This is mostly unrelated but I wanted to update you what I have noticed about Chinese skincare now that I’ve been in China for a bit. From what I can tell, it’s a bit of a mix between J-beauty, K-beauty, and a little bit of American skincare. They’re less afraid of using actives similarly to Japanese and American skincare. The percentage of actives they use is on par if not higher than American ones. They’re not as bought into “clean” beauty and stuff which is similar to Japan. China also has a love for traditional herbal medicine inspired skincare like Korea does. It’s very much a pride in culture thing and a revived interest in TCM health culture from the younger generation. In advertising, it’s all about the instant moisture your skin can get and results you can expect in as little as 5 minutes and up to 7 days.
Thank you so much for the update!! That’s so fascinating; the actives situation sounds very different from Korea. Those are the kinds of details where I think government regulations make the biggest impact! And it sounds so nice to have a break from clean beauty 🤐🤣
@@AliceintheRabbitHole I’m just so amused by the advertisement that’s like “56% increase in moisture after 5 minutes” or “30% decrease in (pimple) redness in 5 minutes. 70% in one hour.” It honestly works so well on me. I want to buy aaaaalllll. I saw a brand that had a serum with 20% azelaic acid and 5% niacinamide. I am stocking up on those before leaving.
Last winter I tried slugging with Cerave ointment, just the undereye area, because it can get sooo dry. Well, turns out for me, slugging was an express ticket to the land of milia. Experiment over. BUT, my skin loves facial oil, so I use that as an extra layer in winter. I've come to the conclusion I can get rid of extra skincare steps by returning to the tropics from whence I came.
It really is true that a lot of perfecting our own routine is trial and error. Really wish we could bypass the “error” part of that 😭 Glad you figured out what works for you!
Walgreens has been selling its own brand name hypochlorous acid for years. It's in the band-aid aisle. It's unfortunate to me that they've taken it and put an expensive brand name on it and use that to sell it at $17 and more.
Re: Slugging Over Retinoids I can’t speak to everyone’s experience, but I use a dimethicone-based ointment over retinoids, and save the petrolatum ones for when I’m taking retinoid breaks. The one I use is the Aveeno Baby Eczema Therapy Ointment. It’s a colloidal oatmeal skin protectant with a dimethicone-ointment texture.
hey alice prequel has been one of the most exciting and "hyped" (well deserved) brand launches for me in the last few years im really happy for Sam and all of its and hers success! I love everything i have tried which includes the mist and the barrier cream i can't wait to try more and im so excited for future launches/ products. also totally agree with what you said she could be charring way more but it seems like its more important to her to make great "affordable" skincare for everyone then a fast cash grab!
I use the gleanser as a second cleanse putting like half to three quarters of a pump of the gleanser on my hands while both my hands and face are dry and rub it together quickly and it turns into a stringy, creamy, thick, hydrating lather/mask almost? I then massage it onto my face while both are still dry then add the TINIEST bit, like a few drops of water (I just wet a few fingers the shake the excess off) and massage it a tiny bit more then let it sit for 1 to 3 minutes and wrinse it off, it’s become one of my favorite cleansers for second cleanse, body cleanse, and for a quick morning cleanse!
The Prequel ointment is an underrated product! It’s such a texturally elegant ointment. If you want an ointment but don’t like the thickness of Aquaphor or Vaseline, you’ll love this. Edit to add: The Prequel Vit C doesn’t smell to my nose and I’m sensitive to scents. I’ve most recently been using Timeless for the last few years.
Alice, to be honest there are many gentle cleansers that I can choose from Avene or La Roche Posay that I think will give me the same experience as the Glenser, regarding the other products I think I can choose several Korean products that offer me the same, but those Prequel products are aimed directly at American buyers. Another thing, I find that the idea of mixing a very light cream with a product like aquaphor is an excellent idea. A big hug from Chile and I hope you have a great week 😘
Most definitely. I am glad that i was able to get the “answer” as to whether this was a complete overhaul in terms of cleansing. It wasn’t, but it still is a nice option (as are the cleansers you mention ☺️)
I was impressed by Prequel. I think the price point is great. And the customer service proved to be amazing- the pump on my Gleanser came apart and I couldn’t get it back together. I emailed them, and they answered same day and sent me a new pump 😮 (for a smaller brand, I thought this was mind blowing 🤯)
I have tried 3 products from Prequel: the barrier cream-I find it similar to the First Aid cream that is so popular but the Prequel soaks in better without any residue. I recently got a second tube. I just got the urea milk moisturizer so far so good. Also fast absorbing and non irritating. Also got the barrier ointment. More lightweight than Cerave or Aquaphor ointment. I use both interchangeably. Thank you for this review!
I absolutely LOVE Experiment’s “Alien Mask” and was thrilled when they were finally available in Canada. Re slugging over Retinoids - I do it over my Retin A all the time and love the results. The only problem is that my skin feels so smooth that I don’t want to wash it!😂
Absolutely love the Gleanser. I have not tried Tower 28 but did buy Prequel’s Universal Skin Solution hypochlorous acid spray, which I use at the gym and I notice I do not break out as much
I’m also using and loving the gleanser for my body. It’s good for the face but my Hero Cosmetics Milky Cleanser is still my holy grail (I really think you’d like it too
That cleanser has been in my Ulta loves list for soooo long! It does sound up my alley indeed Hmm. I need to try your method on my own nails. It’s so hard to grow them out! 😢
when it comes to body wash I love the olay collagen peptide body wash or the olay retinol body wash. They feel nourishing and leave my skin so soft even after rinsing. plus they use coacervation so i know that the retinol is actually getting on my skin
I LOVE hypochlorous acid. It has definitely helped my occasional breakout and my facial eczema. I was already intrigued by the gleanser so I’ll definitely have to try them both.
@@AliceintheRabbitHoleoh yes, you spoke the truth when you said Americans are allergic to paying for shipping. Even if shipping is only $5 and I end up spending an extra $15+ for the extra items. 🤷🏻😅😂
I love Prequel products. The Gleanser is a must have for me. I, unfortunately, irritated the skin on my neck with too strong of a retinol and the hypochlorous spray and ointment settled my skin down nicely. I love the urea lotion so much. Price point is great too.
The gleanser took about a week for me to really notice a difference. My skin truly started feeling sooo much healthier. I use it as a body wash and have extremely reactive skin and over time the gleanser healed my skin
Most of the Prequel items are back instock I was just looking at the sight and put the cleanser the barrier cream and the urea lotion in my cart 58$ for 3 huge products is unheard of lol 😂 I bet my mom would love that cleanser as a body wash she is super sensitive ever sense she had those cancer treatments a few years ago . Probably should pick her up one too.
I’m so happy to hear your thoughts about prequel! I’ve definitely been wanting to try that brand! Most likely the cleanser and lotion with urea. I was tempted by the slugging thing, but I’ve had pretty good luck with Cerave healing ointment! I tried experiment last year. I also got the bundle deal with the mask - can confirm that is the best mask EVER! I didn’t re-purchase the products, but I did really like them!
I have the Gleanser on order right now as I've been super curious to try it and like you, I have dry skin. I'm also 56 and living in Alaska (our low temp for Friday is gonna be -29°) so think long periods of super cold, dry conditions. I SERIOUSLY LAYER on multiple hydrating products starting from toners/essences to serums to gel creams and finally thick, rich creams. Like you, I am also not a fan of super foamy cleansers. The creamier and more slippery it feels as it's gliding across my face, the happier I am and the less stripped my skin feels (great example of this style cleanser is Stratia's Velvet Cleansing Milk or Aveeno's Calm and Restore Oat Cleanser) afterward. I'm thinking of trying the Isntree Yam Root Cleanser as well. I also use AHA/PHA cleansers generally at night.
Surprised that you didnt try the barrier therapy by Prequel. I received it, the spf, gleanser, and the hypochlorus spray and i think the gleanser is the standout for me. The spf is very lightweight for a mineral sunscreen and it's the perfect tint for my light/pale skin.
has anybody mentioned how the gleanser formula looks a lot like naturium’s glow getter body wash? also 50% glycerin, also owned by the parent company of prequel, the center brands. i’ve never seen anybody talk about that!
I've tried both and have had both during the same period and they don't feel anything alike. The Naturium one feels more "oily" (as it does contain a lot of oils as well) and it's not stringy/mucin feeling. I don't actually love the Gleanser as a body wash since I find it hard to use with an African net because of the texture but the Glow Getter is fine. Really the only similar is the glycerin, the rest of the inci is different
@@ceciliagovea i’ll probably stick with the naturium then, i love the sensation as it is on face and body and i do like the inclusion of oils as well. i do still suspect they used the glow getter formula as a starting point for this product though lol
Ok so I use both! I use Naturium as a shave oil and the cleanser as a body wash. I have extremely irritated dry skin and omg after three days my skin feels so healthy. I think they are both similar but the Naturium has better slip and feel but the gleanser actually feels to repair my skin
Ok note to self is get Brianna, oldest daughter to buy the excema relief stuff for her BF . And she might do well with prequel in shower . Elissa uses all that bath and body works smelly stuff lol. I use Olay and Molton Brown
I have tried the urea moisturizing milk. I absolutely love it. Leaves my skin feeling hydrated. I also have the vitamin c. While I don’t know if this will show results I have not used it that long it feels nice. Though it smells like hotdogs. But I guess that’s how you can tell they don’t put any added fragrance in their formulas. I think I’m going to like it. I also have the gleanser which I love. I also bought and tried the skin protectant utility gel. I don’t have oily skin but this felt great on my dry skin even though it’s geared more toward oily skin. I absolutely love love it. It left my skin feel so hydrated smooth and soft.
I've been trying the Urea Advanced Relief and I think 10% Urea might be too much for my face. 5% is kind of the sweet spot for me. It's fantastic as a body moisturizer though!
See thank you for sharing because I admit, I kind of wondered that as well! It might be getting into exfoliation territory for some of us, probably depends on skin sensitivity as well
Skinsmart has hypochlorous spray products at 8 ounces for around $18. It'll be interesting to see how Prequel progresses and if the price points will stay affordable.
Yeah, there are less expensive options for sure! Tbh I’m thinking Prequel will keep growing as the price point is great and the selection covers a lot of what people are looking for. I could see them eventually coming to Target or Ulta (yes I DO want to use $3.50 off $15 and get points lol)
Sometimes we get so much caught in trend that we forget that no product can drastically rock our world, thank you so much Alice to remind me this ʕっ•ᴥ•ʔっ I was so hyped for these products but I realized that I probably already have something similar and just because it's trendy it doesn't mean it's necessary
Would you like to get the Hypochlorous acid at a better deal? Dr Dray has talked about SkinSmart for years. There are several _blank_Smart items in their lineup (cleansmart, etc) and they're marketed different ways (baby, eczema, pets, wound, rashes and hives, foot) but it's all the same as far as I can tell. Find the one with the spray style and size you like and get it for (as low as .36/oz if you get the nursery cleaning 23fl oz bottles or) around 2 dollars per ounce rather than Prequel's 4.25 or 7 for Tower 28.
The L-AA serum is EXTREMELY nice and I've used the Paula's Choice 15%, Timeless 10%, G&G 15%, and the is Clinical Healing Serum (probably 15% LAA). I think going forward I'll be picking up her L-AA because it just offers a bit more moisture and glow than other brands. I'm so excited to see you try both of these brands! I remember recommending you Experiment sometime last year. Happy you finally got a chance to try it!
@@AliceintheRabbitHole So it is still quite watery but it isn’t like the G&G 15, which sinks in and leaves virtually no residue on my skin, like water, but it isn’t quite like any milky toner I’ve used (I’ve used predominantly Hada Labo milky toners for context). It is more akin to the Paula’s Choice or the isClinical, where it has some of those extra ingredients for hydration that leave a slight tackiness over the skin. I do use two pumps (the packaging is heavy, completely opaque, and IN A PUMP instead of a dropper btw!) over my face and neck, sometimes three, and it feels like it has something in it that just adds some oomph. Maybe ergothioneine or inulin. I’m not sure since I’m less familiar with those ingredients as a whole. It’s not a revolutionary texture but I do think the ingredient story plays well with my skin. I’m dry/acne prone and rosacean. AFAIK Dr Sam Ellis also has rosacea so it might make sense that her line would be tailored for reactive skin.
I'm so glad you reviewed Prequel before I tried it! Because I'm just gonna admit it, I've been totally hyped by the hype 😂 Yk, like you said, the claims of "best cleanser I've ever used!" "Makes me look forward to washing my face!" and so on. I still am going to order the Gleanser as soon as I can, but now I know to manage my expectations lol. I also would love to try the Skin Utility Ointment, the barrier cream and the Vitamin C serum.
Yup you get it!! And I gotta admit…cleansing IS the step that I don’t always look forward to 🤐 Love serums, moisturizer, essence, but cleansing? Idk, still not my favorite. Maybe because sometimes the water is cold 🙈
I love the cleanser from prequel but I prefer the regimen labs tabula rasa cleanser. Even tho it has less glycerin in it it is far more hydrating due to other ingredients.
Neither are available in the UK fortunately, but interesting to watch your review of them. I usually don't buy influencer brands like Prequel, but I do love Naturium as that brand has amazing products.
I found that prequel gleanser for me dries my face a bit, but I will say I didn’t notice it at first but a couple days after. For me it also made my oily skin less oily which is kind of crazy because no other cleanser has done that. I think for summer it will be great. It’s winter here right now & dry and snowing where I live. But I do wonder if I’m using it wrong somehow because I do like that it foams.
As someone who easily gets milia and clogged pores slugging has never worked for me. But i’ve been using the Buffer Jelly for a month and no clogged pores or milia for me, WOOHOO! 🎉
Hi Alice. I may try out the Prequel urea milk moisturizer as a alternative to my urea product source but other products in Prequel I may not try out since I do have a cleanser from Niod that is still serving me in terms of no foam cleanser. Prequel vitamin C serum and Experiment small line of products I will intend to skip since I am using retinal cream and I prefer no silicone mask that may further infiltrate the skin dermis too much. 😊 The sunscreen from Prequel has zinc oxide and trying to avoid more white cast, I will stick with J and K beauty sunscreen...
Alice, I agree with you that this winter has been very cold, but I had to laugh a bit thinking about the fact that you live in Florida. At least you don't have to experience the bitter cold in the Midwest 😅 Let me tell, I've been moisturizing my whole body on a daily basis to prevent crocodile skin.
Right lol! I’m aware of it, and yet I can’t stop myself from physically shivering when the temperature drops below 60F (full-body shivers!! I don’t think I’d survive the Midwest LOL)
I finally got my dry hands one the urea face and body lotion. I love it!! My hands and body are drier than my face. Lightly scented but moisturizing. I put the barrier ointment and the lotion on my hubby's dried, cracked hands. He likes it.
Strange, I wonder if hypochlorous acid is known here in Europe?... I haven't heard anyone talking about it.... Urea is more common ingredient in body lotions.Eucerin , at least in Europe, includes it in many of their products. Currently, I ordered a glycerine serum from the brand Transparancy to check this ingredient more on its own???... As always Alice, loving and enjoying your channel 😊
It’s definitely an ingredient that I haven’t seen in K/J-Beauty, and given those are popular worldwide, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s part of the story! Oh how I’d love to see some of those brands discover it though…
I use an inexpensive hypochlorous acid that I purchased on Amazon and it is wonderful for the eczema that I inevitably end up getting on my neck and/or chest in the winter. I top that with the Tasha indigo, silk overnight, whatever the heck the rest of the name is, and the eczema cream from DermaE. My eczema is usually gone within days. (I treat it very early though. As soon as I feel a tingle on my skin, I know it’s going to happen and I start using the products.)
I need to suck it up and try an inexpensive option from Amazon (I don’t really like Jeffrey Bezos and it truly does stop me from…saving money at times. Wish there was an alternative to shopping there augh) Thanks for sharing!
Hello :3 Lately I've been wondering if there is a difference between the full size official sulwhasoo/whoo products vs mini samples you can get from asiaholic or testerkorea etc :3 Would you consider to make a vid about it? :O There's literally no videos talking about this topic, only anecdotal evidence from reddit :> I think it's a very iportant question for every hanbang enjoyer >:O
@@AliceintheRabbitHole yeah it's more about taking popular sources/sellers like testerkorea or asiaholic and putting their stuff against the real deal, to make sure that there is absolutely no difference and the stuff is legit :3 I've read so many different answers and not sure whom to believe at this point :c But funny enough, according to my little research there were much more difference between US Sulwhasoo and KR Sulwhasoo, than between korean testers and korean full-sizes :> guess im much more worried about buying fakes hehe :>
Oh I see. Well, legit samples shouldn’t be different BUT you might run into different versions (Sulwhasoo is on, what, version 6 of the FCAS?) and it’s worth noting that due to regulations, the US and the Korean ingredients lists often vary. Little things like how the U.S. doesn’t permit “ginseng extract”, instead it must be listed as (example) water, ginseng extract, phenoxyethanol (meaning the full extract has to be listed, humectants, preservatives, etc). To my knowledge, the formulas are the same though as all the ingredients are permitted in both countries. Hope that helps!
Prequel has a cream as well. Its pretty nice. I love Experiment's super saturated. I am on my 2nd bottle. If my skin is irritated it is in my reset routine and at other times I like to mix it with other serums. Buffer jelly is ok. I like hypochlorous acid because it helps with Blepharitis and rosacea irritation. I also use it on my son if he is rashy. I just buy the skinsmart brand though. I don't see a reason to spend more.
Thanks for sharing! Do you mix products into it or just apply afterwards? I realized in reading your comment that I never once tried mixing it, always put it on top. It probably does mix nicely though!
@@AliceintheRabbitHole I will just mix super saturated together in my hand, usually with another serum. I haven't had any issues mixing it with anything.
I wasn’t wowed by the Prequel cleanser. I don’t think it’s like Fresh at all tho. I prefer the Fresh texture. I’m glad it’s inexpensive and huge but idk…. let me try it as a body cleanser.
Appreciated your honest thoughts. Prequel also has a barrier therapy cream. Any feedback on that ? I use 20% l-ascorbic acid from timeless. Never had an odor problem. 😅
I truly have no idea how I missed that one! I know I skipped over it in shopping because I have similar products, but it does sound like a nice calming/restorative moisturizer. And once again, a very generous size!
I love your commitment to experiencing and experimenting with so many different and promising products. It doesn’t have to be everything but your open heart and open mind is always refreshing. Your brutal honesty is always a plus 🩷
Thank you for this review! I 100% agree with you regarding the cleanser.. nice, but not earth shattering. Also, any recommendations for a similar cleanser to the Tatcha Rice wash? I love that one, but it's ridiculously expensive.
How does the prequel cleanser compare to the roche posay toleriane foaming cleanser ( if you’ve used it before) in terms of cleansing power ( sunscreen/ light makeup) and gentleness?
The Prequel cleanser was genuinely so unique to me. As a dry skin person it’s quite rare that I can use anything other than very gentle, non-foaming milk cleansers in the winter. The Prequel cleanser has the bounciness of a dense gel with a very creamy lather. I’ve never experienced anything like it. It is a bit difficult to rinse off though.
I started using tower sos spray because I heard it kills bacteria that causes acne. I have never heard of this kind of spray before. Nobody really talks about what this really does. I just hope I'm not using it wrong, I use it as a toner, and let it dry. If you find something better than the tower spray please tell us.
Have you tried the elf bounce back jelly cleanser or something like that? It has a very weird texture , sure if it's been discontinued , but is it similar to the prequal.
@@AliceintheRabbitHole Well, I bought a bunch of them for $1.80. My wife and I tend to use the same cleanser( although she doesn't wear makeup). That cleanser stays in the shower.
Hi Alice i love your videos. I would like to try Manyo Bifida ampoule. Do you think it will trigger my fungal acne? Can you do videos on best serums. I love your recommendations. I couldn't purchase western brands only Asian so I would love to knpw ypur thoughts.
Yep! I did a best K-Beauty serums video. RU-vid took away links so I can’t link it (😒) but it’s on my home page under “best skincare of 2023”. Hope that helps!
After cleansing, yes the feel is VERY similar, perhaps a smidge more of a thorough cleanse with gleanser. In texture, no, gleanser feels more goopy (in the non-gwyneth way that is…)
I have the yam root cleanser as well and love it, but the problem is it's so rich and doesn't completely rinse off, which is one of it's benefits, that I don't trust my ridiculously expensive serums to be able to penetrate through it into my skin. However, if you're not going to put any serums on after you wash and plan on using creams or lotions, then it would be a great addition to dry skin care.
Absolutely, but yes it is astringent! I think this detail is missing for a lot of folks who keep trying one mineral sunscreen after another, wondering why they are all drying. Titanium dioxide is another option, but in the past it didn’t offer broad spectrum coverage. From what I understand, new methods of formulating with it have allowed it to cover the UVA spectrum as well.
to me it does feel lighter than aquaphor but same as CeraVe healing ointment so it's not worth the price as an overall ointment BUT I love it as a lip product so I just throw it in my purse and use it on my lips as a balm
the gleanser smells so bad lol i think it smells like elmers glue that's where the fresh soy cleanser prevails. it smells like cucumbers! definitely agree with the texture comparison though. they are similar.
I've been using the prequel cleanser for months now and as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't smell like anything. If you got it from Amazon, it's probably a counterfeit, which is very common on there.
Prequel is overhyped imo. I tried all the products and there are definitely dupes for everything. I was really hoping it would help with my damaged skin barrier but the products except for the cleanser just burned and stung
@@AliceintheRabbitHole after doing more research....it's a no for me. The ingredients list on the bottle doesn't match what's shown online. Ugh.. why ??? It's so shady for brands to do that.
First thing I thought when you mentioned kids and bleach, was the tide pods.... I do have to say, after that, the average IQ of the country was a little higher.😜😜😜😂😂😂😂. Prequel does seem interesting, and as the price is good, I am very tempted. Would love to know your thoughts on the Dr. Idriss aka "PillowtalkDerm " skincare line. Thank you & many blessings!💖💖💖
I feel as conflicted about the tide pods era as I do flat earthers (which is to say: “this is a joke, right?? RIGHT??”) Yep I’m curious about her brand too!
The ingredient cocomidopropyl betaine was a disappointment when I seen that in the gleanser. I'm surprised she put that in there. She has rosacea. Aveeno's oat gel cleanser is much cheaper and shorter ingredient list. 😊 I'm not frustrated at you Alice. You're being VERY realistic and I respect that!!! My body cleanser is CeraVe hydrating cleansing bar.
I have rosacea and have tried both Aveeno and Prequel's cleanser and 1) the prequel is a better value for your money because you use VERY little each time, for me it's less than one pump and 2) both are just as non-irritating, even when I'm extremely sensitive to everything
@@AliceintheRabbitHole Well, it's a thick, creamy gel like texture. It smells lightly of oats. It's packed with GLYCERIN. It's a 7.1 ounce bottle..I think. It's less than $10 and a very short ingredient list. Now Aveeno has an oat toner by C&R however it's not in the USA and I'm totally pissed. I don't want to make my own every 2 days because I'm no chemist and of course my own has no preservatives. I can't win I swear. 🤣🤣🤣
