By Jinal Bhatt

When we’re young, our skin is perhaps our worst enemy. Or so it feels. Acne, blackheads, dullness, uneven tone… we struggle with so much. And all of it despite spending so much time trying out everything from a dermatologist-recommended medicated skincare to DIYs as instructed by mom. It’s ironic that when we actually need to bring in the cavalry to take care of our skin, once we enter the late 20s and early 30s, is when we have the least amount of time or inclination to do so. At least, that’s the case with me. As I turned 31 this year, all those warnings in advertisements and magazines suddenly rang through my head. I had to start taking serious care of my skin at this age! It seemed early, but it would determine how my skin aged.

Unfortunately, our lifestyle today has too much stress and unhealthy choices and too little time in our busy work and social schedules to counter the effects of leading such lives. Here I am, worried about things like my skin’s elasticity and sunspots. But the hormonal changes that pop up unannounced due to our erratic lifestyle mean I can even get those very ‘basic’ skincare issues that were my teenage nightmares—acne and blackheads. Sigh. There is no winning, is there?

Luckily for me, my work perks include a treasure trove of skincare products that target an array of concerns. And this time, I got to try out products from two new brands—The Pink Foundry and Gwang Biocare’s K-Beauty brand Village 11 Factory, because everyone wants a slice of that Korean Beauty pie, don’t we? I built a daytime and night-time routine with three products from each brand and used them for two weeks.

Let’s talk about the daytime routine first, shall we?

I’m someone who sweats a lot and usually runs a warm body temperature. For me, summers are the worst time for skincare because it takes every ounce of willpower to slather things on my face and body, even if it is just moisturiser and sunscreen because the heat makes any extra layering on our skins unbearable. I began by cleansing my face with a gel-based face wash and then using a facial mist as a toner. Now, I’ve never gotten into eye creams, but it is my latest curiosity. The Snail Eye Cream from Village 11 Factory went on to my post-toner skin. 

I cannot say yet what difference an eye cream has made to my under eyes. I don’t really have concerns like dark circles or puffy eye bags (despite an erratic sleep schedule). It might be too early to tell if it has any long term effects is prolonging these concerns that might eventually show up. But for now, coupled with a facial roller, it’s just a nice luxurious step to my skincare that makes me feel good, and lets the make-up go on real smooth on my under-eye region. I see that as a win.

Next, I follow it up with the Village 11 Factory Collagen Cream. It’s supposed to help with improving the skin’s elasticity, thereby being anti-wrinkle. At 31, these concerns are legit on the horizon for me, maybe not on my face yet, but definitely on my mind. It’s okay to want to work on them from early on because it means you’re taking good care of your skin, which will serve you well in your later years. The Collagen Cream has a gel-like texture that feels great on the skin. Once I even refrigerated the product and used it on my face, and the application felt amazing, It smells pretty decent as well. Over the two weeks that I used this, my skin felt immensely hydrated. I’ve used this Collagen Cream as a base for my makeup, before the primer, and due to its non-sticky and lightweight nature, it works really well as one.