Laneige White Plus Renew Night Cream Review

First of all, I would like to thank Diana for reminding me to review this night cream. I wasn't going to forget reviewing it, but I almost forgot buying a backup for myself while in Korea. I've probably used up two tubs of this, and my third tub is almost empty (I'm scratching the bottom of the tub), and I almost forgot to buy my new tub! So thank you, Diana, for reminding me. 

Sorry there has been few posts recently. I've become a little bit busier in Korea than my first few days. As usual, my company leaves me to myself for the first day to adjust to the time zone (a.k.a going wild shopping for me). I usually do a half day on the second day, normal on the third and fourth, and I might have to stay up some nights during my last few days in Korea. So, as long as I'm not too busy, I wanted to review this.

I love this night cream as I love the entire white plus renew line, but especially this night cream. People has told me that the skin refiner and this night cream is the most effective in giving them whiter skin. Like I said before, I frankly don't know whether it's true because I've always used them together. However, i do notice that I always wake up with glowing skin (given that I get enough sleep) after putting this on, and it kind of heals some of my pimples, not as effectively as BP does, but very gently. BP always gives me redness after leaving it on a whole night, and gives me hyperpigmentation after a pimple heal.

Pros:
1. A little goes a long way. I really just use a pea size for my whole face.
2. Absorbs in 10 minute
3. Gives me glowing soft skin in the morning

4. heals some blemishes

Cons:
1. Sensitivity: If you are very sensitive to scents, the scent this carries might irritate your skin or your nose

2. If you use it too quickly (i.e. suddenly using it everyday or twice a day), it might be rich enough to give you whiteheads, so be patient when trying to incorporate this (and in my opinion, any skincare product) into your regimen.

3. can be too rich if over applied. 

Overall: Really nice night cream that I will try to use year round. 

P.S. A girl on makeupalley told me that I make almost everything Laneige I review sound magical, and that it sounds a little fishy. Come to think of it, it does, but I really really love Laneige products. The ones I use are my staples, and I think that anything that's less than magical on my skin should not become my staples. However, I would like to take this opportunity to say that not every Laneige item is as magical. i've tried a few, such as its cake liner which dries too quickly, its mascara which smudges, and its cake powder which is really too cakey. I will review them in the future to give you an idea of the Laneige products I didn't love (and provide a sort of alarm bell for you in case you were thinking of buying it). 

Laneige White Plus Renew Essence Review

I arrived in Korea yesterday, so I'm still adjusting to the time schedule. It is early early morning here, but I'm up and thinking about my blog and the reviews I promised :) (well, no malls are open yet or I'd be happily shopping there instead, since it's bound to get busy tomorrow) Everything went pretty well, especially on the plane. I usually get a few pimples, or at least a few bumps on the plane because the air is so dehydrated and hygiene conditions are less than desirable (I don't have the 15 minutes in AM and PM to primp my skin), but I didn't get them this time! I researched the pimples on the plane issue and came up with a few things to do, and I prayed for no pimples. :) I'll share those techniques with you next time in case you'll be traveling. :) 

Anyway, on to the review. I like this essence, but if you've read my skincare regimen, you know that I don't use this daily yet. Well, I actually used this daily for some time in the winter months, and stopped using them since Spring and summer, so I'm trying to slowly ease back into it. So I know this product reasonably well to review it (and if I'm wrong, I'll apologize and update). So far, I really love the essence as I found it's quite efficient in delivering what it promises: moisturizing and lightening dark spots. It also absorbs really fast, so fast that I can't apply it as I do all my skincare products. I like to put some product onto my finger and dot some on my face, and then rub/pat it in. With this product, after I'm done making the last dot, most of the first dot would have absorbed, so I have to work dot by dot. (sorry for the strange vernacular) I found this a little strange at first, but in no ways annoying. It can also actually be pretty good if you are on the go, and need it to absorb the minute you finished applying it.

Pros:
1. Absorbs really really abnormally fast
2. effective at lightening dark spots I get from past acne and BP use
3. makes my skin soft

Cons:
1. Sensitivity: If you are very sensitive to scents, the scent this carries might irritate your skin or your nose
2. Absorption speed: I personally find it to be a pro, but even I had to adjust my application techniques at first, so it might take some getting used to. 

3. If you use it too quickly (i.e. suddenly using it everyday or twice a day), it might be rich enough to give you whiteheads, so be patient when trying to incorporate this (and in my opinion, any skincare product) into your regimen.

Overall: Really nice serum/essence that I will try to use year round. 

Laneige White Plus Renew Hydrator SPF15 Review

As promised, I am reviewing all the items I use in my skincare. I wanted to do the White Plus Renew lineup first before I do the cleansers and weekly treatments, etc. because I thought this sounds a bit more logical to me. So anyway, this is the review of the Laneige White Plus Renew Hydrator, which is my daytime moisturizer. It looks awfully like the skin refiner I reviewed yesterday, doesn't it? Yes, they are identical except for the little labels on the bottle.
This hydrator is thicker in texture than most daytime moisturizers you'll find. I would say its texture is really similar to a cream. I don't know how to explain this except that when you get a drop out of the bottle, it comes out in a cylinder, and will stay like a cylinder on your hand for around a minute if you don't touch it. This is partly due to how thick it is. I was really wary at first because of this texture and I used really little in fear that it might be too much for me. My skin also wasn't willing to absorb more than a pea sized amount for my whole face at first, so I only applied a little, thinking that the bottle will last me a long time. Eventually, I started applying more because my skin seemed to be a little more used to it, absorbs more quickly and you know, you apply moisturizer until your skin feels comfortable, and that's what I did. I think I doubled the amount I initially used by now, and I got no breakouts. And no, you don't have to use more and more everyday. I think I have been using the same amount for 4 or 5 months now.
I love this hydrator. This absorbs really fast despite the texture, especially when I apply this after the skin refiner (which I always do now). This has SPF 15 in it, and I think I use enough to get 15, but I still don't rely on it for sun protection, because I don't think SPF 15 is enough and because it didn't offer a PA (UVA protection) value. Like the refiner, this has a heavy scent, which I personally find to be great.

Pros:
1. Very moisturizing
2. Absorbs in a flash
3. not runny at all
4. SPF
5. makes my skin feel plump after applying
Cons:
1. Sensitivity: If you are very sensitive to scents, the scent this carries might irritate your skin or your nose
2. Heavy texture: You might find it too heavy at first, so I suggest using small amounts until your skin is used to it

Overall: I love this product. No skincare item can be absolutely perfect for one's skin unless you customize it, but if I had to choose an already made product, it is this one

Laneige White Plus Renew Skin Refiner Review

I promised to review the white plus renew skincare products that I use a little earlier, so I am going to start now from the toner. It's called skin refiner because Koreans usually call toner by different names like skin refiner or skin softener. This is because they have different ideas of what a toner should do, and I think skin refiner sounds better than toner anyway, certainly more fancy.
This is not the usual consistency of most toners, which would be liquid with a fluid consistency like water. This one is more like a gel consistency, which I found quite pleasant once you are used to it. It's hard to describe the sensation when you apply it. It is rather cooling and pretty moisturizing. Think of aloe vera gel. It's quite similar. One of my readers told me that she actually use the skin refiner as a light weight moisturizer and I can totally see how it makes sense. The gel consistency makes one bottle lasts around 7 to 8 months, which is quite long lasting for me. Someone once told me that of the white plus renew line, the whitening power comes from this refiner and night cream. I don't know whether it's true since I've been using them together and don't plan to separate them.

Like most Korean beauty products, this comes with a pretty jasmine scent which I grew to love. There's quite a bit of a debate about how to use Korean and Japanese toners since they come in sizes that is similar to the moisturizers, and whether it should be used on a cotton pad. I think that it is best applied when you shake some out of the bottle onto your palms and then pat into your face (since Korean toners aren't meant as a catchall last step to cleansing). But here's a big confession, I use it on a cotton pad directly after cleansing. Why? Well, I don't like to wipe off the water off my face after cleansing. I like to let it just sink in. It would be better if you pat dry, but i usually don't have the time. I just wipe my moist face with the refiner on the cotton pad. This sort of prevents any wasting of the product since my face is moist and the cotton pad is more likely to absorb the water on my face than the gelish content of the refiner.

A few reader told me that she likes my bullet point kind of review so that they can skip all my blathering if they want to :) So:

Pros:
1. Very moisturizing for a toner
2. Very soothing: I never really learnt what people mean when they say a product is soothing until I used this product
3. Very smooth application
4. Lightening fast absorption
5. I think it makes my moisturizer absorb better/faster
Cons:
1. Sensitivity: If you are very sensitive to scents, the scent this carries might irritate your skin or your nose
2. Gel texture: I think it's a pro, but it can be a con at first when you are not used to this type of toner

Overall: I love this product. No skincare item can be absolutely perfect for one's skin unless you customize it, but if I had to choose an already made product, it is this one