Eager to support sustainable beauty? In honor of Earth Day this month, we’ve rounded up tips for a more conscious cleansing routine. Here are 6 simple ways you can reduce your impact today. 1. Enzyme Powders Probably the most underrated exfoliators on the market, enzyme powders are dry cleansers that transform into a foam when mixed with water and applied to wet skin. The enzyme content you can find in products like KITAO Matcha + Chia Enzyme Powder allows them to buff away dead skin cells and impurities trapped in pores, to reveal a smooth soft glow. Since they’re devoid of any liquids, enzym ..read more

The zodiac is resetting this month! With spring in the air, it’s time for us to rethink our skincare routines. Not sure where to begin? Here’s some custom J-Beauty advice for every zodiac sign. Aries Fiery and impatient Aries may be eager to get her glow on this season, but she needs to hold off on aggressive quick-fixes! She wants results and wants it now, but harsh skin products such as abrasive scrubs means time wasted doing damage control later. Instead, Aries would benefit from gentler products, such as J-Beauty enzyme powders. Taurus Taurus loves 1. being in the know, and 2. indulging he ..read more

What is hatomugi? Known all over the world by many names including job’s tears, pearl barley, adlay millet, coix seed, and jali-jali, hatomugi extract is derived from a grain-bearing grass that is indigenous to tropical parts of Asia. The plant has long been a staple in Traditional Chinese Medicine to help invigorate the spleen, support the urinary tract, and cool the body. Today it’s mainly known as a popular health food across Asia, often found in soups, porridge, drinks, and desserts. (P.S. Hatomugi is gluten-free!) But there’s more. Let’s see why this little grain has been a favorite with ..read more

“Sustainable,” “Natural,” “Organic,” “Clean,” “Cruelty-free.” More and more beauty brands are finding ways to leave our planet a healthier and happier place. Where exactly do J-Beauty brands stand as we cruise into 2024, and what have they done to take action? Let’s look beyond the labels below. Sustainability  Sustainable can mean a lot of things, but includes product ingredients that were sourced sustainably, sourced ethically, minimize waste, and are proven to be safe for the environment. The definition extends to product packaging as well. Given the broad spectrum of sustainability, t ..read more

Spring is in the air, and after a full year spent cooped up indoors, the arrival of sunnier days could not be more welcome! But like all seasons, spring brings its own unique set of challenges for your skin. If you’re not yet getting that sun-kissed glow you’ve been eagerly anticipating, you might need to make a few tweaks in your daily ritual. Here are four simple ways to help keep your skin feeling healthy, fresh, and amazing all season. 1. Step up your SPF With the temptation to spend more time outdoors comes increased exposure to UV rays. Ideally you should always wear at least SPF 15 all ..read more

Dry, flaky and cracked skin? Irritation and redness? If this sounds like your list of annual winter skincare woes, you’re not alone. But you need not fear the cold season! With just a few tweaks in your skincare routine, you can spend less time worrying about your skin and more time enjoying all the beautiful things winter has to offer. Here are 5 simple yet effective Japanese-inspired skincare tips to get you on track this season. Winter Skincare Tip 1 : Exfoliate, but do it right In colder months, the skin gets dry quickly and tends to build up dead skin cells along the way. That said, there ..read more

Let’s play a game. You’re on a desert island and you can take only one treasured skincare item with you. Which do you choose? A. Cleanser B. Toner, Essence or Lotion C. Serum D. Cream Ok, so the title kind of gives it away, and it’s a really unfair question... but I’m willing to bet that your gut instinct was C or D! In the west, we place a high value on treatment heavy products like serums, masks, and night creams. But sometimes we write-off cleansing as a not-so-important step. Remember those Friday nights when we passed out, eye-makeup, contacts, and everything? In Japan, cleansing is cons ..read more

Ohh, #Suhada. Where do we even begin to explain this profound concept? “素” (“su”) meaning bare or uncovered, and “肌” (“hada”) meaning skin, roughly translated Suhada means one’s bare skin. But Suhada goes beyond skin-deep, no pun intended. Japanese people often use the word “Su” to describe something real. Such as “Su no Jibun”, my real, unmasked self, or “Sunao”, of unmasked character, one who wears her heart on her sleeve. In a world of social distancing, it may seem ironic to be talking about “unmasking” ourselves, but rest assured - keep your masks on! We’re talking about the inner unmaski ..read more

This month we’re celebrating International Women’s Day! We’re happy to say that when it comes to skincare, women have definitely come a long way. In this blast from the past, let’s look back at a few ways skincare has evolved over the years, and how J-Beauty has added to the conversation. We’re smarter with SPF, thanks to Japanese sunscreens In the early 2000s, wearing SPF daily to guard against skin damage would have been considered a well-kept secret in the U.S. If we take a look back at how Japan was doing back then, we see that Japanese women were already taking precautions against sun exp ..read more

Many people think the terms “Preventative” and “Anti-aging” mean the same thing; in fact, they are two very different concepts as far as skincare goes. Many women of a certain age—myself included—spent our teens, twenties, and thirties sleeping in our makeup, fluffing off sunscreen, staying up too late, and eating too many processed foods and too few healthy ones. Then the day comes when we find ourselves in a brightly-lit room with a mirror and are horrified to see the beginnings of tiny lines. Immediately we head to the department store, loading up with every skincare product that has “anti ..read more