Liquid Assets — A Comprehensive Guide To Face Essences
Over the last few years, Western beauty companies have finally started to embrace and adopt some of the skin care practices that have long been a mainstay in Korea, where women are known to approach facial cleansing and hydration with meticulous care and a near ritualistic solemnity. Their radiant, supple, youthful complexions stand as proof that these skin care routines, which often involve 10 to 12 steps, are worth the time investment. As the influence of Korean beauty (K-beauty) products and practices continues to increase, we’re seeing new categories of products in the US market — among them essences.
So what in the ham sandwich is an essence, you ask? Well, it’s a very lightweight, readily absorbed product that’s meant to be applied after your toner but before any serums or creams. Essences typically have a very fluid, almost watery consistency, but they’re highly concentrated. Research has shown that some of the most powerful anti-aging ingredients are able to penetrate the uppermost layers of skin more rapidly and effectively when they’re suspended in water — which is precisely the point of the liquid formulations that distinguish essences from their heavier counterparts. Because your complexion will drink up any essence you apply, you can then continue adding the serums and creams of your choice without any greasy pile-up.
Now that you know their purpose, let’s take a look at some of the best essences in the market!
Murad Hydro-Dynamic Quenching Essence, $78. Available at Murad.com
I love this essence so much that once I’d pumped out the last drop, I tried to dismantle the bottle, attempting to remove the top cap so I could somehow scrape out any remaining residue (and yes, I realize I sound like Pookie from New Jack City). I’ve never successfully taken apart anything in my entire life — there’s a stereo in a dump somewhere that can attest to my failed attempts at “fixing” a cassette player — so my plan didn’t exactly work out, but the point is simply that I was beyond resolved not to let any bit of product go to waste.
The main ingredient in this magical elixir is Mexican blue agave leaf extract, which boasts high levels of oligosaccharides (complex sugars) that, in turn, attract water and thereby help to hydrate the skin and to make it appear more supple and plump. Other ingredients include: watermelon extract, which is rich in vitamin C; yeast amino acids, which help to repair and rejuvenate the skin; apple extract, which contains powerful antioxidants and has skin conditioning benefits; lentil extract, said to diminish the appearance of enlarged pores; and sodium PCA, a water-binding agent.
Compared to other essences in the market, this is one is slightly thicker than its counterparts but that’s like comparing water, iced tea, orange juice and lemonade — they’re all virtually weightless. In that scenario, of course, this essence would be the pulp-y orange juice: just a tad more viscous but also more nutrient-packed. Within a few weeks of use, you’ll wonder what you ever did without this product — not only does it give your skin a lovely bounciness and a velvety softness, but it’s got a silky texture and feminine aroma that are hard to resist on a sensory level.
Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence, $85. Available at TataHarperSkincare.com
This lovely all-natural essence features a nozzle that allows you to simply mist the product on your cleansed face for a lovely hydration boost. If you think a few spritzes won’t really make a difference in your skin’s hydration levels throughout the day, think again. It seems so unassuming — just a delightful mist that tickles the face — but this essence’s ingredients work wonders to refresh the skin, minimize the look of pores, boost radiance, and keep skin moisturized and comfortable.
The Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence incorporates hyaluronic acid, which draws moisture from the atmosphere and binds it to the skin, and which has a low molecular weight that allows it to penetrate deep into skin’s layers, as well as jasmine and tangerine extracts that moisturize the skin and help to give it a more supple appearance. Other ingredients include pink clay, which draws toxins out of pores and helps to minimize their appearance, and willow bark extract, which contains salicylic acid, a beta-hydroxy acid known to encourage the skin’s natural exfoliation process, sloughing off dead skin cells to reveal new cells and, in turn, showcase a more luminous complexion. Grapefruit extract, meanwhile, offers the skin a healthy dose of vitamin C to protect it from free radicals.
You can apply the mist in the morning, prior to any serums or moisturizers, and you can also spray it throughout the day when you need a pick-me-up. It even helps to set and refresh makeup!
Boscia Cool Blue Hydration Essence, $48. Available at Sephora.com
I’ve raved about the Boscia Cool Blue Hydration Essence in the past since it does wonders to soothe winter-ravaged skin, as well as sunburned and wind-chapped complexions. But, really, it’s marvelous year-round and, as its name suggests, offers dry and achy skin an instant dose of relief in the form of a welcome burst of coolness. This much-needed chill is the result of Frescolat, a peppermint-derived ingredient that cools the skin upon contact.
Refreshing sensation aside, this essence works to hydrate the skin and boost its defense system. The star ingredient, accounting for 82% of the base formula, is fermented yeast filtrate, a vitamin- and mineral-rich substance that’s derived from sake production. The essence also features a DayMoist CLR complex of plant-derived ingredients that strengthens the skin’s own moisture barrier, thereby guaranteeing longer-lasting hydration, and sea whip, an algae extract that calms irritated skin and prevents future flare-ups.
On a practical level, the essence comes with a handy dropper that allows you to dispense only a couple of drops and pat onto the skin for quicker absorption.
SK-II Facial Treatment Essence, $165. Available at Sephora.com
Many skin care brands are now joining the face essence movement, but SK-II started the revolution with its Facial Treatment Essence, launched in December 1980. Pitera accounts for 90% of the SK-II Facial Treatment Essence. The story behind this ingredient is fascinating in and of itself. As the tale goes, scientists noticed that elderly workers at a sake brewery in Japan had soft, spotless, and practically wrinkle-free hands and wondered what could account for this phenomenon. After researching all of the elements of the yeast fermentation process, they identified a liquid with rejuvenating properties which they dubbed pitera. Said to contain amino acids, minerals, vitamins, and organic acids that improve the skin’s texture and clarity, lighten dark spots, and produce a lit-from-within glow, pitera has been nicknamed “Miracle Water.” The SK-II Facial Treatment Essence does, in fact, lead to miraculous complexion transformations, which is why it’s considered the Bentley of face essences.
Kiehl’s Iris Extract Activating Treatment Essence, $45. Available at Kiehls.com
Your complexion will look incandescent when you regularly apply the Kiehl’s Iris Extract Activating Treatment Essence, which is designed to tackle and correct aging-related skin dullness. When skin starts looking more sallow and fatigued, it’s usually the result of decreased hydration levels, slower cellular turnover rates, a diminished production of collagen and elastin, and a next-to-nonexistent generation of ceramides (which play a vital role in the dermal matrix, essentially binding skin cells together). This essence, then, is designed to address these culprits via a combination of three ingredients: Lipo Hydroxy Acid (LHA), which activates the skin’s natural exfoliation process and stimulates the cellular renewal process; Sodium Hyaluronate, which can absorb and carry up to 1,000 times its weight in water, drawing moisture from the environment and then infusing it into the skin for immediate and long-lasting hydration; and Iris Florentina Root Extract, which boasts a high concentration of flavonoids, a class of antioxidants that has been shown to help decelerate the emergence of visible aging signs.
Together, these ingredients breathe new life into fatigued skin. As a bonus, the iris extract in the formula gives the product an alluring floral aroma.
Clinique Even Better Essence Lotion, $42. Available at Clinique.com
Part of Clinique’s Even Better skincare line, which is designed to battle hyperpigmentation, this essence gives skin an added dose of hydration while also helping to calm any inflammation and redness and eradicate any dark spots, blotchiness, and acne marks thanks to Clinique’s proprietary NMF complex.
belif Hungarian Water Essence, $42 at Sephora.com
This aqueous product features an ingredient that allegedly played a vital role in the beauty regimen of Queen Elizabeth of Hungary, a woman who was so beautiful at the age of 72, that she caught the attention of (and earned a proposal from) the King of Poland, subsequently ascending to the throne. The ingredient in question is known as Hungarian water, which contains an apothecary blend of 10 herbs — among them rosemary, gotu kola, lavender, raspberry, sage, dill, and chickweed.
Lumene Bright Now Vitamin C Hyaluronic Essence, $25. Available at CVS stores.
Like the Boscia Cool Blue essence, this product features a dropper that allows you to dispense just the right amount of product. This particular formula is designed to both hydrate the skin and give it a radiance boost thanks to a combination of hyaluronic acid and vitamin C.
Tata Harper Concentrated Brightening Essence, $150. Available at TataHarperSkincare.com
I’m obsessed with this essence — like, I need a restraining order so I don’t spend all my money replenishing my personal stock of this Glow-Getter. The lightweight, silky, indulgent yet rapidly absorbed essence is designed to give skin an instant luminosity, but it also works on long-term concerns like eradicating dark spots and achieving a more even skin tone that’s radiant and youthful. Ingredients include skin-calming lavender flower water, white lily extract (which contains polysaccharides that draw moisture to the skin and have a filmogenic effect, essentially locking moisture in), willow bark extract (a natural source of salicylic acid), sea kelp extract (which prevents the breakdown of collagen and hence has excellent anti-aging benefits), lemon fruit water (which is rich in vitamin C and helps to brighten the complexion), summer snowflake extract (an all-natural wrinkle-fighting wonder that’s been described as a Botox alternative since it can inhibit the contraction of muscles that lead to expression lines and wrinkles — without that expression-less look that can accompany a bad under-the-needle experience!), Aspen bark extract (a source of salicin, the precursor to salicylic acid, and an excellent anti-inflammatory and analgesic), and sea daffodil extract (which works to prevent melanin from being transferred to the skin’s surface and becoming a dark spot).
Like all Tata Harper products, this essence deserves its own limousine, red carpet, throne, crown, and medal of honor. Forget strobing — your complexion will look radiant as can be without any cosmetic luminizers!
