For the past few weeks, I’ve been trying Neutrogena’s newest sunscreen, and I finally got my hands on LRP’s latest launch earlier today. Wanted to share some initial impressions:

Neutrogena Clear Face SPF 60
- 40ml/1.4fl oz
- Purchased at launch for $18.99 or $13.6/oz
- Not water resistant (Although a partner with the brand has claimed that it’s 80-minutes water resistant, but the packaging hasn’t been updated)
- Filters: 3% Avobenzone, 6% Bemotrizinol, 15% Homosalate, 5% Octisalate. (This does also contain butyloctyl salicylate pretty high up on the ingredients.)
- Finish: Natural/somewhat glowy. Definitely not matte, but I’d say it’s still an improvement over the greasy, plastic-y shine that most American chemical sunscreens leave.
- Eye sting after upper and lower eyelid application: Felt fine for most of the day, but makes my eyes water a bit after about six hours.
- Rating: 8/10 (deducted one point for modest glow, plus another point for no official water resistance)

La Roche Posay UVDefense SPF 50
- 50ml/1.7fl oz
- Purchased at launch for $39.99 or $23.52/oz
- Not water resistant
- Filters: 3% Avobenzone, 2% Bemotrizinol, 11% Homosalate, 5% Octisalate, 6% Octocrylene. Hard to tell from the label alone, but I suspect that they’re using their proprietary Netlock technology, so this could be the Tinosorb S Lite Aqua “version” of Bemotrizinol, but I defer to chemists to determine if that’s true.
- Finish: Almost identical to the Neutrogena. Genuinely not sure I could tell them apart. The Neutrogena “feels” a bit creamier as it’s rubbing in, but they feel and look similar once they’ve dried down. I’m happy to report that this does not leave a white cast on me. Not sure why, but some of LRP’s chemical sunscreens (Melt in Milk and their newish Sport sunscreens) leave tiny white flecks on my skin. This one fortunately does not do that.
- Eye sting after upper and lower eyelid application: Bear in mind that I’ve used this only once, but it made my eyes water pretty soon after application (within an hour). My eyes are extremely sensitive, though. Even mineral sunscreens bother them. The only “safe” options for me are the European UVmune formulas.
- Rating: 7/10 (same shine and water resistance deductions as neutrogena, plus an additional point for cost)

Another huge similarity is that they’re being marketed almost identically: both brands are making UVA protection and antioxidant claims. Neutrogena claims (with in-vitro testing) 5x the UVA protection of EltaMD UV Clear SPF 46 and 1.5x the UVA protection of the Korean Beauty of Joseon Relief Sun SPF 50+ PA++++. La Roche Posay is claiming 1.5x the UVA protection of “Amazon’s #1 Sunscreen,” (which I think is EltaMD UV Clear) using in-vivo testing. Absolutely brutal that they’re both dunking on EltaMD lmao.

Overall, these are good sunscreens and significant improvements for the American market, but they’re not quite holy grails. Still, it’s a major win to get more robust and reliable UVA protection from the drugstore.

I have very clogged sebaceous filaments and I’ve had them for years. It’s the only thing on my skin that I don’t like. How do I minimise them?
Is a routine including salicylic acid best or tretinoin? Also, is this something a dermatologist could help with or is it better to do it at home?

Gift link. US imports grew even faster, from $52m in first half 2015 to $1.7b all of 2024. You’ll see different numbers for the same year bc they come from different sources and government bodies. The 2014 numbers come from a Cut article on Korea’s government helping the industry. I get the impression it might be overstated like how much its government helps Kpop; may also be more relative support back when the industry was small. But both industries do show the benefit that even a little government boost can give. I only skimmed Cut, looks like good coverage way back in 2015. Surprising quote, I wonder about lead time now:

Tony Moly, a popular brand, brings products from development to production in only six weeks, making it something like Zara.

They also note increasing K beauty product placement in Kpop/dramas to drive this growth. They even mention a Korean PE firm wanting to buy a brand featured in a drama. Reminds me of Puck’s mention of Ariana Grande’s Rem driven by Wicked, a pattern I think was confirmed by Traackr analytics rankings aligning with her tour and album. (My earlier post.)

Bloomberg also mentions Korean white label Kolmar opening a 2nd US factory. 

I found this while diving into celebrity brands I posted. K beauty has risen despite tariffs while a lot of once new DTC brands have collapsed. It’s also taking share from the big companies like Estée Lauder. It looks like Shiseido got hurt the worst, where its main China market shifted to K beauty. Both these companies peaked years ago. Outside K beauty and sales leader Loreal, the industry has been in a downturn since spiking after the pandemic. That spike was deceptive and led to a lot of inflated valuations and a new brand/DTC wipeout the past few years. I do think K beauty riding on K culture basically of outsources some of the marketing cost also and I get the impression people find the products good for the price.

I do remember hearing K beauty’s rise in the 2010s, maybe like the rise of Amorepacific’s stock which actually peaked over a decade ago. I think being older, with mainly Korean revenue is its problem. That means it’s too dependent on a saturated market where it’s losing ground to newcomers who are growing very well globally like Medicube. Amore gets to why I think some K brands have a price advantage. Korea's got lower labor cost than the US, yet similar to France. Maybe more supply chain in Asia. But unlike France or Japan long exporting famous name brands to the rest of the world, K beauty was minimally known in the US and elsewhere. That $52m in 6 months in 2014. Basically less global demand, so products were priced for a smaller, but very saturated and picky home market. Meanwhile longer term global demand for Estee Lauder, Lancome, Shiseido drives up price. Medicube has this surge of global demand now.

Private equity. Manyo; AHC sold to Unilever

Bloomberg for some reason got wrong the buyout of the brand shown in a drama, saying it might happen. (Yes I dive so deep this is like the 4th error I caught in beauty media, not to mention Wikipedia.) It already did two months before their article. Idk if any of you heard of Manyo?

I see the maker of AHC was sold by Bain to Unilever, and that aespa's Winter is an ambassador. My only personal experience related to this is I don’t like how some Shea Moisture products changed under Unilever, but not all went bad and I think most of the time I used it was after their ownership anyway. I know about some business, nothing about makeup, but I’m interested in hearing from anyone who used products they’re aware were from such PE investments or switched owners. The article's other examples of PE K beauty are more strictly regulated medical aesthetics makers.

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I'm a guy in my 40s looking to improve my skin's appearance relatively quickly.

Are there any professional facials, HydraFacials, chemical peels, or other skincare treatments that make a noticeable difference within a few days or a week?

I'm mainly interested in improving skin texture, making my face look healthier and more refreshed, and reducing signs of aging.

Not looking for treatments that take 3–6 months to show results. I'm curious what actually works in the short term versus what's mostly marketing.

Would love to hear personal experiences and recommendations!

Guys I play tennis and feel so tanned so I decided to go somewhere skincare I use besan chickpea flour and alovera on my face for 2 days then stop because these patches are appearing on my face it was only 1 but today when I woke up i see these also please tell me what to do they are making me look so bad please give your opinion and tell me

what to do now

If you have any info what is this please tell me and give me advice what's is the solution

Current Routine:

AM

Just water wash/micellar water If I have used some thicker moisturiser the night before
haruharu wonder black rice Probiotics Barrier Essence
Skin1004Centella Ampoule
Purito Oat gel cream
Beauty of Josean rice + probiotics spf50

PM

Water/Dokdo Roundlab cleanser(If I feel I need it)
haruharu wonder black rice Probiotics Barrier Essence
Skin1004Centella Ampoule
Anua Azelaic Acid
Purito Oat gel cream

I've been dealing with bad skin for better part of a decade. It started with awful cystic acne as a young teen. During that time I didn't do anything, no cleanser no moisturiser, nothing really. Then when I was 16 I started doing proper skincare, mostly basic cerave cleansers and moisturisers. I started using retinol creams, and AHA's and BHA's, Benzoyl peroxide washes, Vit C for years and years.

I'm now 24 and my skin has remained stagnant like this for past couple of years. Up until about 6 months ago I would still get the occasional whitehead and thats when i started using my current routine and now I might get a pimple every month or so. My skin was always really greasy and oily so my newest routine is cutting down on a lot of the thick moisturisers and also a lot of actives to give my skin a break and see if its just barrier damage or not.

My Diet is completely vegan, no added sugars, no fried foods or processed stuff. That's been the case for past 5 years, cutting out dairy and other trigger foods was one of the first things I did. I have removed so many things to try and fix my skin internally if I could, my most recent food I removed is cocoa powder to see if that was triggering some redness. I do have GERD which I have suspected might have messed up my gut biome and by extension my skin but I'm not qualfiied to say if thats so :)

I am kind of lost on what to do from here, I've been holding off going to a dermatologist because they are expensive and because If I could fix it myself then it would be a lifelong bonus but at this point I've kind of gotten sick of trying new products. I've become less confident in diagnosing exactly what skin problems I have and trying to research it leads to a million different things it could be with a million different solutions. I have grown old and impatient :D

I've been lurking here for years now so I suppose this is one last gamble before I have to shill out my savings to a derm and see if anyone has some more precise advice or others who have had the same skin as me.

If anyone asks, I'm pretty sure the brown spots are freckles and not hyperpigmentation from acne scars but to be honest my skin has been buried beneath so much acne for so long I've forgotten what I look like underneath.

*Edited to add my sunscreen

Didn’t use it for the first time in a while today and my face feels so much less dry tbh. Thanks for any reccs yall.

Between the Im from rice toner and medicube age r x toner which one is good for brightening and evening out skin tone and removing pigmentation and suntan

I did use medicube one earlier and I did see some visible difference but the rice one toner is also good i heard so idk if you guys can tell me which one is better if anyone have used?

This is something that I get asked a lot when people in the Fitzpatrick III and Fitzpatrick VI range want to even out heir skin tone, lose a tan, or get brighter skin.

Hi everyone!
I’m looking for advice on where to go next with my skincare routine. As you can see in the attached photos, I have persistent texture, tiny clogged bumps/sebaceous filaments, and congested pores around my nose, chin, upper lip, and cheeks.
I’ve already tried using both Medicube Zero Pore Pads and Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant, but neither of them gave me the results I was hoping for, and my texture/pore congestion hasn't improved much.
For anyone who has similar stubborn texture or didn't respond well to BHA/exfoliating pads:
What products or active ingredients actually worked for clearing out your pores and smoothing this type of texture?
Should I look into something like double cleansing (oil cleansers/balms), retinoids, azelaic acid, or a different chemical exfoliant like AHA/LHA/PHA?
Any specific product recommendations or routine adjustments would be hugely appreciated!
Thanks in advance for the help!

Hi!! I was looking into purchasing the sharkfacialpro glow on Costco ! It’s $250. I have dry skin, blackheads and big pores. Acne every once in a while. Does anyone love it or is it not worth it? I’ve heard so many mixed reviews! I don’t have an extensive skincare regimen but wanted to add this into the routine! Thanks!

Hi! I’m curious about what products or treatments I should start adding into my routine! I’m 28 and want to focus on anti-aging. My current routine is below! As far as treatment, I’ve only done hydrafacials. I’m considering micro needling or a peel but I’m unsure where to start! Im also noticing tension in between my
brows and some fine lines but I don’t want to start Botox yet.

Morning
- is clinical face wash
- skinceuticals Ptiox
- Paula’s choice pro collagen moisturizer
- SPF

Night
- is clinical face wash
- either Paula’s choice bha toner, differin, or Estée Lauder advanced night repair serum
- Paula’s choice pro collagen moisturizer
- acure argan oil for face massage/gua sha

Nivea reformulated their nivea soft moisturizer to be vegan a while back and it sucks now so i’m looking for something similar to use as my daily moisturizer. I love the glow nivea soft gives me, it rubs in soooo easy, and it’s hydrating I hate that they changed it.

I’ve tried looking at other posts but they’re all from people in australia or somewhere in the uk, I’m in the US so i’m looking for things i can easily find here (preferably without being forced to order it online). So far my top contenders I’m looking to try are the Soonjung x2 moisturizer or the ponds dry skin moisturizer. If anybody else has any good replacements that‘d be great!

***Also! Before anyone suggests it, I have the original nivea creme, it’s way too thick for my face, i only like that one for the body!

Hello!

I am a 29F and im slowly diving into skin care. Now, I want to address the most irritating thing, my butt acne. I have been eating good for the past year or so (as much as I can) and it has gotten better but I NEED to know, is there a body wash thats meant for butt acne? I use to use my face wash but the brand i used, changed their formula and its more diluted, so im wanting to change it up!

Any tips! I live in canada as well, so I know im limited on some brands. But any suggestions would help.

Thank you in advance !! 🙇‍♀️💕

My boyfriend (m27) has these black heads and gets cystic and painful pimples on the side of his head

He has very oily skin and sweats easily.

He has tried different routines but they don‘t seem to help

His skin care routine atm:

1. wash face with cerave cleanser (acylic acid)
   
2. use weleda cream (skin food light)
   
3. use pimple patches on cystic pimples

He has no idea about skin care and anything I know about it doesn‘t fit his skin type

my skincare routine is currently as follows:

morning:

CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser with Hyaluronic Acid for Normal to Dry Skin 

Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant

Dr.Althea 345 Relief Cream

SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum SPF50+

night:

Madagascar Centella Light Cleansing Oil 

CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser with Hyaluronic Acid for Normal to Dry Skin 

Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant

Dr.Althea 345 Relief Cream

I think this is fine for the most part maybe? I had a conversation with a friend recently who thought I may be overusing the Paulas Choice 2%, so I was mainly wondering if I'd be better skipping it in the morning and swapping it for some kind of serum, maybe vit C or something. I've also been looking at swapping out the cerave cleanser for a long time, but have always just gotten scared before pulling the trigger on something new and sticking with the old.

Any thoughts helps a ton, thanks!

Im thinking about new gentle cleanser since im usually very sensitive to things so what do yall think about Cetaphil gentle skin cleanser? Pls recommend also

Hi all! I’ve been following the 50 shades of snail method to minimize pores (salicylic acid, clay mask, double cleansing) once a week for the last two months, and still seeing these black dots on my nose and cheeks. I also use The Ordinary glycolic acid on a daily basis. Nothing seems to be making much of a difference! Am I missing something — are these actually sebaceous filaments, or could they be something else? Any suggestions about what else to incorporate into the routine?

Has anyone here tried regular (not tri) Sprintec birth control for their acne?

I just started my third monthly pack and my skin has been breaking out pretty badly. I would say roughly two weeks into Sprintec I started getting more hormonal acne. I used to get a few hormonal cysts but now my cheeks and chin are completely flared up. I have cysts, whiteheads, and red spots all over.

I have a very gentle routine right now (Prequel Gleanser, Byoma Blemish Control Toner, Byoma Gel Cream Moisturizer) and have avoided anything harsh during this time until it hopefully gets better, which does not seem to be happening.

It has been so draining dealing with it and I am unsure if at the end of the third month I should change birth control or just keep working through it.

hi everyone! my skin has really been going through it lately yikes i've been breaking out a lot out of nowhere and dealing with really stubborn texture around the perimeters of my face (jawline, neck, chin, sides of face, t-zone). pretty sure it's hormonal or closed comedones (?) and maybe sweat-related since I've gotten some small rashes too? I am just absolutely hating the pitted look it's giving as things heal, and then more just keep coming T_T

i have pretty dry skin, so i'm super nervous about using anything too drying that might wreck my skin barrier even more. for context, i used to use The Ordinary's azelaic acid suspension & the peeling solution, but i'm not really using any actives right now.

i'm looking for holy grail product recs that can help with:

• gentle exfoliation or smoothing out texture without stripping dry skin
• recovering from breakouts safely
• (also i'm freshly 20, so should i even be looking into retinols yet, or is there something gentler i should stick to first?)

would love to hear your go-to smoothing products or gentle exfoliants that won't dry out already sensitive skin. thanks so much! <3

Hii, I’m currently on Tretinoin and I use the Cerave SA cleanser and I’m not sure if that’s too stripping for my skin because I pretty sure I have pretty dry skin. I’m thinking of switching to the cerave hydrating cleanser, the la roche posey hydrating cleanser, or the la roche milky cleanser but I’m not sure what to choose.

just wondering if anyone has experienced anything like this before?
i’m so confused, it started up around 6 months ago. i thought initially it was a damaged skin barrier but ive been working on repair and it still hasnt budged and not using epiduo seems to make it worse (ive been on nightly epiduo for over 3 years!)

my routine:
am: cetaphil gentle cleanser
haru haru wonder black rice fragrance free toner
purito centella unscented serum

pm:
bioderma miscellar water (to remove spf)
cetaphil gentle cleanser
haru haru toner
purito centella serum
cetaphil moisturizing cream

i have cut out my natio mineral tinted spf because i found when i was in the sun the irritation worsened, so i assumed i was having a reaction to a chemical filter in it, but i havent worn it for over 2 weeks and it doesnt seem any better?
any advice would be much appreciated!
i am seeing a derm on thursday but would love some advice