Skin Care

Cleansers, toners, serums and sheet masks:

sort themselves by the step of the routine they belong to. Cleansers come as gels and foams for the morning, and as oils and balms that lift off sunscreen and make-up first in the Korean double cleanse. Toners and essences are thin waters patted on after washing, and the cotton pads soaked in them come stacked in a tub. Serums and ampoules are the small dropper bottles carrying whatever ingredient the routine is built around. Moisturisers run from light gel creams to thick night creams, eye cream included. Masks are single-use sheets in a foil pouch, or clay and overnight types in a tube or jar. Daily sunscreen and self-tanner have their own place under sunscreen and self-tanners, the big pump bottles for arms and legs are under body creams and lotions, and Korean cushion compacts and BB creams, which tint as much as they treat, belong with make-up.

Gel cream or night cream, pump or jar:

most boxes say which skin they were made for, oily, dry, combination or sensitive, and buying to that label and to a texture you like matters more than copying someone else’s full routine. Light gels and watery essences sit better on skin that shines by midday; rich creams and balms suit skin that feels tight after washing. Packaging decides how well a product keeps once it is open. An airless pump or a tube keeps air and fingers out, while a jar is opened and dipped into every day, so a jar is worth taking from someone else only with its seal intact. Any opened container is worth far less than a sealed one, because nobody can see what has reached the contents.

Full-size Korean serums and boxed trial kits:

a full-size Korean serum costs around Q250 to Q350 new in Guatemala, while a boxed trial kit of minis from the same kind of line often costs the same or less than that one bottle. The kit is the cheaper way to find out whether a line suits your skin before paying for the full size. A sealed serum well inside its date can go for a modest discount on the shelf price, which is enough for a buyer who already knows the line to make the trip.

Korean date lines, dried-out sheet masks and copied creams:

Korean boxes print the date year first, and the one that shows may be the manufacture date rather than a use-by. The two are marked with different Korean words, so a translation app pointed at the label settles which one you are looking at. A box with only a manufacture date should be judged by how long it has sat since. A sheet mask pouch should feel wet and squash between your fingers; one that feels papery has dried out. A serum that has darkened, separated or started to smell sharp has turned, sealed or not. Copies of the best-known creams and sheet masks do reach Guatemala, so be wary of a price that does not square with what the K-beauty counters charge, printing that is fuzzy or a shade off from the brand’s own photos, and a texture or smell that is not the one you remember.

A spare serum from a routine that got shorter:

photograph the date line on the bottle or tube itself, close enough that the characters read, and the seal or shrink wrap from a second angle. List sealed pieces on their own and say plainly if anything has been opened. Mention where it came from, a K-beauty counter here, a trial kit or an order from Korea, because buyers have learned to ask about copies. Someone coming in from Malacatán or Coatepeque for a sealed serum will want to read that date with their own phone before agreeing to take it, so have the bottle out of the box and turned to the label when they arrive.