SKIN CARE DIARIES: Products On My Wishlist

by - August 21, 2019


It's been a while since I've done a wishlist here on the blog, so I thought it was about time I let you guys know what I'm lusting after at the moment. I'm not sure if it's because my focus lately (as it tends to be in the summers) has been really firmly on skin care and not nearly as much on makeup or because new releases in the makeup world have just been failing to interest me, but when I sat down to do a beauty wishlist there were only a couple of makeup items on my wish list and a whooooooole bunch on my skin care wishlist. It could also be, honestly, because a lot of the content I've personally been consuming lately has been skin care related, so those are the products that jump out at me most.

So, without further ado, keep reading to check out what I've got my eye on and why!


I wanted to split this up into two different sections because I feel like they're distinctly different in my brain. Western skin care definitely has a lot to offer, but I've personally been a little bit less interested in it since I've gotten back on the Asian skin care train. And, if we're being honest, with a few of the brands I'm listing in this American/Western part of the wishlist, there are obvious and spoken Korean Beauty influences when it comes to the brands and products, which really just drives home where my skin care brain is at right now.


Youth To The People Kombutcha + 11% AHA Exfoliating Toner
YTTP has been one of those brands that I've actually had my eye on for a while, but the first product to really, really pique my interest has been this toner. It contains both lactic and glycolic acid to exfoliate the skin, but also contains a couple of different fermented ingredients. Honestly, I'm so on board with fermented skin care at the moment and I want to try so much more and see what it does for my skin. This toner promises to reduce shine, relieve congestion and boost radiance... So basically, sign me up!

Herbivore Bakuchiol Retinol Alternative Smoothing Serum
Bakuchiol is probably the buzziest skin care ingredient at the moment, as far as I can tell, and I'm pretty curious to try it out in my skin care routine, which is why this is on my radar. It's definitely popping up in more and more products lately, but the Herbivore one is probably the one that most jumps out at me. Along with the Bakuchiol, it also contains PHAs, which are a more gentle exfoliating acid option, and Tremella mushroom, which acts as a humectant. Honestly, the promises of hydrated, silky soft skin have me really, really interested in this one.

Krave Matcha Hemp Cleanser
Unavailable in Canada, I feel like this cleanser is basically a unicorn to me and I WANT IT NOW. In fact, look for this on the blog in the next 6 months, because I am going to find a way. Everyone I've heard about this cleanser from has absolutely cheered how effective and gentle it is on the skin. This is described as an antioxidant cleanser that protects the skin barrier, maintains a healthy pH, and boost antioxidants and essential fatty acids. Seriously, you guys, I've heard enough about this to convince me that it could end up a HG cleanser and I just want it in my hands.


Farmacy Honeymoon Glow AHA Resurfacing Night Serum
One thing that I'm really on board with lately is an exfoliating night serum that contains humectants and I've really seen a great benefit to the overall look and feel of my skin. This one contains AHAs in the form of lactic, glycolic, citric and fruit acids, as well as BHA (salicylic acid) from Willowbark to exfoliate the skin along with hyaluronic acid and honey as humectants to maintain hydration. From the description alone, this feels like it's right up my alley AND I WANT IT ON MY FACE.

Then I Met You Soothing Tea Cleansing Gel
If there's one product on this list that really contains so many of the skin care ingredients that I'm personally excited about, it's this one! This contains licorice root, rice ferment filtrate, centella asiatica, green tea, and PHA. I mean... I don't know if it's good - though I've heard good things - but with that ingredient deck, I'm definitely interested in getting my hands on this so I can slap it on my face and hope for magical cleansing goodness.

Glow Recipe Avocado Melt Retinol Sleeping Mask
Honestly, Glow Recipe is a brand that I've wanted to try for a while but haven't very much because of the hype. I know, that's a weird reason to avoid something, but it's a thing I do. Anyway, from the brand I'd say that this is the product that really stands out to me the most as something that I'd want to try out. One thing I found really interesting about this was the encapsulated retinol, which allows it to time release to be more gentle. It also contains avocado (obviously) to soothe and hydrate and PHA to provide gentle exfoliation. Very, very interested!


I can't even really say that I'm surprised by my own renewed interest in Asian skin care. A few years ago, I was really into Korean skin care but sort of fell off on that for a while. But since my focus has shifted so much back to skin care, I'm fully back on board and super interested in so many products from Korean and Japanese brands that have really unique formulations. I feel like Korean brands specifically tend to be really trendsetting, bringing out formulations featuring new and exciting ingredients that we won't see in Western formulations for at least a year or two.


heimish All Clean Balm
I'm basically a cleansing balm junkie at this point, if we're being honest. Seriously, I've basically transitioned away from cleansing oils entirely and I just use a balm every night to take off my makeup and SPF. From what I can tell, this one seems to have reached almost cult status, with people extolling on how gentle it is to skin while it basically blasts away even the most stubborn makeup. That's... exactly what I need. Seriously, I need to try this ASAP.

Laniege Cream Skin Refiner
If we're being totally honest, I wanted to try this even before I knew exactly what it was. But now that I've dug into it a little bit, I want to try it even more. Basically, from what I understand, this is a toner step with supercharged hydration as well as White Leaf Tea that's packed with amino acids. I love the idea of getting the hydration level of a cream in a lighweight, easily absorbed formula like this one. Seriously, I just want this on my face so bad! Also, this is actually available in a mist format, which is definitely very appealing to me.

Dear, Klairs Soft Airy UV Essence SPF50 PA++++
Because sunscreens are regulated differently in other countries than they are here in Canada and in the US, they are able to use different chemical filters. For a bunch of reasons, I've switched almost entirely to Asian sunscreens for my face on an every day basis and this one tops my list of ones I want to try. I've heard amazing things about both the effectiveness and the texture of this product and I'm itching to get my hands on it. I've used on Klairs product in the past - still use it often, actually - and I was really impressed with it, so I've got high hopes for this one.


Purito Centella Green Level Buffet Serum
Centella Asiatica is one of those ingredients that's popping up all over the place, most notably in all of those "cica creams", is one that has a good amount of science to back it up. It's a potent antioxidant and a great source of amino acids. This serum also contains niacinamide, collagen and ceramides. I've been in the market for some more really good antioxidant serums, particularly those with a solid INCI list and good reputation, and this one definitely ticks both of those boxes for me.

I'm From Rice Toner
Me and rice-as-skincare-ingredient are definitely having a moment, which is what drew me to this in the first place since it has 77.78% rice extract, but hearing about how incredibly hydrating it is definitely pushed it into the must try - especially for winter. More and more, as I'm sure you can tell from this list, I'm looking for lightweight hydration at every step of my routine so that I can avoid skewing towards the dry, unbalanced skin that tends to be the bane of my existence. Lightweight hydrating steps, for me, really help me maintain that balance and bounce in my skin without adding ingredients that lead to clogged pores. It's a delicate balance. Anyway,

From Nature Age Intense Treatment Essence
When it comes to fermented ingredients, I feel like Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate is the one that gets the most hype. There are a couple of studies to back up claims - or at least to give a good basis to continue to study its effects when used in skin care - and after having pretty amazing success with SKII, I really want to try out some lower cost options. On top of being 95.7% GFF, this product also contains niacinamide and sodium hyaluronate. I'm definitely going to pick this up, so look for it in probably a few months here on the blog!


I feel like the takeaway from this is probably that there are a lot of skin care ingredients that I'm super interested in at the moment and a lot of these products slot in here because of that. I'm so interested in the actual science of skin care and what ingredients really work best for my skin, so I'm all about experimenting for myself at the moment with things like fermented ingredients, green tea, PHAs, and centella asiatica. I love discovering gems that really do incredible things for my skin and I'm always up for trying out new, exciting ingredients with promise - and sometimes I get a little obsessed with them.

Anyway, thanks so much for reading and I'd love to hear about your own skin care wishlist or products you think I might want to check out in the comments!

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