My Favourite COSRX Products

CosRX One Step Pimple Clear Pad

AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner

AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid

I've been hearing a lot about effectiveness and affordability of COSRX products! So when I started having some skin troubles this summer, I decided to try these out...

COSRX One Step Pimple Clear Pad

Don't let the name fool you! This one isn't just for pimples. It has mild natural BHA that ever so gently exfoliates and smooths the skin. It perfectly preps the skin for better absorption of skin care products as well as giving ways to smoother application of makeup. And all without drying the skin!

This is definitely one of my favourite COSRX product! I can't say enough good things about it. I love the easy to use pads; it's slightly rougher on one side, so I use the rough side on areas where I have breakouts or need some exfoliation, and then go over the rest of the face (avoiding the eye area) with the smoother side. COSRX recommends using these pads up to three times a day or once a day if you have dry skin. Typically, I use these once at night, and then sometimes also in mornings if I haven't recently used other exfoliating/peeling products. 

These pads are so much more than your typical acne treating pads from Clearasil or the infamous OXY pads that I used as a teenager. Whereas those pads dried out pimples as well as anywhere else on the skin it grazed, COSRX One Step Pimple Clear Pad slightly treats and significantly soothes breakout areas. My skin not only feels smoother with calmed breakouts, but also gets that youthful dewy glow! Mind you, a part of achieving that youthful dewy glow comes from using good skin care products after using the pads, but use of the One Step Pimple Clear Pad plays an essential role. I started seeing noticeable improvements after after three to four days. I also noticed that after using these pads nightly for two weeks, my pores appeared slightly less visible. 

Ingredients: Salix Alba(Willow) Bark Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Betaine Salicylate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Panthenol, Allantoin, Arginine, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Sodium Hyaluronate,Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil,Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Leaf Oil , Ethyl Hexanediol, Sodium Hydroxide

COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner

This product reminds me of SKII Facial Treatment Clear Lotion but a fraction of the cost. COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner is a gentle toner with natural AHA and BHA that helps to prep the skin for better absorption of products applied after. And it also helps to prevent future skin troubles. It didn't do much for resolving current skin troubles but after using this daily, morning and night, for 2-3 weeks, I was getting less breakouts and my skin appeared better hydrated (probably due to the fact that this product upped the efficiency of other products that followed).  

I love that this product comes in a spray bottle but I hardly ever spray it directly on the face. I know when we see a spray bottled product, our instinct tells us to just spray it on the skin. But, as I learned years ago when I was using Dior Airflash Spray Foundation, some products that come in spray bottles work better NOT sprayed directly on the skin, but rather, on a cotton pad (or a makeup sponge for that Dior spray foundie). The spray nozzle simply allows the products' tiny particles to be evenly dispersed on the cotton pad more so than spraying it directly on the face. And using the product on a cotton pad also aids gentle exfoliation, and allows it to pick up of residue and/or debris that are impossible to detect with naked eyes. Oh, and for that Dior spray foundie; using a sponge gives more even and blendable application. 

COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner may not do amazing things for the skin just in few days, but it's a wonderful daily toner that can play a crucial role in everyday skin care routine. And it's so easy to use! I've already recommended this to close friends and bought a second one for myself.

Ingredients: Mineral Water, Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Water, Pyrus Malus (Apple) Fruit Water, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium Lactate, Glycolic Acid, Water, Betaine Salicylate, Allantoin, Panthenol, Ethyl Hexanediol

COSRX AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid

This is the product I was most excited about! COSRX AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid is a natural AHA and glycolic acid product that not only treats whiteheads, but also helps to reduce other breakouts, and achieves overall smoother skin texture. 

COSRX AHA Whitehead Power Liquid has 7% glycolic acid and is gentler than Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 8% AHA Gel which I had horrible initial experiences with in the past. But even this one, I had to approach with caution. I started using this at nights just once a week to once every six days to eventually once every three days. And for the first four weeks I applied this on clean face and washed it off after 5-10 minutes (as recommended by COSRX).

I didn't find this to particularity help reduce whiteheads or breakouts until I started leaving it on overnight. But, my baby steps into full dosage of this product was still necessary because of my sensitive skin. My experience with Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 8% AHA Gel few years ago taught me this! Using a full dosage of product like this daily or every other day right from the get-go (especially for sensitive skin) defeats the purpose of using such products. The irritations and skin sensitivity even made my trusted gentle skin care products (especially UV products) intolerable. That was a crazy lesson learned, and my skin paid for it. However, when used correctly, AHA products can do wonders for the skin; youthful glowing skin with significantly less breakouts! But remember, patience is a virtue!  I find COSRX AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid to be one of the most gentle (when used correctly) and effective AHA peel product I've tried so far.  To me, this product is more so an once a week exfoliating/peel product that helps to improve texture and overall appearance of skin than a product that treats whiteheads.

Ingredients: Pyrus Malus (Apple) Fruit Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycolic Acid, Water, Niacinamide, Sodium Hydroxide, 1,2-Hexanediol, Panthenol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Xanthan Gum, Ethyl Hexanediol

I would recommend the One Step Pimple Clear Pad to someone that wants an easy to use quick product. The AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner would be great for those of you that love SKII Facial Treatment Clear Lotion and/or want a good solid daily toner for maintenance. And, if you are seriously committed to improving your skin texture and tone, and ready to be patient, definitely try out the AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid.

To buy these products online:
COSRX One Step Pimple Clear Pad
COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner
COSRX AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid


♡
Lisa