Going on my trip to Japan at the beginning of this year, I wasn’t expecting to buy much cosmetics until the last few days when FOMO hit, and it hit hard. I had a small list of skincare and cosmetic products I wanted to buy, but seeing the price of cosmetics there, I was shocked since I am so used to the affordability of Korean cosmetics.However, there were a few products I regret not picking up the first time I went to Tokyo two years back. One of them was the Naturie skin conditioner, which I had no information about what it did and why people love it. To be honest, I picked it up because I’m Asian and when I see a big bottle for a very affordable price, I buy! I think I didn’t want to buy many Japanese cosmetics because there wasn’t a lick of English anywhere on the packaging, making it that much harder to make a decision.
About Naturie, a Japanese skincare brand
Naturie has a very simple approach when it comes to their products. Their philosophy is so simple that their whole brand only has three products to date, despite the rave reviews from consumers for all of them. All of their products highlight the use of coix seed extract (aka. Job’s tears, pearl barley or in Japanese, Hato Mugi), a superfood grain that is rich in nutritional value and 12 kinds of amino acids. If you don’t know the benefits of amino acids, they are one of the main components of NMF (natural moisturizing factor) and are present in your skin to protect you from dryness and external stimuli.
“Hato Mugi amino acids contains 12 types:Histidine, Lysine, Threonine, Valine, proline, Serine, Leucine, Arginine, Glycine, Alanine, Aspartic acid, Glutamic acid.”Coix seed extract is rich in amino acids and is also how these products have helped increase the absorption of the skincare products that follow afterward.
Naturie Hatomugi Skin Conditioner
Naturie Hatomugi Skin Conditioner
Full name of product:Naturie Skin conditioner
Limited edition/ Permanent?:Permanent
Description of product:“A lotion to retain moisture and condition the skin with natural plant ingredient, hatomugi (Job’s tears/ barley) extract (moisturizing component). The formula is rich and moisturizing but the texture is not sticky and blends smoothly with dry, rough areas of the skin. By recharging the skin with moisture, it maintains flawless, smooth skin. It refines and calms any hot flashes from sun exposure. Can be used for the face and body. Perfect for after showers or baths.”
Amount of product:500 mLDuration of expiration:1 year after openingCountry of manufacture:Made in JapanFragrance:No fragrance detectedIngredients:Water, DPG, BG, glycerin, coix extract, glycyrrhizic acid 2K, (styrene / acreates) copolymer, ethanol, citric acid, sodium citrate, methylparaben, propylparabenHow to use:1) Use as a toner: Use a quarter coin-sized amount three times after you have cleansed your skin.2) Spot mask: Soak a sheet of cotton pad with the skin conditioner and leave it on your skin for 3 minutes to further increase the amount of keratin water.3) Slather all over your body after bathing or after sunbathing.
Personally, with all the different ways it is suggested to be used, I just this as a moisturizing toner/ essence. I take about 3-4 drops on the palms of my hand, pat it into my skin, and repeat 4 times. Yes, you read it right, I use this 4 times. When I first got this product and used it just a regular toner without layering it, I was confused as to why everyone loves this product. After watching someone else’s review and they said to get the best results, you have to layer it up, it changed the game for me! After that, I never looked back and my skincare products afterward just absorbed into my skin that much better. That is exactly how a toner should work!If you were wondering why they called it a skin conditioner, from my observation when I was in Japan, it seems like that is what they call their toners alongside “lotion”. Lotion in Japan does not mean moisturizers like how we think in the west. They refer to lotion as a toner, which is different than Korea and I always have to remind myself.
Texture-wise, this is a very watery product with not many bells and whistles. Their ingredients list is very menial and straightforward, a common theme I find in a lot of Japanese cosmetics.I’ve also had my bottle for 8 months now and still have a ton of it. Even with all the layering, I still got a good 80% of my bottle. I definitely recommend this for everyone, especially those with sensitive skin that can’t use anything with fragrance or any irritating ingredients. I still haven’t tried to use this as a face mist, but that will be on my to-do list for sure.
Naturie Hatomugi Skin Conditioning Gel
Naturie Hatomugi Skin Conditioning Gel
Naturie’s skin conditioning gel comes in a huge huge jar, measuring at 8.75 cm in diameter and 6.5 cm in height. I can definitely see why they suggested using it as a body lotion. How on earth will I finish this!! Like how the description mentioned, I use this both as either a moisturizer itself or a layering piece in my routine.During the summertime, this would be just enough hydration but not feeling too heavy for my dry skin. I normally do layer this 3 times for an optimal hydration effect but during the wintertime, I use this almost like a moisturizer primer before my heavy-duty moisturizers. It is a simple, effective, and “clean” moisturizer and definitely an easy go to use on a daily basis.
Texture-wise, this is a true gel moisturizer and melts into the skin like nothingness and is exactly like the original skin conditioner, just in a gel form! With both products, my skin is definitely more hydrated with all those amazing amino acids in the coix seed extract.
Overall I’m not surprised I love the skin conditioning gel as much as the skin conditioner. Do you need both? Hmm That is kind of a hard question for me to answer. It is definitely more dependent on what your needs are and if you see yourself using this more as a toner/ face mist or if you need a moisturizer with a slight bit more hydration levels. My skincare fanatic would say get both but my sensible side would say, it is all up to you and your needs because they both perform just as amazing.Sources:
- https://www.naturie-net.jp/coixseed/
- https://www.naturie-net.jp/gel/
- https://www.naturie-net.jp/lotion/
