Hey everyone! I know i’ve been super MIA…..incredibly MIA actually. But now that classes are starting to wind down I have tons of free time to continue this blog and will probably begin posting once/twice a week.

I figured i’d make my comeback with a review of the Sulwhasoo brightening ex line. As some of you may (or may not) know Sulwhasoo is an extremely high end Korean herbal/medicinal skincare line. Since my use of my retinoid has purged the crap out of my skin and left me with tons of PIH, I was eager to try something that I had heard was not only, super moisturizing, but also incredible at removing/lightening red marks.

Texture

The toner has a slight runny texture, when applied to the skin it sets quickly and is lightly moisturizing. It also feels extremely refreshing, probably due to the high amount of alcohol in it. The emulsion has a very lovely texture, it also rubs in and absorbs quite quickly. It feels quite amazing on the skin, and feels very moisturizing. Both products (and pretty much the entire array of Sulwhasoo products) have amazing scents. They smell herbal and slightly of ginseng, it is not an offensive smell, in fact I find it very soothing and a nice change from the typical baby powder scent so many korean skincare products have. My boyfriend actually commented a lot on how much he loved the scent.

Ingredients

The ingredients that most stood out for me were licorice extract, for me licorice extract always does an amazing job at lightening any stubborn marks especially when combined with niacinamide (which is not present in these formulations). However, I probably should have been paying more attention to the massive amount of alcohol in BOTH of these products. It is the second ingredient in the toner and the fourth one in the emulsion! I personally, have never been someone who was against using products with alcohol in them, however looking back I had never used skincare (only foundations and sunscreen) that contained so much alcohol. The rest of the formulation is made up several plant/fruit extracts with soothing properties and moisturizing agents.

Effects

Well needless to say in the short two weeks that I was using the toner and emulsion, they dried the absolute HELL out of my skin. At first I would wake up with lovely dewey skin, and then my nasolabial folds began to dry up. Eventually, my whole face began cracking up! I wish I had taken some photos to show you all, but my skin was pretty much coming off in chunks. I could not even apply foundation without my skin looking like a cracking pavement.

Being that this line is so highly regarded for its moisturizing capabilities, I was surprised at how terribly my skin reacted to it. On the positive though (if there even is one?!) this line actually is very good at lightening my marks. Even though they were not used for an extensive period of time, my PIH lightened considerably while I was using it. However, never will I put lightening my PIH ahead of my skin’s overall well being.

My final words…

Overall, although this line is amazing at lightening stubborn marks it is not soothing and incredibly irritating. I do have quite sensitive and reactive skin though so I would probably only recommend this line to people with much more resilient skin. I purchased each bottle at my friendly neighborhood Amore store however, you can find them at these other retailers at varying prices:

Sulwhasoo Snowise Brightening Fluid

Neiman Marcus – 65$

Korea Depart – 68.21$

Sulwhasoo Snowise Brightening Water Retail 60$

Neiman Marcus – 60$

Korea Depart – 63.41