When you are new to Japanese or Asian skincare you may get confused about the names. Some say it’s all the same and it’s just a fancy name for the products. We explained how and when to use the products in our previous Japanese skincare routine blog.
In our previous blog we also got into more details about Japanese lotion. What it is and the tips & tricks with lotions. So, let’s talk about Emulsions and the difference between Japanese emulsion and lotion!
What is an emulsion?
Emulsion is a milky moisturizer that can be worn on itself or underneath a cream.
Unlike regular creams, Japanese emulsions are more lightweight and instead of in a jar this moisturizer comes in a bottle. It helps to absorb other beauty products and locks it in.
Japanese emulsions are watery based moisturizers and suitable for every skin type and since it is water based it does not cause pore clogging issues.
If you are using lotions and essences in your skincare routine, you might find that you don’t need thick creams. However, you do want to moisturize your skin, that’s when emulsion comes in. Since you can wear emulsion on itself, it’s perfect if you have a normal to oily skin type. During colder months or when you have dry to normal skin type, you can add thick cream on top of an emulsion.
The difference between Japanese lotion and emulsion.
Next to double cleansing, Japanese skincare routine also has double moisturizing. The key of Japanese skincare routine is to moisturize by layers. We layer each product by their consistency, the most watery products first and from then we add products that are thicker in consistency with each step.
If you put the lotion and emulsion bottle next to each other, they look kind of the same. So, it may be difficult to pick the right one if you can’t read Japanese. But most of the time you can tell the difference by the size of the bottle, Japanese lotions comes in slightly bigger bottle than the Japanese emulsion. This is because emulsion is slightly thicker in consistency and most of the time 1 drop is enough to cover your entire face. Next to the consistency the texture is different too. While a lotion has clear watery texture, an emulsion has a white milky texture.
So that’s it? The difference is only the look of the packaging and texture? Well, no! Both products are moisturizing products, the purpose of a Japanese lotion is to balance your pH level, soften your skin and create a hydration base to your skin.
Japanese emulsion is seen as a barrier, to give you the moisturizing boost that your skin needs and lock in the moisture of all the products you applied before.
Now since they both are moisturizers, do you need both of them? We say yes, because lotion is a base softener for your skin and emulsion is a moisturizing skin barrier.
For both products you can find different kinds, depending on your skin type and what you need. Like brightening lotions or anti-aging emulsion.
You can also memorize these 2 kanji alphabet to make sure you have the right product ;-)
化粧水 - Lotion Toner
乳液 - Emulsion
If you still have questions about choosing the right J-beauty products or you need more information about lotions and emulsion, feel free to send us a message because we got you! Hope to see you in our next blog beauties.
