Smooth skin tone and texture with luminosity-boosting white ginseng.
– Sulwhasoo
Last month I attended a K-Beauty sale and purchased a mini-set of the Sulwhasoo Snowise Brightening brand alongside a small pouch for $10 (quite a steal). Normally, each one of these products retail around $100, so I was hoping that they wouldn’t actually be that effective for my wallet’s sake, haha. For better or for worse though, Sulwhasoo far exceeded my expectations.
Snowise Brightening Water: A light, moisturizing toner that did well to pick up on impurities and make my skin feel nourished.
Snowise Brightening Emulsion: A light cream that absorbed easily onto the face with not stinging or goopiness. Unfortunately it was incredibly difficult to get it out of the bottle.
Snowise Brightening Spot Serum: Probably my favorite product, this spot serum was a tad thicker than the emulsion, but lasted me nearly two weeks.
Snowise Brightening Cream: My least favorite item, this cream applied easily, but created a film on the skin afterwards. Though it was probably there with the intention of protecting the skin, it was moreso sticky and inconvenient.
Ingredients:
- Snowise Brightening Water: Water, Alcohol, PEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer, Oldenlandia Diffusa Extract, Betaine, Propanediol, Butylene Glycol,Glycyrrhiza Uralensis Root Extract, Paeonia Albiflora Root Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Polygonatum Officinale Rhizome/Root Extract, Lilium Candidum Bulb Extract,Rehmannia Glutinosa Root Extract, Honey, Hydrolyzed Ginseng Saponins (Hydrolyzed White Ginseng Saponins), Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Broussonetia Kazinoki Root Extract,Morus Alba Root Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Methoxy PEG-114/Polyepsilon Caprolactone,Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Disodium EDTA,Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance
- Snowise Brightening Emulsion: Water, Propanediol, Squalane, Oldenlandia Diffusa Extract, Butylene Glycol, C14-22 Alcohols, Broussonetia Kazinoki Root Extract, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract, Ophiopogon Japonicus Root Extract, 1,2-Hexanediol,Hydrolyzed Ginseng Saponins (Hydrolyzed White Ginseng Saponins), Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Paeonia Albiflora Root Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Seed Extract, Polygonatum Officinale Rhizome/Root Extract, Lilium Tigrinum Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Rehmannia Glutinosa Root Extract, Honey,Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil,Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Hydrogenated Lecithin,C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Stearic Acid, Methoxy PEG-114/Polyepsilon Caprolactone, Palmitic Acid, Xanthan Gum,Carbomer, Tromethamine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance
- Snowise Brightening Spot Serum: Water, Hydrogenated Poly (C6-14 Olefin), Propanediol, Glycerin, Alcohol, Butylene Glycol, Glyceryl Polymethacrylate, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Paeonia Albiflora Root Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Polygonatum Officinale Rhizome/ Root Extract, Lilium Candidum Bulb Extract, Rehmannia Glutinosa Root Extract, Honey, Hydrolyzed Ginseng Saponins (Hydrolyzed White Ginseng Saponins), Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Lentinus Edodes Extract, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Extract, Morus Alba Root Extract, Oldenlandia Diffusa Extract, Niacinamide, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Cyclohexasiloxane, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Ethylhexylglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Cetyl Alcohol, PEG-75 Stearate, Ceteth-20, Steareth-20, Polysorbate 20, Polyacrylate-13, Methoxy PEG-114/ Polyepsilon Caprolactone, Silica, Polyisobutene, Xanthan Gum, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance
- Snowise Brightening Cream: Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycereth-26, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Oldenlandia Diffusa Extract, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Squalane, Cyclopentasiloxane,Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract, Paeonia Albiflora Root Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Polygonatum Officinale Rhizome/Root Extract, Lilium Candidum Bulb Extract,Rehmannia Glutinosa Root Extract, Honey, Hydrolyzed Ginseng Saponins (Hydrolyzed White Ginseng Saponin), Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Opuntia Coccinellifera Fruit Extract,Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, C14-22 Alcohols, Glyceryl Stearate, Methoxy PEG-114/Polyepsilon Caprolactone, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Dimethicone, Cyclohexasiloxane,Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate,Stearic Acid, Carbomer, Palmitic Acid, PEG-100 Stearate, Tromethamine, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Disodium EDTA,Glyceryl Caprylate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Ethylhexylglycerin,Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance
Significant Pros
- Snowise Brightening Water:
- Betaine (moisturizing)
- Propanediol (moisturizing)
- Butylene Glycol (moisturizing humectant)
- Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract ( acne-fighting, brightening)
- Honey (soothing, moisturizing, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal)
- Panax Ginseng Root Extract (whitening for hyper pigmentation)
- Snowise Brightening Emulsion:
- Propanediol (moisturizing)
- Squalane (moisturizing, emollient)
- Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract (acne-fighting, brightening)
- Nelumbo Nucifera Seed Extract (anti-bacterial)
- Panax Ginseng Root Extract (whitening for hyper pigmentation)
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter (moisturizing)
- Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract (acne-fighting, brightening)
- Glycerin (hydrating)
- Snowise Brightening Spot Serum:
- Propanediol (moisturizing)
- Glycerin (hydrating)
- Honey (soothing, moisturizing, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal)
- Panax Ginseng Root Extract (whitening for hyper pigmentation)
- Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Extract (soothing)
- Niacinamide (brightening, anti-acne, and moisturizing)
- Snowise Brightening Cream:
- Butylene Glycol (moisturizing humectant)
- Squalane (moisturizing, emollient)
- Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract (acne-fighting, brightening)
- Honey (soothing, moisturizing, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal)
- Panax Ginseng Root Extract (whitening for hyper pigmentation)
Significant Cons
- Snowise Brightening Water:
- Alcohol (stripping, especially as the second ingredient)
- PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil (fungal acne trigger)
- Fragrance (irritant)
- Snowise Brightening Emulsion:
- Fragrance (irritant)
- Dimethicone (silicone, can be pore-clogging)
- Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil (fungal acne trigger)
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter (moisturizing . . . but also a fungal acne trigger)
- Stearic Acid (fungal acne trigger)
- Palmitic Acid (fungal acne trigger)
- Snowise Brightening Spot Serum:
- Alcohol (stripping)
- Stearic Acid (fungal acne trigger)
- Palmitic Acid (fungal acne trigger)
- Fragrance (irritant)
- Glyceryl Stearate (and Citrate) (fungal acne trigger)
- Polysorbate 20 and Polyacrylate-13 (fungal acne trigger)
- Honestly there are a plethora of fungal acne triggers here, haha
- Snowise Brightening Cream:
- Stearic Acid (fungal acne trigger)
- Glyceryl Stearate (fungal acne trigger)
- Palmitic Acid (fungal acne trigger)
- Fragrance (irritant)
- Sorbitan Olivate and Certearyl Olivate (acne triggers)
The Takeaway
I really enjoyed using this mini-set. Above, you can see how it helped alleviate my dark spots. Within four days (the first two photos) it dramatically addressed issues of inflammation and pigmentation. The final photo is two days later, meaning within six days my skin was drastically changed, a result of all the combined lightening and brightening products. Further use may trigger fungal acne around my oily areas, however, if you aren’t prone to fungal acne this could be a solid set. Overall, I would say the spot serum is my favorite, as its topical use would make worries over fungal acne irrelevant. Though I still believe the full size products are overpriced, the spot serum would especially make an incredible birthday gift, haha.
Skincare for Introverts 