Home › Guides
Guides
Korean and Japanese beauty, explained
How to read the labels, what the ingredients do, which sunscreen to pick, where to buy, and a routine that is five steps instead of ten. Written by the Dew Select editors from the same catalogue the shop runs on.
How to read a Korean skincare label
The forty words that appear on almost every Korean box, what they mean, and the three claims Korea regulates so you know which ones are real.
Korean sunscreen, explained: SPF, PA++++ and the five textures
Why the sunscreen aisle is where Korean and Japanese beauty is furthest ahead, what the plus signs mean, and how to pick between a cream, a gel, a serum, a stick and a cushion.
The Korean sunscreen in US stores is not the one everyone loves
Beauty of Joseon, Round Lab and Skin1004 all sell a different formula in the United States, with the filters the FDA allowed in 1999. Why it happened, how to tell the two apart on the box, and where the real one still ships from.
Your first Korean skincare routine: five steps, not ten
The ten-step routine was a marketing story. Here is the one people in Seoul actually do, which products go where, and what to add only when you want to.
J-beauty decoded: how to read a Japanese skincare label
Japanese skincare uses different words, different textures and a different philosophy from Korean. The vocabulary, the drugstore icons, and why "lotion" does not mean lotion.
The K-beauty ingredient glossary: centella to PDRN
Sixteen ingredients that carry Korean skincare, what each one does, who it suits, and the product that made it famous.
Toner pads: what they are and how to use them
The Korean product that does not exist in Western skincare. Hydrating pads, exfoliating pads, the five-minute mask trick, and which ones are worth it.
Where to buy Korean beauty in the US: every retailer compared
YesStyle, Olive Young, Stylevana, Jolse, Soko Glam, Amazon and iHerb ship K-beauty to the United States. Who is cheapest, who is fastest, who to trust, and how this site compares them for you.
Korean vs Japanese beauty: what is actually different
Same continent, opposite instincts. How K-beauty and J-beauty differ in philosophy, texture, price and packaging, and how to mix the best of each.