These days it's nearly impossible to know what women are spending on the way they look. Someone with Instagram-flawless contouring might have honed her craft using the finest from the drugstore aisles, and the utterly makeup-free type might be spending thousands on laser treatments and serums. Enter our series What It Costs to Be Me, in which we're asking interesting women for radical transparency.
Next up? Liah Yoo, influencer and founder of Krave Beauty, 30, from New York City. Her annual total? $3,487
In today's skin-care-obsessed world, it might feel as though if you don't have a cabinet overflowing with products and a routine longer than a CVS receipt, you're doing something wrong. But Liah Yoo wants to change that. Yoo has gained a devoted following on her YouTube channel for her videos educating women on low-maintenance, effective skin care. She then put her background working at AmorePacific, South Korea's largest beauty company, to use and started her own brand, Krave Beauty, whose sunscreen quickly gained a cult following.
Krave's mission is to fight against the "more is more" messaging of stripping cleansers and harsh exfoliants that has been ingrained in so many of us. The product line features affordable, hydration-centric products. "I don’t really cause unnecessary harm," Yoo says. "I try to be in tune with my skin as much as possible. Preserving what I already have is definitely my number one philosophy when it comes to skin."
That being said, simple doesn't mean ineffective—one look at Yoo's skin will tell you that. While her beauty philosophy is a bit different than the popular K-beauty 10-step routine, she still relies on almost exclusively Korean products. "I'm very invested in skin care," she says. "Working in the beauty industry for so long, I know when to actually spend my money, and I tend to invest more in formulas that are actually worth it. I definitely don’t believe that beauty needs to be a luxury." Where she will splurge? Sunscreen. "It's the product that's the most unpleasant to apply. So if there's a sunscreen that is very elegant and costs $60 or $80, but the formula is great and pleasant, I’m willing to splurge on that."
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My shower and body routine: $233
I started using the Billie Razor ($9) recently. I love their branding and what they stand for as an entire brand. For body wash, I’m currently using the Hawthorne Body Wash ($34). It’s actually a men’s brand, and it pleasantly surprised me that a dude’s brand created such a nice thing! I don't like fragrance or essential oils in my facial products, but body products are something where I actually like to have that sensorial experience, and the Hawthorne provides a very uplifting eucalyptus and peppermint scent.
Anything that has alpha hydroxy acids is really great for getting rid of the build up on my elbows, or especially my legs, and my back. I do have an AHA product from Krave called Kale-lalu-yAHA ($25), but I'll use any AHA product once a week or twice a week after getting out of the shower, and then I’ll use the Nécessaire Body Lotion ($25). For fragrance I always wear Jo Malone London Basil and Neroli ($140); I never change it.
My (mostly) low-key hair care: $654
For shampoo and conditioner, I’m using the Naturelab Tokyo repair line ($14 each). I recently discovered it, and it’s been great. I tend to shed a lot, but ever since I’ve switched to these products, my hair actually falls out less. The number one product I swear by is a hair tool: the Dyson Airwrap ($499). It completely changed my hair. I used to heat-style my hair a lot with curling irons and straighteners, but that does damage your hair, and I would use a hair dryer, which adds another layer of damage. I'm still on the hunt for the perfect dry shampoo, but so far I’m using the IGK First Class dry shampoo and like it ($27).
I get my hair cut twice a year, and I haven't found a salon yet in New York, but every time I go back to Korea, I go back to my hairstylist. The haircut itself is actually pretty cheap in Korea. It’s $50, which is really why I get it done there. I almost feel like you have to chop your hair to get your money’s worth in New York.
My quick morning skin care routine: $53
My skin is an ever-changing living organ, and I try to adjust my skin care products according to that. You don’t want to overdo skin care—overwash it, overstrip your natural moisture barrier, or get too excited with AHAs—so I don’t overexfoliate. I don’t really reach for a high percentage of active ingredients. I try to keep it gentle and mild when it comes to product choices, and I think the best way is to keep my skin hydrated and protect it with SPF.
My morning skin care routine is probably the simplest. I don't wash my face in the morning to protect my moisture barrier. I learned talking to my dermatologist that your skin is never too dirty overnight unless you have extremely oily skin, so I just try to do a toner wash. I use Laneige Cream Skin Toner & Moisturizer ($33), on a cotton pad, and I simply wipe it and swipe it all across my face, so my skin is clean enough—it doesn’t need to be perfectly washed and stripped first thing in the morning. And then, with the same product, I add another layer but this time I will just pat it in. So the first step is to swipe with a cotton pad, and the second is to bring back the hydration. And then since the Cream Skin is so hydrating and nourishing—especially with the humidity level in New York, it's enough as a moisturizer itself—I jump into using sunscreen right away. I use Krave Beauty The Beet Shield ($20), which is my own formula, and it offers SPF 50. It's very pleasant and works perfectly as a makeup primer, so I can actually finish my routine in the morning with just two products.
My foundation-free daytime makeup: $53
I like to be simple with makeup, especially with my face makeup. I don’t use foundation, and I've been foundation free for the past two years. I started experimenting with this because Michelle Phan is a firm believer that her skin got so much better ever since she stopped using foundation. I used to have super-congested acne-prone skin, and then I started cutting back, slowly but surely, from high coverage to mid coverage to no coverage. Then I switched to using only concealer, and surprisingly that really helped with my skin recovery process. If you have acne-prone skin, once you’re addicted to full-coverage foundation, it’s kind of like a vicious cycle. You’re not really leaving your skin to recover or heal by itself, but also at the same time you want to have that boost of confidence by having that full-coverage foundation. It was a really difficult journey, but at the end I’m so proud of myself for jumping into that because it really did help my skin.
I use Maybelline Fit Me Concealer ($7). It doesn’t look awkward on a foundation-free face, and that’s what I look for in concealers. I like a blop of it underneath my eyes, where my dark circles are, and a little bit around my nose where my redness is. Then I use Innisfree No Sebum ($5) as a finishing powder. For eye makeup I love Etude House eye shadows ($10). They make really great, affordable eye shadows, and I love Em Cosmetics Eyeliner ($21). For lashes, I always stick to Maybelline mascaras. Right now I'm using Lash Sensational ($10).
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My evening makeup: $72
My nighttime makeup is pretty similar to my day look. I don’t really care about my makeup when I go out, and for events, it’s not my priority. I'll add a lipstick; Mamonde makes really good creamy pencils ($10). For someone who doesn’t really like wearing full-on makeup, Korean makeup brands tend to make really soft “my lips but better” lip tints and balms. Laneige Two Tone Lipsticks ($27) are always going to be my favorite. I’m a huge lip balm user, though, so I have a big collection of lip balms. I love the Laneige Lip Glowy Balms ($15). The grapefruit one is amazing to carry in your bag. And on my bedside table is the Lip Sleeping Mask ($20).
My nighttime skin care routine: $234
I use an eye makeup remover no matter what. I like Nivea's makeup remover ($12). And then I'll do a cleansing balm or cleansing oil—the Then I Met You Cleansing Balm ($38) from Charlotte Cho and the Farmacy Green Clean Balm ($34) are my favorites. Then I move on to using my water-based cleanser, the Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser ($16). It has a jam consistency that hugs your skin and doesn’t irritate or disrupt your skin barrier. I use Laneige Cream Skin Toner & Moisturizer from my morning routine as a toner and moisturizer after I cleanse my skin; it gives a punch of moisture and hydration. I've been using the Primera Alpine Berry Water Cream ($40) since it launched in South Korea. I also love the Mamonde Floral Moisture Cream ($35); it has such a good balance of occlusives and humectants (watery ingredients and oily ingredients) and a fluffy texture. I don’t like adding a sleeping mask every single day, but if I'm feeling really, really parched, I'll use the Laneige Water Sleeping Mask ($25) in summer, and in winter, I use the Belif Aqua Bomb Sleeping Mask ($34).
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My occasional treatments: $1,240
I get laser treatments whenever I go to Korea, because they're so accessible and affordable. I like doing a laser that’s for firming my skin about every three months. Does it make a difference? I don’t know; I get it because it’s cheap! It’s only $100 in Korea, so it’s not a bad investment.
I go to Nail Manhattan salon for a gel manicure once a month ($50). They go above and beyond, not like crazy designs, but they are meticulous in the sense that the surface of your nail bed is evened out, and the gel nail lasts so long. I don't get regular massages, but whenever I’m in Chinatown, there are a lot of body reflexology places that have massages for less than like $60 an hour, so I’ll do that.
My life-changing workout classes: $948
I’m pretty big on meditation. I do it every morning. First thing out of bed, I try to center and gather myself, and set my intentions to start off the day. I’ve been doing it for two years—it’s been everything. I use ClassPass ($79/month) as a gym membership. There’s a workout practice called Body Art, which is all about enhancing your bodily function, so it incorporates movements that are most natural to your body. It’s a merge between yoga and Pilates. During the workout it doesn’t feel like you’re really pushing yourself, but at the end you feel like you’ve been challenged, and you feel sore the next day. It incorporates some ying and yang philosophy into it too. After, it feels like you're in balance and in the place you really need to live in.
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