The Power of Time – What Are The Top Korean Beauty Overnight Treatments – How To Wake Up With Radiance
How Important is Nighttime Skincare?
Having a good routine each night is an important way to sleep well, deeper and ensure you wake up feeling great. Where a morning routine gets you ready for the day – a nighttime routine helps you unwind. If you are looking to use active ingredients to benefit your skin (i.e. retinol, ginseng, glycolic acid), using them at night gives much more un-interrupted time for them to work.
It is important to (1) Have a good cleanser before bed and (2) Ensure your skin is well hydrated.
Is my Skin Dehydrated?
It is also important to note that your skin might be ‘dehydrated’ - meaning you are not drinking enough water in the winter. This is skin that looks dull or feels tight/itchy. You can test this out by pinching the skin on the back of your hand and holding it for a few moments.
When releasing it, if your skin holds its place for a short moment, this means your skin is dehydrated. Remedy this by ensuring you are drinking enough water but also look for products with hydrating nutrients to bounce back (i.e. aloe, hyaluronic acid).
This non-greasy, herbal remedy (heralded in Korean skincare) provides a deep hydration to even the dryest skin. Packed with hydrating glycerin, sunflower oil, panthenol and even more (macadamia, oats, raspberry, flowers, vitamin C, lime, rosemary oils, orange peel)! This nourishing mask is packed with brightening niacinamide and combats dryness with soothing panthenol and oat extract. It’s very lightweight and breathable, which is important for a calming night mask, and has been able to combat dermatitis and flaking skin. Its goal is a morning glow of mythos – and is designed to ‘stand guard’ whilst you sleep (hence the title of Knight).
It definitely makes the list of wonderful night treatments, best for dry or sensitive skin types (might cause breakouts in oily skin types). It is also quite expensive compared to other options – but if you are willing to spend more and are struggling with dull, dry skin – it is very much worth it.
7. Mary & May Calendula Peptide Ageless Sleeping Mask
This gel mask is a vegan, lightweight concoction that is designed to soothe irritated skin and deeply hydrate with hyaluronic acid. Its namesake, Calendula, is a medicinal herb that is anti-inflammatory and promotes wound healing and soothers hyperpigmentation and acne. Combined with chamomile extract, centella asciatica extract and other herbal remedies (i.e. fig, mushroom, marigold), this mask provides a complex, calming treatment.
It helps soothe acne, balance sebum on the face and leads to very soft, bright skin on waking. It’s safe for sensitive and irritated skin and provides long-term hydration that continues throughout the day. There is a low risk of an acne outbreak when using too much product before bed – and some prefer to use it as a wash off mask instead to avoid this.
6. Apieu Madecassoside Sleeping Mask
Using the power of rejuvenating madecassoside extract, this mask is a lightweight protector of the skin barrier. It inhibits melanin production in skin, reducing hyperpigmentation and targets rough skin to soften and soothe. This sleeping mask soothes wrinkles, brightens skin overnight and contains deeply soothing ceramides to provide lasting hydration.
It provides anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties through beeswax and centella asciatica. It’s melded together with shea butter and jojoba seed oil to revive rough skin. Unfortunately, if you are acne-prone or have oily skin this mask may not suit as well – as both shea butter and beeswax can block pores and trigger acne. If you have dryer skin with fine lines or hyperpigmentation – this cream deeply replenishes nutrients and provides a barrier to protect your skin overnight.
5. Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum: Ginseng and Retinal
This is an eye cream, but it can be used wherever you have fine lines. If you are looking for a soothing treatment for fine lines or dark circles – this cannot be beaten. It contains 10% ginseng root and a carefully formulated 2% retinal to turn back time and heal UV damaged skin. It’s also packed with niacinamide and Vitamin E to bring back a radiant glow and protect against future UV damage.
In no time, you’ll notice a great improvement to your eyes and general skin tone and not just that, but retinol can refresh acne scars. It contains no common irritants, is deeply soothing and once people start, they often can’t stop using it!
4. Medicube Collagen Night Wrapping Mask
This carefully formulated cream by Medicube is packed with hydrolyzed collagen, ready to boost and plump your skin overnight. It’s formulated to dry within 15 minutes of application, and the outer edge hardens to seal in the nutrients to your skin. This formula is designed to absorb deeply and remodel skin to soothe wrinkles, improve elasticity and bounce of skin and reduce remnants of damaged skin.
Within a few uses, people are ecstatic to report glowy, softer skin and their cheeks feeling plumper and firmer. It became TikTok famous from the effortless peels by many influencers – and it stays in place all night to bring you the perfect radiance in the morning. It does not top the list, despite its glowing reviews, as it does have a limited amount in the bottle (some users only get 3-4 uses out of it) which can conflict with the cost. But if you are looking to treat yourself and refresh your skin – this mask is safe for sensitive skin, has low acne potential and it is quite fun to use!
3. Cosrx Ultimate Nourishing Rice Overnight Mask
This mask is 68% rice extract and is designed to deeply hydrate, repair the skin barrier and whiten. With all-natural peptides and niacinamide, this mask seals moisture against the face overnight to wake with soft, youthful skin. It helps clear redness, hydrate and reduce pores – and you wake up feeling like you’ve just had a great spa treatment.
It’s a beautiful addition to a skincare routine in winter, with a cooling, non-scented rice coating that will balance sebum in oily skin and gently hydrate dry skin. As with a few of these other products, there is acne potential (which is just very common when you occlude the pores in your face) - but if you are not acne-prone, it is a very affordable, delightful at-home spa experience.
2. Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream
With natural Korean ginseng to restore skin’s youthful glow and heal, coupled with japonica root extract to revive skin cells with powerful antioxidants. It deeply nourishes with glycerin, hyaluronic acid and ceramide to provide soft, plump skin and sparkles with niacinamide and cacao seed extract. It comes with a soft, floral scent and absorbs instantly to provide a deep, lasting glow.
For any kind of dryness, you encounter or any fine lines you wish to eradicate – this cream quickly becomes the ultimate nighttime cream. Again, acne-prone or oily skin types are a bit out of luck with this cream – but for normal, dry or combination skin (with well-controlled oily zones), this provides the only hydration you will ever want again. Beauty of Joseon makes wonderfully balanced, traditional Korean skincare – and this product is the jewel in their crown.
1. Skin1004 Madagascar Centella Probio-Cica Cream
Throughout this whole list, if you suffer from acne-prone or sensitive skin – you may have been a little perturbed at how many of these creams are not available to you. But fear not, we were simply saving the best for last! This is a cream that will meet all your skin barrier needs and more! Containing probiotics to combat harmful bacteria and repairing moringa oil which treats fine lines, acne, hyperpigmentation and skin infections. Paired with hydrating macadamia oils and ceramide - this cream provides all the factors required to soothe, moisturize and heal a sensitive, inflamed skin barrier.
Within a few uses, skin appears calmer, fine lines smoother, and the centella asciatica extract repairs acne. If you are looking for a perfect cream to help clear your acne and also moisturize whilst you sleep – this is the one. It is an incredibly gentle acne treatment that provides everything your skin needs to calm, repair and glow.
Why do night creams cause breakouts?
For acne prone skin, it's important that pores are open and able to push sebum and debris to the surface of skin. If you add a larger molecule to your skin (think lanolin, shea butter), it can block your pores completely, trapping oils under the skin which triggers acne formation. If you do struggle with acne, it’s vital to ensure you moisturize with acne-friendly creams and that you don’t over-moisturize!
How much moisturizer should I use?
It’s important to ensure your face is soft and moisturized – but it's possible to overdo it! If you are seeing irritation on your face after use, oilier skin or your skin is feeling dryer, you are likely using too much cream! Start with the size of a nickel on your palm and add to your face until absorbed. This is typically enough for a standard moisturizer - only add more if your skin is feeling tight or dry.
How do I stop face cream getting on my pillow?
It’s incredibly annoying to put on a lovely face mask, only to spread it all over your pillow case in the night. Try using slightly less cream and pat onto skin, instead of rubbing to increase absorption. If your face is still sticky at bedtime, try moving your nighttime routine earlier in the day (6-7pm) to give the cream a few hours to dry.
