned. One year would go by in a flash, I thought to myself.

I wasn’t the most prepared for the move. I decided not to find an apartment in advance and luckily was able to crash with Jo, a friend that was living in Korea at the time. In my excitement over becoming a bona fide Seoulite, I bought a long black coat with faux fur trim that looked like it belonged in a Korean drama, then called it a day. I was moving in early March, which meant it would still be cold, especially for someone coming from L.A.

I was still confused about what I was going to do, but I practiced my Korean diligently in those weeks leading up to my departure. Still, I knew that one month of study wouldn’t make up for 21 years of neglect. I reassured myself that everyone would speak English at work because that’s what the nice VP with the pleasant smile had said. Regardless, it would be an adventure in a country I was excited about, so I was ready to wing it.

I remember my first day at work like it was yesterday. I was reunited briefly with Woo-Shik, who brought me to the floor where the Public Relations and Investor Relations teams sat. He introduced me to a burly man with a large humidifier that practically took up half of his desk. I would eventually know him to be my direct manager, and he literally laughed at me and said in Korean, “I hope you know that no one speaks English in this team except for you.” (Later, I would find out that many of my team members were so shy about speaking English that they had been dreading my arrival. Ouch.)

The day passed and I sat at my desk, tidying up for the twelfth time and looking at an empty email inbox. The next day, I was asked to physically cut a few relevant news articles about the industry out of the Wall Street Journal, paste them onto printer paper with a glue stick, then scan them into a file. The rest of the week I did the same thing, growing more and more defeated by the hour. I had been so excited to dive into a new career and work on impactful PR projects. Instead, I felt my ambitions were quickly dashed, and I was stuck with busywork that resembled third grade–level arts and crafts. To be fair, it’s not like there wasn’t work to be done, but I don’t think anyone knew what to do with a Korean-American girl that only spoke English.

The next week was more eventful, but not in a good way. The whole team went out to lunch to welcome me. I ate my kimchi jjigae (stew) in silence until Mr. Hong, who was the head VP of my department, asked me to stand up and introduce myself. Not expecting this, I was mortified. Everyone stared at me as they waited. I slowly stood up, bowed awkwardly,  then quickly stated my name and that I was happy to be there. If there were tumbleweeds in the city of Seoul, it would have been the perfect time for them to roll past. After my speech abruptly ended, there was scattered applause. As I plopped down into my seat, I wished the chair would disappear into a hole until it was time for me to go back to California.
Despite that being the most uncomfortable lunch of my life, my team didn’t allow me to crawl into that hole. Every day from then on, I spent the majority of my time with the same people. Not only did we work together, we ate breakfast, lunches, and dinners together. Dinners at Korean BBQ restaurants were particularly special, as we huddled around the embers of hot coals, pouring drinks and cutting up only the tender pieces of meat for each other. Over our many meals together, they got to know the details of my family, my food tastes (and that I really could handle my soju), while I got to quiz them on everything from politics to societal pressures in Korea. I even made friends with team members from different departments that were on the same floor, and we would grab coffees, take breaks, and plan out weekend activities together. 

During stressful late nights at the office, we would take trips to the convenience store to fill ourselves up with snacks and cups of Maxim, my favorite Korean instant coffee. The dark, nearly silent floor was punctuated by sporadic fits of laughter as they taught me how to swear in Korean and poked fun at me by impersonating my terrible American accent. Day in and day out, throughout the bitter winter (the jacket and faux fur did not cut it), I got to nourish these relationships and soon, I felt more at home. We got so comfortable with each other that they even made fun of my unbrushed hair and how little I knew about skin care—and I didn’t mind. They were practically like my long-lost brothers and sisters.

Finally, spring came, which then turned into summer. It felt like I had just begun to settle into my apartment and was getting my multi-step skin care routine down pat when the trees started to change into fall colors. It had been my first time experiencing real seasons, and even I, who had predicted how fast a year in Seoul would go by, was caught off guard that my one-year anniversary in Korea was quickly approaching. 

  ***

For the holidays, I made plans to visit my family in California, which meant I would be leaving for a few weeks. As I was saying my goodbyes, my colleague Sang-Ho, who was part of the broadcasting team, said to me in Korean, “It’ll be weird without you here. I mean, we have jeong with you now.” 

“You have what with me now?” I asked. “Jeong? What’s that?” My Korean had improved, but it was clearly one of many words that I still didn’t know. 

He tried to explain it. “Jeong . . . it’s hard to explain. It’s a type of feeling.” He was struggling to find a definition, so he recruited Hae-Mi, another team member, to help me understand what he was talking about. 

“Hey, Hae-Mi, what’s the English word for jeong?”

She furrowed her brows and tried spitting out some words, but was ultimately at a loss. My other colleague Chang-Dong, who sat in the cubicle next to me, pulled up the dictionary on Naver. “Naver says it means affection.”

Sang-Ho replied, “Hm, that’s not it either. That’s really a watered-down version of what jeong is.” 

Hae-Mi agreed. “Yeah, it’s not exactly it,” she said. “It’s much more complex than that. But when you feel jeong, you’ll know it.” 

With that vague description, I wasn’t sure what they were talking about. But curiosity got the best of me. I started to ask everyone around me, and the more it was explained, the more I grew to understand. I learned that jeong is a Korean word used to describe a deep and meaningful connection that builds over time and through shared experiences with other people, places, or things.  I hadn’t realized it at the time, but jeong had been present in my life from when I first landed in Korea. It was the countless dinners with the communal bottle of soju that we passed and poured gingerly with two hands into cups for one another. It was every late night at the office when a team member would take the extra time to help me translate the documents I couldn’t do quickly myself. It was the feeling I got when my uncle woke up extra early, so he could drop me off at work when it was snowing the hardest. It was the 20,000 Korean won (about $20 U.S.) that was handed to me by my colleague so that I could get home safely in a cab. And I would soon come to realize that jeong had seeped into my every pore. I didn’t just love my adopted city—I had jeong with Seoul and the people in it too.

Discovering jeong was when everything clicked. And the more I tried to understand it and cultivate it in my life, the more happiness and success followed. I thought often about the interview I had back in Texas. I hadn’t been the strongest contender for the role, considering my lack of experience and inability to speak Korean. I wondered if my sudden display of emotion, filled with jeong for my parents, had played any part in their decision to give me a chance at this unique opportunity. 

After a few years at Samsung, I ended up working briefly for that very kind VP who had interviewed me on that fateful day in Houston. Because the question still lingered, I worked up the nerve to ask him why he’d been so sure to select me for the position when I wasn’t the most qualified candidate out there. He paused intently, as if it would be difficult to explain. Then he finally said, “I could see it in your eyes that you would have the same deep connection to this job as you do for your family.” 

And that is the power of jeong. 

Get The Little Book of Jeong NOW on Then I Met You and Soko Glam!

The post Excerpt from Charlotte Cho’s The Little Book of Jeong appeared first on The Klog.

Guys, I’m seriously doing a happy dance right now and can barely type this out, but here goes nothing…THE LITTLE BOOK OF SKIN CARE IS HERE!! Like, it’s now an actual book on actual book shelves in actual book stores (and online :).

Dreaming big is paying off. If you haven’t already, I would love it if you checked it out.

Pick it up at your fave book store, or find out all about it here.

Read it, share it with your friends, and let me know what you think! <3

xx charlotte

The post The Little Book of Skin Care is Here! appeared first on The Klog.

Skeptics or no, I personally saw the results of using a multi-step Korean skin care routine (and Dave did too!), so I put together the official Soko Glam 10-Step Korean Skin Care Set for people to try. Slowly but surely many began to actually take a chance on this set—even those who’ve never even thought of using anything more than a moisturizer.

Since then, I’ve been tracking the reviews for the original set and I’ve got to say, I am SO thrilled about the amazing feedback we’ve gotten! In fact, I’ll share some of my favorite reviews for you here:

Colleen 09/05/15
Never going back

First of all can I just say how dangerous this site is? Like ever since this first purchase I’ve felt like I needed to try everything and anything. Onto this set then. Don’t be intimidated by all the steps or products you need to use. Washing my face is no longer a chore (a chore used to be one acne cleanser + moisturizer, then done). Now I feel like I’m giving myself my own personal spa day for my face every day and night. I’m currently an undergrad student-athlete so you can imagine how stressed I am. After cleaning my face I can actually feel the stress melting away and my energy being rejuvenated. Ever since this one purchase I’ve become obsessed with trying everything so you can imagine how stressed my wallet is, haha. Not saying that these aren’t great prices, because they are!! I highly recommend this set and this website!! I am awaiting my purchase of Beauty Water, the Klairs Vitamin C serum, the SU:M37 rose cleansing stick, and the Iope cushion. I really don’t wear makeup anymore so IDK why I got inspired to buy a compact, but let’s see how it works!! I can’t tell you how fascinated I’ve become with skin care products in the last week just because of this site. Thank you, Charlotte!!

You’ll notice that ingredients and formulas are carefully catered to each of these skin types. The normal/combination products will help regularly maintain your skin.

The 10 step skin care set for “combination” skin types

If you’re dry in some spots and oily in others, the combination skin set will help balance you out.

The 10-step skin care routine for oily skin types

The set for oily skin features ingredients that will help keep your oil in check…

The 10-step skin care routine for dry skin types

… And the dry set contains emollient formulas to help your skin hold in moisture.

To help you get the most out of them, I want to set the record straight on some of the most common questions I get about the 10 Step Korean Skin Care Routine:

1. Do I have to use 10 steps every day?

You can, but of course you don’t have to! 10 steps really signifies the different skin care steps you can take in total, but it’s not necessary to do each and every step morning and night. For example, unless you are Marty McFly and you have a Delorean to travel back in time (or Hermione Granger with a Time Turner), sheet masking and exfoliation are steps you likely won’t have time to do every day.

As for me, I usually do six to seven steps on the daily. When I’m rushing out of the apartment to tackle the day, sometimes that number drops to four. I add a sheet mask or exfoliate about twice a week. Also, if you don’t have concerns about fine lines or brown spots, you may not need a targeted treatment like an eye cream or serum.

2. Must I use only Korean products?

No, of course not! Even Korean women love their Lancome and their La Mer. However, I do tend to hear feedback from people that in general Korean skin care products are more gentle, hydrating than products they’ve used before. I discussed this with an AmorePacific R&D specialist and he mentioned Korean people tend to identify as having sensitive skin, so cosmetic companies in Korea seriously consider this when formulating their skin care products.

Again, it is all about YOUR skin and what YOUR skin needs. I hope these new skin type-specific sets will help you get healthy, glowing skin and you love them! Let me know what you think after you’ve had a chance to try.

What is your current skin care routine like? I’d love to hear your routine and the products you use and what has worked for you or things you’re looking to improve. Comment below!

xx Charlotte

The post The 10-Step Korean Skin Care Routine—By Skin Type! appeared first on The Klog.

So the good news is that after I graduated skin school in May, the majority of summer I got to relax, unwind and decompress. HA, I WISH! In reality I had to prep for the two-part esthetician state board exam, which includes both a practical and a written exam.

When I passed both (yay!) I celebrated with a sheet mask and my new official license that I should probably put in safe place.

Of course, I documented this with a #sheetmaskselfie.

Somewhere in between all that madness, I turned 30.

My sister Michelle surprised me with all this for my 30th!

And these cookies! She pulled all the stops. Best sister ever.

Thanks, Michelle. <3

I always wondered how I would feel about turning 30, but I hardly batted an eye when it happened. With so much going on to keep me busy and surrounded by a huge support network (my family, friends, and you guys!), I think I’m exactly where I want to be (which is totally not what I had ever imagined). The most important thing to me now is to keep working at improving myself and always, always being up for the challenges that come my way.

So that’s pretty much my summer in a nutshell. But because I’m feeling particularly random today, I’ll end this post with a story about the epiphany I had while going to skin school and explains why I love being knowledgeable about skin care.

Out of the 100+ facials and treatments that I gave to clients while going to school, I always went through their skin care routine and products that they used during their consultation. A surprising number said they used Cetaphil to cleanse because they said it is gentle for their sensitive skin.

A little too gentle. [Image courtesy: Cetaphil]

I’m familiar with the brand because my sister used that product for years (she dealt with eczema) and that huge bottle was right up our alley in terms of budget.

Out of curiosity, I looked up the ingredients for Cetaphil and was pretty unimpressed. Shocked, even. It’s now clear to me why this cleanser may be gentle for sensitive skin, and dirt cheap — as well as why you should up your skin care routine ante and ditch this so-called “cleanser.”

Cetaphil contains the following ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, propylene glycol, sodium lauryl sulfate, stearyl alcohol, methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben.

Um, what? Say that again? Water, is well, water. No harm, no foul here. It just doesn’t really do anything. Cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol are just thickening agents and emollients. It doesn’t do anything for the skin either. It’s in there because it thickens consistency so that it doesn’t feel like water (which it mostly is). Sodium lauryl sulfate is a foaming agent often used in cleansers. It’s responsible for that bubbly, sudsy feeling a lot of cleansers have (but it actually can be irritating to the skin if you’re sensitive). The only semi-useful ingredient is the propylene glycol, which is a humectant (meaning it hydrates your skin).

The last three ingredients are common skin care product preservatives. Nothing in this cleanser is actually really good for the skin, and it doesn’t even really do a good job of doing the one thing it claims to do: clean the skin! So that’s why it’s so “gentle” and affordable – it doesn’t do anything!

As you can imagine, the popularity of this cleanser is now very annoying to me and is just another reason why it’s important to be skin savvy. Really take the time to look at what’s in the bottle before you put it on your face. For all you skin care junkies, you know what I’m talking about, and for those of you just tuning in, keep doing so.

Any other popular products you’re curious about? Let me know in the comments below. Watch out, my next rant may be the St. Ives Blemish Control Apricot  Scrub.

Have a great rest of the summer – it’ll be pumpkin spice latte season before you know it!

xx charlotte

The post The Truth About What’s In Your Bottle of Cetaphil appeared first on The Klog.

One of my favorite things I got to do at KCON was hang out with KStyleTV host and model Irene Kim and interview her for THE KLOG. She is the sweetest, funniest person.  And THAT. GORGEOUS. HAIRRR.  I am not ashamed to say I had a fangirl moment myself!

Check out the video above to hear about Irene Kim’s beauty tips, latest fav products and the beauty product she wishes could exist!

xx charlotte

The post Watch Our Interview with Irene Kim at KCON appeared first on The Klog.

If you look for Korean exfoliating products, you’ll find that most of the labels say “peeling.” I love that word. It sounds so satisfying. It’s just the idea of something rolling off and revealing something new, in this case your skin’s dead skin cells sloughing off to unveil a bright, happy glow.

I’m always looking for better ways to exfoliate because regular, gentle exfoliation delivers great results for some of my biggest skin concerns: Blackheads, brown spots and dull skin, I’m looking at you!

One thing that was drilled in my head during esthetician school is that exfoliating is one of the best ways to take care of your skin and it produces results — fast. Smoother, softer, brighter skin await if you exfoliate regularly.

That’s because your skin renews itself every 28 days, kind of like a snake shedding its skin. A layer of dead skin cells sit on your face until they’re sloughed away. Until then, some dead skin cell debris can settle in your pores, contributing to blackheads and even breakouts! Just by exfoliating right you can get clearer, brighter skin, not to mention enhanced skin care product absorption.

The product I am about to rave about is more than just an exfoliator. It’s special because it involves a cotton pad that uses the latest skin care technology to create a triple layer exfoliating function that no other product has been done before. Most importantly, it’s effective, though the fact that it’s made with red wine is also pretty cool. Intrigued?

Well, I’m about to take it a step further and tell you exactly why I think it’s going to be the next big thing in Korean skin care. Say hello to the Neogen Bio-Peel Gauze Exfoliating Pads.

What is the Neogen Dermalogy Bio Peel Gauze Peeling Wine?

The lazy woman (or man’s!) exfoliating dream. It includes 30 single-use exfoliating pads that offer the all-in-one benefits of chemical (works deep in pores) and mechanical exfoliation (works at surface level). (You can read all about this in The Little Book of Skin Care.

The pads are soaked in an amazing concoction of red wine and lactic acid, which slough away dead skin cells and impurities as they hydrate.

These pads left my skin smoother and clearer without having to commit to a full facial scrub. The ingredients and the scent are heavenly, too. I’ll get to more specifics down below.

How do you use it? 

Step 1.

Slip your fingers into the sleeve of the gauze peeling wine pad (the pointer and middle finger work best for me) so that the criss-crossed gauze side is facing down. Use gentle, circular motions all over a dry face and neck, working your way up to your forehead.

I see you, debris!

I get a little bit of instant gratification seeing some of the debris trapped in the gauze. Like I said — so satisfying!

Step 2.

Next rotate the pad so that the gauze side is facing up and the soft, quilted side is facing down. Swipe the softer side across the face to pick up the remaining debris. Optional! Using the same side, pat to enhance the absorption of the formula into the skin. Remember, it contains antioxidants and hydrating ingredients, which are beneficial to the skin. They help your skin stay supple and healthy now while protecting against future damage.

Now throw away the pad and rinse off the formula with lukewarm water.

Pro tip: If you’re going outside and get sun exposure, make sure you protect your newly exfoliated skin with sun screen!

Feel your face. Smooth, soft, and satisfying, right?

How often and when?

After cleansing, I use the pads about twice a week, but they’re gentle enough they can be used daily. Depends on how much your skin needs it! If you have a lot of rough, dry, flaky patches, you might benefit from using them daily. If you just want to maintain your complexion, use them less often.

The ingredients!

The good stuff! Love talking about ingredients.

This product contains red wine extract, which is a fermented ingredient that contains natural occurring alpha hydroxyl acids (AHA) that help with the exfoliation process. It’s also a powerful antioxidant because it contains resveratrol, which fights free radicals that lead to wrinkles and pigmentation.

Two chemical exfoliants are present in this formula: Glycolic acid and lactic acid (another AHA) that penetrates deep into your pores to clean out dead skin cells and debris that can clog pores. My personal favorite is lactic acid because it’s one of the few exfoliants that is very hydrating, it also plumps up your skin with moisture.

So more on the triple layer pad technology!

The first layer of the pad looks like a typical gauze pad, but it is oh-so-much more than that!

The inspiration behind its crisscrossing threads comes from the concept of threading where a thread is used to remove unwanted hair. (And if you’ve threaded your brows, you know how clean and tidy your brows look after!) I thought that was genius. The threads slough off the dead skin cells very easily and efficiently, not to mention gently.

The second layer (in the middle) is a very soft cushion that absorbs the formula and helps dispense it on your skin!

The last layer is quilted and is designed to pick up any remaining debris.

I know I just explained a ton, but to break it down to a few bullet points on why I love the Neogen Bio Peel Gauze Peeling Wine.

• Easy and fast. Sometimes I just don’t have the time to do the usual scrubs and it’s just as effective thanks to its amazing triple thread pad technology.
• Smells HEAVENLY. Like sweet grapes.
• Both mechanical (crisscrossed threads) and chemical exfoliation (lactic, glycolic acid) rolled into one. Double-tasking!
• THE RESULTS! Brighter, softer, skin that doesn’t leave my skin feeling tight and stripped of moisture. Perfect step for that dewy, radiant glow.

Hope you love it. Let me know what you think in the comments below!

xx charlotte

The post The Review: Neogen Dermalogy Bio Peel Gauze Peeling Wine appeared first on The Klog.

Nothing brings me greater excitement than when I get to introduce a beauty product or brand that is truly innovative and most importantly, delivers results that we need. Today I finally get to do so. I’ve been waiting months and months to share with you all about Neogen, a brand that is at the forefront of skin care innovation in Korea. And it’s about time that everyone knows!

Neogen is hands-down one of my greatest finds this year but wasn’t in plain view. That’s because it isn’t a mass market brand that has its own brick and mortar store, nor does it have a stream of high profile celebrities showcasing it on every billboard. It simply stands as one of the best-selling skin care brands sold at Olive Young, a shop that’s like a Korean Sephora.

Olive Young: Over 300 shops in Korea and growing!

Olive Young has slowly but surely become my go-to place to check out all the brands that are on the verge of producing the next big thing. Brands with a smaller footprint that go on to gain cult-favorite status are typically found in this beauty mecca. Case-in-point: Son & Park is sold here, and you know how I feel about that brand!

Talking with the Neogen R&D experts!

I was lucky enough to meet the R&D team at Neogen. I got to see first hand why their products are making waves in the Korean beauty space. Let’s just say when your innovations get picked up by biggest cosmetic brands in Korea such as LG and AmorePacific, you know your R&D team is on to something.

To know where beauty is headed next and know what products we might one day see on shelves here, I like to scour Korea. In the past decade Korea has popularized and introduced products that have become mainstays like BB creams, sheet masks, cushion compacts, and snail mucin creams. Some of the next big products are about to come from Neogen, and I’m so excited to share them with you here first!

Angel from Beautifymeeh and myself at KCON giving a sneak peek of the Neogen line.

When I got to introduce these products to some beauty editors, they told me, “Charlotte, everybody is going to love these products!” Good to know because these women have tried everything under the sun.

Hang tight everyone, I will be announcing the product line-up from Neogen on Soko Glam in the coming weeks! The first is the Neogen Bio Peel Gauze Exfoliating Pads which you can explore here first. The official review for this exfoliator will go up this weekend.

You guys, skin care has never been so exciting. Thanks for joining me on this ride!

xx charlotte

The post Introducing Neogen: Innovative Korean Skin Care appeared first on The Klog.