There are only 3 days left till the end of 2021 but these vegan, cruelty-free Korean skincare products aren’t going anywhere!
As a K-beauty and skincare lover, 2021 was my highlight year because I got to try quite a number of products from different Korean brands. Through this experience, I learnt more about vegan and/or cruelty-free skincare and now, I tend towards brands and products that fall in these categories.
In this post, I’ll be highlighting five products that you should absolutely try, all vegan and/or cruelty-free. The products are from Korean skincare brands that may not be as popular as big names like COSRX, but definitely still worth checking out. I’ll include links where you can shop them below, and my YESSTYLE discount code as well.
Note: These products are PR – gifted by brands, giveaway product or claimed as sponsored products on YesStyle. However, I’m only highlighting them here because the post is focused on vegan and cruelty-free products and they happen to fit the criteria.
This also does not substitute as reviews for the products.
What does vegan/cruelty-free skincare mean though?
To put it simply, products that are vegan make use of plant-based ingredients. They do not feature ingredients produced or gotten from animals, i.e. snail mucin, beeswax, honey, etc.
Cruelty-free skincare, on the other hand, means that the products were not tested on animals. They could contain ingredients from animals but basically, “no animals were harmed in the making”.
Most(if not all) Korean skincare products are cruelty-free and a large number of them are either also vegan or their brands have vegan lines.
DISCOUNTS & REFERRALS
You can use my ‘rewards code’ KHAIRAH21 to get some $$ off all orders on YESSTYLE, no minimum spending required! I get a commission the same amount as the discount you get🖤
Please use the links below for each product if you’d like to shop any of them. Some are affiliate links so I get a tiny commission for completed purchases at no cost to you! This contributes to the maintenance of the blog, so I absolutely would appreciate you using the links!🖤
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If you prefer video reviews, Click below to watch:
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1) PESTLO Ourecipe Oil-to-Foam Cleanser
This cleanser was available as a sponsored product for YESSTYLE influencers. I previously included it on my list of newly released cleansers in 2021 and I finally got to try it out before the year ended. I’ve not done a full review yet but one thing I can tell you is that it’s quite good at removing makeup.
I’m also still confused as to whether it’s actually an oil cleanser but I currently use it as an oil cleanser and a regular second cleanser.
Features:
Cruelty-free, with vegan and 93.7% EWG green grade ingredients.
It has a really nice, fruity smell and lathers quite well.
Price: $25 – $26, Size: 200ml
Shop on:
More skincare content:
– Products for Hydration This Harmattan!
2) NEOGEN Dermalogy Calming CICA Tree Micellar Cleansing Foam
This came as a free gift from a YESSTYLE order. I’ve not used this brand before but they are also certified as cruelty-free and carry some vegan products as well. This particular cleanser does not seem to be vegan and I’ve not tried it out yet, but I look forward to doing so.
P.S: At first, I didn’t even realise it was a cleanser, I was so sure it was one of their creams lol.
Features:
Cruelty-free, with great ingredients like CICA, tea tree, azulene, etc.
Sizes: I was gifted the 50ml but it’s also available in a bigger size.
Shop on:
3. VARUZA Soy Gentle Cleanser with Vegan Mucin
At this point, you are probably wondering if all five products are cleansers but I can assure you this is the last cleanser. I came across this brand on Instagram and was quite intrigued by the cleanser and its ‘vegan mucin’ feature.
Coincidentally, Picky organised an event in collaboration with the brand and that’s how I got to try it. The highlight ingredient is dioscorea japonica(wild yam) root extract, AKA vegan mucin, a vegan alternative to the snail mucin we all know and love.
I’ve not shared its full review too but from my first impressions, it works well as a gentle cleanser and has a nice citrus smell.
Features:
Cruelty-free, vegan formula.
Price: $20, Size: 150ml
Shop on:
– Amazon
4. NATURAL DERMA PROJECT Green Carper Toner Essence
Natural Derma Project (NDP) is one of those Korean skincare brands with a mission focused on clean beauty, and environmental sustainability. I found them via a skincare mutual on Instagram and they were kind enough to gift me two of their products (the toner and the cream below). Like the others, they are a cruelty-free brand and their products are vegan-friendly.
This product is a milky toner, which doubles as an essence and I was quite interested because it was my first time using milky toners. At first, I wondered how it’d work but I started using it this harmattan and it was great! This is not a full review so I won’t say much but I love how it disappears into the skin.
Although vegan-friendly, I don’t think it’s completely vegan since they highlighted that the ‘Melfera adaptive solid’ ingredient is derived from honey, a by-product of bees.
Features:
Cruelty-free, vegan-friendly, with EWG-certified ingredients.
Price: $35, Size: 130ml
Shop on:
– Amazon
Skincare Reviews to check out:
– COSRX Snail Mucin Power Essence Review
5. NATURAL DERMA PROJECT CICA Bio-Placenta Cream
The cream is a light gel moisturizer that boosts hydration levels and reduces irritation for all skin types. Like the toner, it’s cruelty-free and it seems to be completely vegan. The highlight ingredient is bio-placenta, their vegan alternative to animal placenta, but with similar effectiveness.
I’ve only used it once(not on my face though), and I like how cool it felt on my skin and the way it absorbs easily, without feeling sticky.
Features:
Cruelty-free, vegan-friendly, with EWG-certified ingredients.
Price: $37, Size: 60ml
Shop on:
– Amazon
That’s all I got for this post! Thank you for reading and I hope this post piqued your interest enough to want to check the products out🖤 If you watched my video above, thank you for watching too!
Don’t forget to shop via my links and also use the discount codes mentioned.
Let me know in the comments which of these you’re most interested in, or if you’ve tried any of them before. I’d love to hear of your experience in the comments and it’ll also be useful to other readers!
Till Next Time,
With Love,
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