J Beauty: A Beginner's Guide And Top J Beauty Products To Add To Your Routine

Skincare: A Japanese skincare routine emphasises on two key aspects: prevention over treatment and layering. Your AM and PM routines under the Japanese skincare regime would involve cleansers, toners, moisturisers, sunblock, and lotions, all one after the other. The key here is to let all the products coalesce and protect your skin, rather than treat it. 

Makeup: J Beauty for makeup focuses on 'barely there' makeup looks similar to a 'no makeup' makeup look. But since the country fights a lot of humidity, their makeup routines tend to be conservative, natural, and heavily focused on their base products (like powder foundations) rather than their add-ons (like slim eyeliner and rarely mascara). 

Commonly used ingredients: When opting for Japanese beauty products, you'll note that their emphasis on hydration and prevention comes to the forefront with the ingredients like rice essence, sake, matcha, cherry blossoms, hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, and ceramides. 

DHC is a cult favourite and is all the rage right now with good reason. The brand uses the concept of 'wabi sabi,' which aims to find beauty in imperfections and to make us feel comfortable in our skin. This particular cleansing oil has organic olive oil and other botanical ingredients that will not clog your pores! It blends with your skin to gently push out sebum, sunscreen, and makeup residue on your face while also hydrating your skin against radical damage. Use it as the first step of your skincare routine. 

Ingredients: Organic olive oil, rosemary leaf oil, vitamin E

Suitable for: All skin types, especially oily skin. 

LBB access deal: 5 users get a cleansing oil free! Register here. 

Inspired by the Japanese Hanbang rituals, Beauty Of Joseon's entire range of products blends centuries-old herbal traditions with skincare science. This refreshing cleanser is gentle on your skin and helps remove sebum and dirt. It is a pH-balanced cleanser that helps maintain the balance of moisture and nutrition in your skin. It has a gel formula that cleans the skin without stripping it of its moisture. 

Ingredients: Plum water, mung bean seed extract

Suitable for: All skin types, especially sensitive skin. 

Founded in 1872, Shiseido is the pioneer of Japanese Beauty, and no wonder it has been widely loved and added to so many people's skincare routines. Their Senka collagen cleanser foams like whipped cream (hence the name) and has a lightweight formula that helps remove dirt and sebum. Its silky essence and collagen help maintain skin elasticity and moisture. 

Ingredients: Lauric acid, glycerin, collagen. 

Suitable for: All skin types. 

Formed to Improve Longevity, Embrace Mindfulness (hence, the acronym), this Tokyo-based brand is looking to bring the goodness of Japanese rituals to our vanity. Ishvani Patel used her academic years in Tokyo to take skincare lessons, and hence, this brand was born, which now delivers authentic Japanese goodness everywhere. Their soothing toner, formulated with rice extract and rose stem cells, helps to prime the skin to absorb moisture and revive its tiring qualities. 

Ingredients: Fermented rice water extract, Alpine rose stem cells

Suitable for: Sensitive skin types. 

DHC's acne control lotion is a lightweight toner that gently soothes and hydrates the skin. It preps the skin to fight bacteria that cause acne. It has an alcohol-free formula, so rest assured, your skin will stay hydrated with no stickiness or inflammation. It also targets excess oil production to ensure you have a smooth texture. 

Ingredients: Salicylic acid, lemongrass, royal jelly extract, yogurt filtrate (whey)

Suitable for: Acne-prone skin

LBB access deal: 5 users get a cleansing oil free! Register here. 

Kanpeki is a homegrown skincare brand that uses Japanese traditions and natural ingredients to deliver quality products. This skin mist glides smoothly on the skin, helps to diminish fine lines, and completely hydrates the skin. It helps prevent fine lines, helps with whitening, and provides relief to tired skin. 

Ingredients: Aloe vera, Messua Ferea, honey

Suitable for: All skin types. 

Gaining the first mover advantage also means having to produce quality products so the niche is not maligned, and that's exactly what Shiseido did. Their brightening gel cream helps diminish dark spots, hydrates and brightens the skin, leaving it radiant and supple. It has ReNeura Technology+ that helps address skin receptivity to gradually increase and maintain the effectiveness of this treatment. It also helps with dryness and fine lines. 

Ingredients: Sakura bright complex, yoshino cherry extract, western hawthorn extract

Suitable for: All skin types

ClayCo is another homegrown skincare brand that uses Japanese formulations and ingredients. Their moisturiser has been a staple part of my routine for months now. Upon application, it blends quite easily with the skin and leaves it feeling super cool and hydrated. It helps boost collagen for a firmer texture and uses exosome technology, hyaluronic acid, and vitamin E for a radiant finish. 

Ingredients: Rice extract, ceramides, vitamin C, and E

Suitable for: All skin types

LBB access deal: Free detan rice pack with AHA BHA for 5 users. Register here! 

Another of my ClayCo favourites, this sunscreen is gel-based and provides broad-spectrum protection against UVA/UVB rays and blue light. It is water resistant and also works to hydrate and strengthen the skin barrier. It addresses hyperpigmentation and also helps with maintaining the skin's texture and radiance. Anti-ageing properties and skin repair? Check and check. 

Ingredients: Ginseng root extract, aloe vera leaf juice, rice extract, kelp extract

Suitable for: All skin types. 

LBB access deal: Free detan rice pack with AHA BHA for 5 users. Register here! 

LBB Tip: We also loved using their matcha enzyme scrub and mask, formulated from matcha leaf extract. 

Biore's sunscreen is touted for being the world's first sunscreen to use a micro-defense formula to address fine lines and uneven surfaces at a micro level. It has a subtle fragrance and is lightweight, suitable for use as a makeup base. It is also water resistant so no sweaty white residues. 

Ingredients: Gelarin water capsule, micro-defense capsule

Suitable for: All skin types

LBB access deal: 6 users get a free sunscreen. Register here! 

With formulations transported from the shores of Japan, this is the first brand to introduce India to veg collagen and lipsomal glutathione effervescent tablets that are four times more effective than the regular ones. INJA Wellness is touted for its collagen supplements that enhance both your beauty and wellness. It has 1.5x more skin absorption rate than other supplements and works to improve skin and hair health. 

Ingredients: Hydrolised marine collagen. 

Suitable for: Find the suitable collagen for you here. 

LBB access deal: 2 users get to win a Japanese collagen for free. Register here! 

Shiseido's sunscreen is special as it is formulated with Synschroshield that detects heat and water and strengthens its UV veil to act strongly. It also has a triple block formula that works to protect against wrinkles, dark spots, and dullness caused by UV rays. 

Ingredients: Synchroshield, emollient moisturising formula, profense CEL

Suitable for: All skin types. 

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