I’m a recent college grad looking at moving to Taiwan sometime in 2023 to teach English.
Something that is really important to me is skincare, I used to have moderate to severe acne that is now mild because I obsessively moisturize and use a few US based products. I have oily type skin.
Just wanted to start thinking early about some stuff, namely, what are some products you guys recommend for skincare? I don’t want to pack a million different products and would like to have an idea of what to look for when I arrive.
Any tips on surviving the humidity with minimal acne would also be appreciated.
Hi! Taiwan has a great skincare product selection (much better than in America, I would say)! If you are very diligent and follow all the steps in the Korean routine, for example, I’m pretty sure you can find most products in local stores. Also, you can import products from iHerb. However, if you are currently using a special cream given by a dermatologist, you might want to stock on that before coming.
If you have any concerns about finding a specific product, I could go and check on the local beauty stores or pharmacies for you. The only thing I would bring is giant bottles of sunblock. Sunblock here can get pretty expensive, and it’s sold in small ass bottles.
Is your skincare routine made up of mostly European or American products? You can find most of the big name brands here like CeraVe, Vichy, La Roche Posay, etc. I’ve also seen brands like Paula’s Choice, The Ordinary and the like sold online. Some of these brands are a tiny bit pricier here though. Have to admit, I’m not super familiar with American brands, so I’m not entirely sure which brands you’re looking for specifically.
If you’re thinking of switching over to Japanese or Korean skincare, personally, I think you’d find a larger selection of products to choose from. You’ll find a decent range of Japanese brands here at Watsons, Tomod’s, 日本藥鋪 and Matsumoto Kiyoshi. There’re some Korean brands too, but I think the selection’s comparatively smaller.
I definitely would like to look into those brands! Idk how familiar you are with the products themselves, but I’ll try and do research into which ones would be good for oily skin, in case you have no idea.
Not super familiar with products for oily, acne-prone skin coz my skin’s the complete opposite, I’m afraid The Asian beauty subreddit’s pretty helpful, if you need recommendations. Of course, not everything’s going to be that easy to find.
From my experience, I’ve found it easy to get brands like Biore, Curel, Senka, and Hada Labo. You can try MUJI skincare too - the toners aren’t bad tbh. Also I’ve seen the Naturie hatomugi toners at Matsumoto Kiyoshi and 日本藥鋪. I’ve not tried it myself though! For Korean brands (COSRX, Dr.Jart, Rovectin, Wishtrend/Dear Klairs, etc.), I think they’re easier to get online vs buying them at actual stores.
Not sure how I missed this, but gah so true. I feel like I’ve spent a fortune on sunscreen here. I recently got back from a trip to the PH and you bet yer ass I hoarded some sunscreen to bring back to Taiwan lol
The Asian beauty subreddit’s pretty helpful, if you need recommendations. Of course, not everything’s going to be that easy to find.