Glow Recipe Just Launched This 5-Minute K-Beauty Skincare Step, And We’re All Obsessed
Some launches are easy to scroll past. This one is not, at least if you ask the editors at Byrdie. When a brand they already love teases something new, they pay attention — and Glow Recipe’s latest launch gave their editor in chief, Hallie Gould, what she calls a butterfly feeling, the kind that tells you you are about to really love something. The launch is a new line of Korean Toner Pads, and the idea is simple: a five-minute K-beauty step that fits into a routine you already have. The pads come in three versions — soothing, exfoliating, and brightening — plus a multi-tasking kit Gould says she cannot wait to get her hands on. Each one is aimed at a common skin concern, and each one works fast.
Three Pads, One Five-Minute Step
The range covers three jobs. The soothing pads are the PDRN+ Repair + Soothe Korean Toner Pads, made for calming irritation and redness. The exfoliating pads are the LHA + AHA ones — the LHA + AHA Korean Watermelon Toner Pads — built around a blend of acids. And the brightening pads are the Vitamin C Brightening Korean Toner Pads. There is also a multi-tasking kit, the Korean Toner Pad Multi-Masking Kit, that bundles the idea into one set. However you use them, the format is the same: a pad soaked in essence that you press onto the skin and leave in place for five minutes, like a mini mask — only one you can wear while you get on with your morning.
The Brightening Routine in the Reel
Glow Recipe’s own reel for the launch shows the brightening side of the range as a three-step routine. First come the Vitamin C Brightening Toner Pads, which the caption says depuff and brighten dark circles and dark spots in five minutes, thanks to five types of vitamin C, plus glutathione, caffeine, and niacinamide. Next is the Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Serum, which evens skin tone and helps treat and prevent dark spots with encapsulated vitamin C, ferulic acid, tranexamic acid, and vitamin E. And the routine finishes with the Watermelon Pink Juice Oil-Free Moisturizer, which hydrates, soothes, and boosts the skin’s radiance without clogging pores. The caption lists the range as available at Sephora, Kohl’s, and glowrecipe.com. That routine comes from the brand’s Instagram caption rather than from Byrdie’s own text, but it is how Glow Recipe itself frames the brightening pads.
Then the Byrdie editors take over. Below, they each talk about their favourite of the bunch — how they use it, and why they love it. Here is what they said, in their own order.
Derek Deng’s Pick: The Exfoliating Pads
Associate content editor Derek Deng goes for the exfoliating pads — specifically, the LHA + AHA ones. In his words, they make exfoliating feel downright sexy. The blend of acids, he says, strikes the perfect balance between effective and gentle, and it never tips into stripping territory. Each pad is soaked with just the right amount of essence, which he points out is surprisingly hard to find. When he is feeling a little extra, he leaves them on like a mini mask — except that, unlike sheet masks, he can actually eat food and talk while they are on his face. The result, he says, is clearer, brighter, and glowier skin.
Hallie Gould’s Pick: The Soothing Pads
Gould’s own favourite is the PDRN+ Repair + Soothe Korean Toner Pads. They are made for soothing irritation and reducing redness, which she says she sadly suffers from both of. The blend pairs PDRN with adenosine, glycerin, beta glucan, centella, and panthenol, and together they work to hydrate, repair skin-barrier issues, and firm — all in five minutes. She likes to apply them after washing her face while she is doing something else (she loves a multi-task), like brushing her hair and thinking about an outfit. In no time, she says, it is time to take them off, and the skin looks absolutely glowing. She calls herself a big believer.
Olivia Hancock’s Take: The Same Soothing Pads, Worn Longer
Senior beauty editor Olivia Hancock reaches for the same soothing pads, and for her they have been a saving grace for dry skin lately. The ultra-thin pads are soaked in a soothing essence packed with vegan PDRN+, adenosine, glycerin, beta-glucan, centella, and panthenol, which work together to calm redness, deeply hydrate, and support the skin barrier. They deliver results in five minutes, she says — but she likes to leave them on for about fifteen minutes, so her skin can really drink up all the benefits.
That is the whole idea here: a step that takes five minutes, fits around everything else you are doing, and comes in a version for whatever your skin needs most that day — soothing, exfoliating, or brightening. The editors each found their favourite quickly. The hard part, judging by their reactions, is picking just one.
