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Skin, K-beauty, Korea trips and the beauty industry — ask and share
In your 60s and want a skin analysis and facial in Seoul, not procedures?
A traveller in their 60s posted on the Tripadvisor Seoul forum. They'd be in Seoul for a few days and felt overwhelmed: most clinics they found seemed built around fairly invasive procedures. What they wanted was a skin
0 1Do you actually need a face mist? A quick poll
With a PDRN mist climbing the rankings, Korean face mists are in the spotlight again. At the same time, many people still ask whether mists are pointless because they dry off so fast. Benefits mist fans mention No shakin
Poll
How do you use face mist?
Pick one to see the results
0 0Spotting guerrilla marketing in 'genuine' skincare recommendations
A post titled "Beware guerrilla marketing" on r/30PlusSkinCare drew more than 200 comments. The poster had noticed a sudden wave of posts praising one body lotion, and whenever they commented that it looked like an ad, t
0 1Is Qoo10 safe? Worried about fakes, Japanese users say: stick to official shops
In March 2025, a "How is Qoo10?" thread went up on Girls Channel, a large Japanese women's forum. The poster wanted a pair of shoes and was unsure about signing up. It drew over 90 comments. What the replies said Some ai
0 0Growth factor serums: can you judge one after two weeks?
A post on r/30PlusSkinCare asked whether the hype around The Ordinary's growth factor (GF) serum is finally over. The poster used it morning and night for two weeks, saw no change, not even extra hydration, and felt the
0 1Fake K-beauty: 6 red flags before you pay
The more popular a Korean product gets, the more copies turn up on marketplaces and reseller accounts. Skincare forums keep repeating the same clues: Price far too low. If it costs much less than on the brand's official
0 0Fake K-beauty is surging, and Korea is launching a way to report it
If a bargain serum ever felt off, you are not alone. Counterfeit Korean-brand beauty is a growing problem, and Korea is responding. Key numbers from the August 2026 report: 97.7% of counterfeit Korean-brand goods seized
0 0First skin treatment in Seoul, no Korean: how do you avoid the big upsell?
Someone on the Tripadvisor Seoul forum was flying in for a wedding and wanted a "glass facial" for the first time. They don't speak Korean and had found very mixed Google reviews for med spas, so they asked who had actua
0 1Dongdaemun General Market
Opened in 1970, Dongdaemun General Market has shared the joys and sorrows of Dongdaemun Market for more than 40 years. It is a large specialty market selling fabric for clothing, clothing notions, accessories, and some b
0 0Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam Branch
Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam Branch is modeled after a European style. The atrium on the first floor, open all the way to the ceiling, provides a comfortable shopping environment with a luxurious, modern European-s
0 0Adding just one thing to your winter routine: what would it be?
When the dry season hits, you want to change your routine without buying half a shop. Here are the answers that come up most when forums ask "one thing to add for winter": A richer cream: swap the light gel cream for som
Poll
One thing to add to your winter routine?
Pick one to see the results
0 0Can an influencer's beauty brand beat a big lab's products?
On Blind, a Korean workplace forum, someone asked a blunt question. Plenty of influencers expand into cosmetics or supplements. Can a personal brand really outdo products from a big company with hundreds of researchers?
0 1Is bar soap the answer for a very oily face?
On Clien, someone with an extremely oily face said that on days at home they wash it more than six times a day. People say soap strips too much oil, they wrote, but for someone whose face is practically an oil well, isn'
0 0Patch testing: is one swipe on your wrist really enough?
"I tried it on my wrist and it was fine" is something you hear a lot. But facial skin is thinner and reacts differently, so people with sensitive skin tend to share a more thorough routine. The approach many use Where: b
0 0Brown, acne-prone skin and a peel in Seoul: what did travellers suggest?
A traveller with brown, acne-prone skin asked on the Tripadvisor Seoul forum: they'd be in Seoul in spring and wanted a face peel. Could anyone point to a reliable clinic? What the replies said The most useful answer sug
0 1Seongsu Handmade Shoe Street
A short distance from Seongsu Station on Subway Line 2, Seongsu Handmade Shoe Street stands as Korea’s largest handmade shoe industry district. It is also the country’s biggest handmade shoe production center, with 70% o
0 0Refill stations: are they worth keeping from a brand's point of view?
Refill stations for shampoo and body wash in big stores and zero-waste shops are more common than a few years ago. But brands that have run them seem divided on whether they pay off. The case for Shows sustainability thr
0 0Amazon now takes 〜44% of US K-beauty spending and wants to be where you discover it
BeautyMatter took a close look at Amazon's K-beauty play. The gist: Amazon is moving from "where you buy it cheap" to "where you discover it." Numbers in the piece 1,200+ K-beauty brands and 20,000 products on Amazon Abo
0 0Olive Young opens its first US store in Pasadena: what it means for brands
CJ Olive Young opened its first brick-and-mortar US store in Pasadena, California, on May 29. Key facts 58 W Colorado Blvd, about 8,647 sq ft Roughly 400 brands and 5,000 SKUs across skincare, makeup, hair and wellness A
0 0Sightseeing by day, shopping by night: planning an evening beauty run in Seoul
On a packed itinerary, beauty shopping always gets pushed to the evening. Go without a plan, though, and you'll end up staring at closed shutters. Here's what travellers commonly share. 1. Check opening hours first Even
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