So I went to Myeongdong, and my mission was to buy 100 sheet masks (at least) ...
... and I meant individual sheet masks, because I want to TRY ALL THE THINGS!
Long random ramblings ahead. You have been warned.
My mission was a lot harder to accomplish than I anticipated. Not because of too much variety, as you might expect, but because it was very difficult to find individual sheet masks - those that aren't sold in 10-packs/boxes. It was very a very tedious journey, which I have detailed below, because my shoulders are still aching, and I don't see why I should be the only person to suffer. xD
Section 1: 3 franchises with the most individual masks:
1) LOHB, aka the place where I got Mamonde masks for 750 won each. I love you.
I also bought every flavour of LOHB mask because 1+1, which makes them 500 won each. (!!!) I'm a sucker for cheap things, as you can probably tell. Also, I had it on pretty good authority (my sis) that the aloe flavour of the LOHB mask was worth trying so the others might be some good too. Collagen, Rice, Witch Hazel and Arbutin, I bought at least one each.
2) Olive Young, which you can find on every street (probably)
Olive Young was a pretty nice place to shop at! They're a little more expensive than LOHB (but not much). There's one opening at the base of Seoul Tower (the kind of place every tourists needs to go to once. Be surrounded by sakura blossoms alllllll the way up! They lined both sides of the road pavements. It was glorious). I got me some Clio in OY for cheaper than the Club Clio outlets in Myeongdong, because SALEEEE. The thing is, I buy all these eye makeup, and I don't use them because I can't figure them out, despite watching numberous videos. By numerous, I mean a few. By a few, I mean - well, nevermind.
Those popular masks like Leaders and Mediheal are 3,000 won apiece everywhere, or 30,000 for 20, which makes them on par with online pricing. So I didn't buy any . Well actually, I just bought some, from Koreadepart....
3) Watsons, I knew I'd find you in Korea, too. I'm totally stalking you.
Did you know they were selling the Mamonde Rose Water Toner for 15,000 won for 2? (yes, 1+1 again). I was like, YESSS. BUYYYYYY. But my mum was like nope, you're joking, there's no space in the luggage (we had the 20kg option. Don't ask.) and all that pink water was heavy (which it was). I was gonna buy it anyway on the last day, because YOLO, and it's too late to do anything about aching shoulders already anyway. I made space in my backpack for some last minute shopping (duty free!! yes please.) but fate had it that we nearly missed the flight and so there was no duty free shopping for anybody.
=(
Section 2: Stuff I could not find in Korea. Why?
There's no Joseon Beauty Cream anywhere to be found in Seoul. I wanted to swatch it (and maybe buy it) but it eluded me, the sly thing.
Cosrx fans would be glad that your favourite products can be found in Korea. Not everywhere, but close enough. The whole range is in A-Land and there's several outlets around the country, I saw 2 in Gangnam and there's one (or three!) in Myeongdong. Here is a list of outlets for you. You're welcome.
I swatched the galactomyces toner (and yes, I spelt it without googling, whooo). I'm buying the Secret Key Rose edition online, though, so that was just pure curiosity. I'm getting a 1+1 deal, so I hope I get an AB exchange match whom I can fob off the extra one to *cough
There's no Tosowoong and no Mizon and no Evercos and no Freeset. I wanted to buy some individual Tosowoong masks, but it was not to be. Some friends requested Mizon from me (if I could find it), but they were nowhere, so we're gonna haul from RRS instead. I'm buying the Good Night Sleeping Mask ! For the niacinamide.
No Mediental either, but I already got two Mediental masks from Koreadepart (the purple and the green. Brightening & Calming. The brightening made me look darker. What's up with that, yo?)
Section 3: Let's talk about Myeongdong. I know that's what you're all here for xD
Myeongdong might seem overwhelming to some, but actually they are the same brands over and over again. There's Innisfree, Missha, Holika Holika, and Tonymoly on every street. Sometimes more than one on the same street. There's Skinfood and The Mask Story (where they sell bulk masks only. I did not approve. I'd envisioned shelves and shelves of individual sheet masks) and Banila Co (20,000 won for Clean It Zero, what?).
Here are my tips :
1) Don't buy everything you want in the first store you walk into
I know everyone says this, but it's true. I personally prefer to wait for the salesgirl to hand me a basket with a free mask on it. The Saem did that, and gave me lots of samples to boot. WIN.
Example #2: there are numerous Nature Republic outlets in Myeongdong, but only ONE of them would hand you a free mask, and that store is the one that gives you INSTANT tax rebate for purchases above 30,000 won. WIN #2.
(It's the biggest Nature Republic store and it's all green outside, you can't miss it)
2) 30,000 won purchases qualifies you for tax refund, which is good. What's even better? Buy from the outlets that can give you the refund instantly :D
Disclaimer: I got instant tax refund from Innisfree & Nature Republic on my 3rd day before I caught on. That was because I hadn't done enough research (obviously) and thought the only way to get refund was to collect all my receipts and present them at the tax counter at the airport.
Actually, tax refunds don't amount to a lot. I spent 39,000 won and got a rebate of 1,500 won only. But a penny saved is a penny gained ! Do your research, folks.
3) Korea prices are very much on par with online prices, these days. (T___T) The best things to buy are the stuff that are on promotion (and individual sheet masks), and do lots of swatching because there are testers everywhere Also, masks are heavy = shipping costs more. Then you can go back and buy everything else online ... Having to drag everything from your hotel room to your home is not worth saving a few bucks. It's very, very, exhausting.
Unless if you cannot resist instant gratification. Then I can't help you xD
Section 4: Random ramblings about various stores/brands
1) Aritaum is everywhere. It's like Olive Young, which is also everywhere xD A friend requested my help to buy the Laneige water sleeping mask if it was below 26,000 won. I went to Korea, and found it was 28,000 won retail. What gives? I could get it cheaper online! So I took a photo and sent it to her with my apologies, and she ended up buying it from an online seller.
I nearly bought the Iope Bio Essence Conditioning (totally in my wishlist), but then I suddenly realised there's 84ml and 160ml and it's cheaper online, too (I wasn't comparing prices in the store, I swear. I have a good memory for numbers xD). So I regretfully put it back onto the shelf (my mum approved. She thinks I've bought far too many cosmetics already)
2) Etude House was selling their masks for 10+10 for 9500 won or 10 for 5000 won (which doesn't make sense. I'd totally buy 10+10 for 5,000 won, though!) or 950 won apiece, which was very similar to the pricing of my local retail store.
I actually didn't buy anything from Etude House (which I only realised after I left Korea) because I intended to buy one of those delicious-smelling berry lipsticks, but then I swatched them all and did not get the I-must-have-this feeling. So I didn't get any. It's sad, cos I loved the scent.
3) Innisfree gave me the least samples. I spent the most on Innisfree products, by making several big and small purchases. Each time, the salespeople kept pushing the seawater lava range at me, and told me about all the samples they'd give me if I buy what they wanted me to buy. (I did not, because it was a new product and I don't buy newly launched products.) Apart from a soybean mini kit , I didn't get any samples from them despite my numerous purchases at different Innisfree outlets.
Disclaimer: The stuff I bought were mostly 1+1 products and 50% clearance products (Innisfree cushion & refills for 6,000 won each! Unbelievable.) In fact, the salesgirls told me I am not getting any samples at all because I'm getting stuff on promotion only. Which is fair enough, I suppose, but I'll have to admit I felt a tad disappointed.
4) Daiso sells a line of Leaders Clinic masks that are different from the popular line, but under the same brand. It's not in every Daiso, though. I went into a few and only saw them once. (They're also selling really adorable soft toys for 2,000 won each.)
5) Tonymoly I was looking forward to buying some cute stuff from Tonymoly as souvenirs for friends, and then discovered everything was sold in bulk. Buying multiples is a no-no for me, so I returned the goat milk mask to the salesgirl. It was sad, because I wanted that mask, but I couldn't find anything to buy =( After that, I no longer wanted to enter any Tonymoly outlets.
6) Skinfood is great. There seemed to be fewer Skinfood outlets than Innisfree , Nature Republic , Missha and Etude House, but there's still quite a number, and a lot of stuff were going for 20-50% discount when I was there. My mum bought the rice wash off pack, and I bought the salmon eye concealer (among other things) and we each bought several masks including the rice and birds' nest. Also, the pomegranate gel mask! I've been wanting to try that one for ages.
7) Malie masks. I only saw these at one place - street stalls at Dongdaemun. I don't know about the laws in Korea, but it's the kind of roadside stalls that may or may not be licensed (such stalls in my country usually are not), and they sell 3,000 won for a pack of 10 (but you can haggle). I did not buy any, because I couldn't be sure if they're real or fake.
8) Line store I went all the way to Garuso-Gil in Gangnam because of the Line Store, only to go back to Myeongdong and discover that there's a Line store there as well, where Brown is much bigger ! Oh man. So I took photos at both xD Line is a huge thing in Korea. Line everywhere. Random Line soft toys in front of cosmetic stores to attract customers in.
9) illi masks can be found in Lotte marts. My mum tried the anti-ageing one, and I bought the moisture and calming ones.
10) April Skin and Skylake can be found in at least 2 grocery marts in Myeongdong.
11) The Saem are the most generous with samples that I encountered. They gave me A LOT, and for minimal purchases. I bought several 1+1 sunscreens for 9,000 won each and received more samples than I could count. Another time, they handed me a free snail mask so I went in and bought their tip concealer, and they gave me another 2 masks and a mini kit of toner + emulsion.
And that's basically how I was expecting every store in Myeongdong to be like. Thinking back now, it sounds like a highly unrealistic expectation.
12) Shara Shara is non-existent. I wanted to swatch the berry bomb, and according to Google , there's a store in Myeongdong. I followed the map I obtained from the tourist information center (keep an eye out for those, they have very useful booklets for free), and I definitely got the spot right, but it wasn't where the map said it was. Then I asked a street food vendor, and he said it's closed down.
13) Milky bee is a store in Myeongdong that used to sell rose gelato. They've closed down, too. Apparently many businesses open and close within 18 months in Korea.
14) James Cheese & Back Ribs are awesome. So much cheese ! Totally recommend trying.
Can't think of anything else to say, so that's all for now. Perhaps I'll get my lazy self off the chair to take photos later =)))
Edited to add: I can't believe I forgot to say this, but I did not accomplish my mission to buy 100 masks - I brought back 45 masks total (my mum used up 2 while in Korea) . These include free masks (door gifts) and masks I bought for other people, so for myself I have probably 30 or so. I haven't decided which ones I'm keeping and giving away. So I bought 10 more masks off Koreadepart a few hours ago. I must be mad xDDD
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