Creator profile
@labmuffinbeautyscience
I’m Michelle, a science educator and chemistry PhD from Sydney, Australia. I’m here to help you work out which beauty products are worth buying and which aren’t, using science! I started Lab Muffin because I was frustrated that there weren't enough easy-to-understand explanations of the science behind beauty products. I firmly believe that anyone can understand the science behind skincare and beauty. For business/PR enquiries: michelle@labmuffin.com DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical doctor. Care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information here, but it is provided for education and research purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider regarding any medical conditions. No liability is accepted for any injury, loss or damage incurred by use of or reliance on the information provided by me.
It's very no frills. It's almost like a Korean version of The Ordinary.▶ 3:59–4:03
I didn't really notice any real changes in my skin while I was using it, except this is extremely gentle.▶ 4:44–4:56
It's not irritating and it is fragrance-free, which is kind of rare for body washes.▶ 4:56–5:01
I really enjoyed this product.▶ 5:05–5:07
It is a really nice cleanser. It comes out quite firm and it forms a really nice dense lather and it didn't strip my skin much at all.▶ 9:22–9:33
It has some soothing ingredients as well like allantoin, panthenol, and ceramide.▶ 11:04–11:08
It is fragrance-free and it has a sort of fragrance-free smell.▶ 11:09–11:13
This is probably the easiest to spread, easiest to handle cleansing balm I've ever tried. It's really soft. It's almost as easy as an oil to spread.▶ 6:03–6:15
For makeup removal, I found that this works really well for everything. It works really well on eyeshadow as well as both of my gel eyeliners.▶ 6:25–6:29
It does leave a very slight layer of like moisturizing oil on my face, but it's not really a problem for me. I have no clogged pores from it and I usually leave it.▶ 6:35–6:45
I guess the big downside, for me at least, which may be an upside for you, is that this basically has no fragrance. I can't smell anything in it.▶ 6:50–6:55
But if you're looking for a fragrance-free one, this is pretty much perfect in my books for everything else.▶ 7:05–7:09
This has a soft melting sorbet sort of texture and it has a moderate fragrance by Korean standards which is pretty light by western standards.▶ 4:36–4:47
It rinses cleanly and on me I found that it had no eye sting.▶ 4:54–4:58
With makeup removal, I found that it was good for most things, including cream eyeshadow and one of my gel eyeliners, but it did struggle a bit with my other gel eyeliner.▶ 4:59–5:02
I think this would work well for everything except for most stubborn makeup.▶ 5:07–5:12
This makes my skin feel amazing afterwards. It takes away all the oil but leaves it feeling moisturized afterwards.▶ 12:11–12:22
Foams up really well.▶ 12:22–12:24
This smells like it's almost nice, almost fragrant, almost like Dove.▶ 12:27–12:40
This is really good. Yeah, it foams up slightly and rinses off really well. Makes me feel like my skin's moisturized afterwards. And yeah, this does really well. I'm holding on to this. This is my skin cleanser.▶ 12:46–13:00
It's not stripping. It doesn't have really harsh surfactants in it.▶ 13:17–13:20
It gives a nice foam at a pH of about 5.5.
This is now one of my top cleansing balms. I think I've got maybe three on my top tier and this is definitely one of them.▶ 4:11–4:17
This one feels really lovely. It smells really nice, it's got like a light orange flower and grapefruit scent, and it melts into an oil nicely on my skin.▶ 4:17–4:22
It rubs on really nicely. It's effective at melting down all my makeup.▶ 4:32–4:36
This is also fine for my eyes. I use it to remove my eyeliner and I found that my eyes don't sting and they don't go blurry afterwards either.▶ 4:37–4:42
Top marks to this. Big fan. Lives up to the hype for me.▶ 5:17–5:22
This is a relatively gentle cleanser.▶ 7:59–8:01
I think this is really good for most people.
This is really nice. It's got a low acidic pH of 5.5, which is close to skin's pH.▶ 8:09–8:20
It makes lots of really luxurious, dense foam.
After this rinses off, I found that my skin felt really nice and soft and hydrated, but it still cleans really well for me as a second cleanser.▶ 9:02–9:17
I find that this is really similar to that Skin1004 cleanser that my husband Omar really loves.▶ 9:17–9:27
It does claim that it doesn't sting eyes. So I tried it on my eyes and it's fine. It doesn't sting them.▶ 9:27–9:32
It comes out as like a bit of a hard paste. So it's actually very easy to dispense the right amount that you want to use. It doesn't all just spill out.▶ 9:53–10:03
It is a really lightweight cleansing oil. It spreads really easily and it also rinses off really easily, too.▶ 14:39–14:45
This works really well. There's no eye sting or blurriness for me, and it gets off all my waterproof eyeliner.▶ 14:59–15:08
This hasn't broken me out.▶ 15:17–15:18
It also has an extremely light scent, which I like.▶ 15:22–15:24
And the pump is super convenient.▶ 15:27–15:29
I measured this out and it should last about 120 uses for me.
Again, a really solid product as a first cleanser. Really good for makeup removal. I have zero complaints about this.▶ 15:33–15:38
Vitamin A derivatives like retinal are kind of like the powerhouse ingredients in skincare.▶ 10:37–10:42
In general, I have found that retinal products do feel gentler on my skin, less spicy, and I think it is because these stabilizing methods do make them release more slowly.▶ 11:43–11:54
This one has been through an irritation test.▶ 11:59–12:01
This is a really good product if you are more experienced with retinoids or if your skin is just really not sensitive to them.▶ 12:49–13:04
It has a nice nozzle that makes it very easy to control how much you're dispensing.▶ 13:34–13:38
It really cuts down on the risk of like having a super inflamed face 2 days after you've tried a retinal.▶ 13:43–13:54
Overall the formula is very similar to the Beauty of Joseon retinal eye cream. That one has 2% liposomal retinal.
This cream has a really interesting texture. It is a lightweight gel with brightening and soothing ingredients.▶ 0:36–0:40
This is lightly hydrating and it forms a sort of film on skin that stays on really well and gives a glass skin sort of slightly shiny look.▶ 0:46–0:51
I used this as a sleeping mask over my other products to lock them in and it worked really well.▶ 0:56–1:01
I could still feel this there in the morning.▶ 1:01–1:03
I have seen a few people say that this clogged their pores. I personally didn't have an issue with this, but if you are prone to clogged pores, keep an eye out for that.▶ 1:06–1:10
This has a rich gel moisturizer sort of texture. It feels quite thick and it stays on my skin a bit like a balm, but it doesn't feel greasy like a lot of western balms.▶ 13:40–13:51
I've been using this at night over my other products. It is summer here, but I've had the air con on, so it's been pretty dry in here and my skin has just been like getting the moisture sucked out of it, but it's been doing pretty well with this cream.▶ 13:51–14:00
It has a really nice sort of light herbal scent.▶ 14:06–14:08
It's just really nice and soothing to use this after more irritating products or alongside them.
It's sort of like a cream version of the La Roche Posay Cicaplast Baume.
So I've been using this on top of other more irritating products, sometimes on its own when my skin needs a break or just mixing it with like tretinoin or with acid exfoliants to make them a little bit gentler.▶ 14:29–14:43
Overall, I've been really enjoying this and it's nice that it also has benefits of its own.▶ 14:49–14:53
It is one of my top repair products.
Pyunkang Yul I think is just such an underrated brand. They have so many really solid products.▶ 5:25–5:30
This is a really nice soothing balm. I really love it for when my skin is just grumpy and irritated and can't really handle that much.▶ 5:31–5:37
When you put it on your skin, it is actually really, really lightweight.
It is really good at sinking into skin quickly. It still ends up matte and not greasy.
It actually doesn't make my makeup slide around much at all, which is so good for using during the day.▶ 6:09–6:20
This balm just works so well for calming and protection when my skin is really irritated and red and shaved.▶ 6:50–6:55
It really helps support it while it's healing without irritating it.▶ 6:55–6:58
This looks and behaves just like a regular serum until you start rubbing it in and that's when you start feeling a bit of mild tingling.▶ 1:34–1:48
I've personally found it very soothing even while using it daily.▶ 2:07–2:10
I found that this is making my pores look a bit smaller it's really smoothing my skin out and giving me closer to that sort of glass skin look.▶ 2:48–2:57
I think this is a really nice safe starter product that's not too hard to incorporate into your routine and I think it's really cool to have a product that is truly innovative.▶ 3:18–3:29
It has this sort of milky gooey texture that I find very hydrating and not too greasy.▶ 8:34–8:39
My skin is more on the oily side so I find that this works really well as a moisturizer instead of moisturizer.▶ 8:40–8:46
This is a really nice soothing product for when my skin is irritated.▶ 8:46–8:49
After you put it on your skin or on my skin at least it sinks in really nicely it doesn't feel like sticky or anything it's just very lightweight and very hydrating.▶ 8:54–8:59
The texture of this is very runny and it's in a tube that has like a skinny little nozzle that helps you control it.▶ 7:32–7:42
To me, this has pretty much zero fragrance. It has no white cast as well, and it dries with a sort of glowy skin smoothing finish.▶ 7:42–7:46
It just made my skin look really nice and smooth and plump.▶ 7:56–8:04
I think this is fantastic, especially if you're not planning to use foundation on top, if you're planning to go makeup free.▶ 8:05–8:09
It is really hydrating, and I think this is probably from all the different types of hydrolysed collagen they have in this.
This has a pretty thick texture when it's coming out of the tube and I'm applying it, but it feels very lightweight on my skin and there isn't any noticeable fragrance.▶ 3:00–3:04
There were still some white patches, but only on places where I applied it more thickly. And it blended out pretty easily with my fingers and all of it pretty much died down by 30 minutes.▶ 3:04–3:13
Overall, I really enjoyed the sunscreen. I can see why people like it. And even though I am a mineral sunscreen hater, I get it.▶ 4:11–4:21
It has a gel texture, it's got a really light and floral fresh sort of fragrance.▶ 3:11–3:17
It has a light cooling sort of sensation as you apply it.▶ 3:17–3:20
This spreads really nicely, it dries down quickly.▶ 3:37–3:39
It does get a little bit tacky and hard to spread a bit faster if you go back and try to apply more on areas you've already covered.▶ 3:42–3:46
After it's dried down it's clear and a little bit glossy, but it is a really thin comfortable layer.▶ 3:46–3:55
There's not like a greasy shine and that shine is easily covered up by a tiny any amount of powder.▶ 3:55–4:00
There is a bit of a pore filling effect and it feels really lightweight.▶ 4:00–4:03
The Nivea is more matte, my skin is oily so I personally prefer the Nivea.▶ 5:34–5:39
I think it is super cool to have a new filter and I am really impressed by the innovation behind it.▶ 9:04–9:08
It is really good at absorbing UV for the percentage included in a sunscreen it is even higher than avobenzone.▶ 9:08–9:13
It covers longer UVA wavelengths from 370 to 400 nanometres and other filters don't really cover that area that well.▶ 9:18–9:31
The sunscreens with it do seem to be a little bit on the yellow side so it does seem to absorb a bit of violet light but this probably isn't a big problem unless your skin is very pale and cool toned.▶ 9:40–9:43
I'm also pretty impressed by the clinical trials on it it seems like they are actually really trying to challenge it and put it through its paces.▶ 9:51–9:54
The differences weren't like really massive it seems to be mostly differences in pigmented spots in more pigment prone skin types.▶ 10:18–10:23
It is clearly an impressive technological improvement but in terms of practical implications for people I don't think it will be that big for most people.▶ 10:37–10:41
The biggest benefit I think is for people who might not be using the other options so for example people who work outdoors or people who don't want to wear makeup or broad brimmed hats.▶ 11:34–11:38
This one gets recommended a lot on skincare forums.▶ 20:04–20:07
It is 4 hours water resistant and it also comes in a big 200 mL pump so twice the size for under $20.▶ 20:15–20:22
Smells neutral even slightly pleasant, plastic feels exceptionally light, a big achievement for an Australian sunscreen with water resistance.▶ 20:27–20:36
It's smooth and glides well, no piling up and it doesn't feel like it's going to rub off either.▶ 20:36–20:42
No shine or whiteness, no stinging which is the eye stinging or irritation.▶ 20:42–20:48
Lightly oily feel but doesn't feel enough to clog pores.▶ 20:48–20:51
Packaging is a flip top with a squeezeable container which means that it could explode in your bag.▶ 20:51–20:53
Smells lightly nice, very light and glides really well. Sinks in great. You have to rub it in a little but it's not tacky at all.▶ 24:18–24:28
It comes out lightly white on my skin but disappears after 30 seconds and leaves behind a very nice little bit of a shine.▶ 24:28–24:32
It is shinier than Hamilton but there's no stinging, there's no irritation.▶ 24:32–24:37
Wow, super hydrating too. I can actually feel it. No seriously, I tried on all five of these sunscreens thanks to Michelle, and this one was the most hydrating out of them all.▶ 24:39–24:50
Doesn't feel like it will clog up my pores either.▶ 24:53–24:57
Packaging is a fliptop with a squeezable container, potential for bag explosions. This isn't where's the twisty tops?▶ 24:59–25:02
The only reason this isn't in the top for me is because it only has older filters.▶ 26:14–26:19
The upside is it is available in the US.▶ 26:19–26:25
It's formulated to be lightweight hydrating and it's clear as you can tell from the name.
It has zero silicone though unlike a lot of clear sunscreens.▶ 26:25–26:29
I don't like the smell personally but others might be okay with it.▶ 26:42–26:46
It feels smooth light and glides on well but it takes a while to sink in and it still feels oily about 10 minutes later.▶ 26:47–26:58
Doesn't pile up has a noticeable shine and stays white for a short while after applying I think it was white for me for a good minute afterwards.▶ 26:59–27:02
There's no stinging or irritation but it doesn't feel hydrating at all also feels a bit heavy.▶ 27:06–27:12
It is fantastic, it is very affordable and very wearable. It is an excellent introduction to Asian sunscreens.▶ 4:52–5:01
It has a gel cream texture and again it has a light cooling sensation when you're applying it.▶ 5:01–5:06
When it's dried it has that lovely pore filling effect.▶ 5:08–5:12
The Biore has slightly more of an alcohol smell when I was applying it but it didn't really bother me and the alcohol itself didn't really irritate my skin.▶ 5:20–5:29
The Biore is a bit oilier, it doesn't dry down quite as quickly as the Nivea.▶ 5:29–5:34
If I try extremely hard and massage my face a whole bunch after the sunscreens have dried down I can get the Biore to pill a little bit.▶ 5:39–5:45
I have never had an issue with either one of these pilling under makeup.▶ 5:45–5:48
The Biore comes in a larger pack size, it's 70 grams versus 50 and it has a flip top lid.▶ 5:56–6:02
I really like this because it isn't too glidey when I'm applying it.▶ 6:13–6:17
It is fragrance-free with very minimal smell.▶ 6:17–6:19
The finish is satiny; it isn't as matte as I really expected for an oil control product but honestly I don't think any chemical sunscreens go really super matte.▶ 6:23–6:29
It does stay the same level of satiny for a really long time so I found that really impressive.▶ 6:29–6:39
It is still really lightweight compared to most other European sunscreens.▶ 6:39–6:48
I found it really comfortable especially given that this is water resistant.▶ 6:48–6:52
I really enjoyed wearing this; it felt like it stayed in place really well despite all the oil and sweat and heat.▶ 6:53–6:59
It is really similar to the old La Roche-Posay invisible fluid.▶ 7:04–7:11
It is definitely meant to be a dupe.▶ 7:18–7:21
It's fragrance-free, it's lightweight, it's non-greasy, it is just really lovely and smooth to apply.▶ 7:35–7:38
It says it's anti-eye stinging which was true in my experience.▶ 7:40–7:44
I found this a bit more matte and less oily than I expected which was a really pleasant surprise.▶ 7:44–7:48
There's a slight sunscreen smell and it is pretty runny it is a fluid but it's not ridiculous it is still pretty manageable and doesn't make a massive mess.▶ 7:53–7:57
The packaging is pretty neat it is Omar approved.▶ 8:02–8:05
This nozzle just doesn't seem to be very messy like there is no sunscreen on the threads.▶ 8:16–8:22
My recommendation for oily skin is the oil control gel cream.▶ 12:22–12:26
This does contain mattifying microparticles that help to absorb excess oil and those were in the other oil control products from La Roche-Posay as well which I have also really enjoyed.▶ 12:29–12:37
The mousse format is fantastic for reapplying quickly and easily. It's like it's already spread out a whole bunch so you can just slap it on really quickly. You don't need to rub it in much.▶ 13:31–13:39
It is really good if you are unco you're not like flinging sunscreen fluid everywhere and getting lotion all over your stuff.▶ 13:39–13:48
It is also really easy to apply lots of these sunscreens in one go. You don't have to like apply in two layers and wait in between.▶ 13:48–13:51
Evy recommend applying a golf ball sized amount to your face and I found that that is pretty accurate by weight.▶ 13:54–13:57
The downside if it's windy then it can fly away if you're not careful.▶ 14:00–14:04
Evy also do a lot of extra testing on their sunscreen products which I find really impressive.▶ 14:07–14:11
Even though they are a bit heavier and stickier for my skin and climate than I generally like for everyday wear, although it isn't really noticeable under makeup.▶ 13:14–13:24
I did start doing very sweaty exercise outside in the sun. I know who even am I? It turns out that the mousse format is fantastic for reapplying quickly and easily.▶ 13:24–13:31
It's very very similar to the Beauty of Joseon sunscreen which has been my longtime favorite.▶ 15:04–15:11
They feel almost the same on my skin. I would say that this is like a touch more moisturizing.▶ 15:15–15:19
It's glidey and moisturizing without being like sticky or greasy.▶ 15:19–15:24
If I apply this unevenly and let it dry then and sometimes I will get a bit of a white streak but it blends out really easily.▶ 15:24–15:33
On some people with darker skin there is a slight white cast though that doesn't go away. So for example my friend Esther who is themelaninchemist on Instagram her skin tone is nw45.▶ 15:33–15:37
There's no alcohol in the sunscreens from this family and most of these also don't have fragrance.▶ 15:43–15:47
This is one of the very few Korean chemical sunscreens that has a different formula from all those Kolmar ones that I've tried so far that I would still give top marks to for my skin.▶ 16:20–16:24
The biggest upside is that it has no white cast if you have darker skin.▶ 16:32–16:35
I would say that this is slightly more moisturizing than the round lab.▶ 16:35–16:39
This is probably the lightest version there is. It's really popular with people in more humid countries.▶ 15:52–15:59
This dries down to feel like almost nothing but it is still hydrating.▶ 16:01–16:05
It is really great if you hate the feel of sunscreen on your face.▶ 16:05–16:08
I also really like this flat pump tube. It is really good for tucking into your handbag and it's really easy to measure out the right amount of product.▶ 16:08–16:12
Hamilton was actually the first sunscreen brand I ever used back when I was like six.▶ 21:37–21:40
The cream is super light and glides on very well. It sinks in great, there's no piling and no tackiness. It's not noticeable at all and not that much shine.▶ 23:38–23:43
The product description says it's matte finish. I'd agree with that.▶ 23:47–23:51
It's not white so it's not white casting.
There's no stinging or irritation and it is lightly moisturizing as well.▶ 23:53–23:56
Packaging again is a flip top with a squeezable container which means that it can still explode in your bag. This should change.
Bondi Sands Hydra appears lightly oily on my skin but disappears very quickly.▶ 25:30–25:35
It smells okay, kind of plastic. Smooth to apply, easy to work with, sinks in quickly and also doesn't pill up.▶ 25:36–25:43
Doesn't leave any white on my face. It feels oily but light with a very light shine.▶ 25:43–25:49
No stinging on the skin but lightly irritating.▶ 25:49–25:52
Doesn't feel like it's going to clog up my skin.▶ 25:59–26:01
Packaging is a flip top again with a squeezable container. Potential for bag explosions.▶ 26:02–26:07
It's lighter and less greasy than the other Bondi Sands sunscreen.▶ 26:07–26:10
I found that this is slightly heavier than some of the Korean sunscreens I've tried.▶ 9:47–9:55
It has a little bit of pilling if I rub and this is pretty standard what I expect for a water-resistant sunscreen.▶ 9:56–10:01
It is still really nice and light.▶ 10:01–10:02
I found that it had a slight white cast when I first applied it. I'm guessing that's from the MBBT but it goes away after it dries down on my skin.▶ 10:06–10:10
I can definitely see why this is so popular.▶ 10:10–10:13
the Aqua Fresh is lighter. It's designed for normal to oily skin.▶ 1:22–1:25
this version has more of a matte finish. It has less of a shiny emollient oil layer left on the skin.
this one much more lightweight, and it's especially obvious when you put it on your face.
this version does not have MBBT▶ 1:53–1:55
if that white cast was a bit of a problem for you, this one doesn't have it - highly recommend trying it out.▶ 2:14–2:25
this does not have niacinamide▶ 2:25–2:27
this formula just solves a lot of problems that people had with Korean sunscreens.▶ 2:57–3:07
It feels really nice on skin.▶ 3:29–3:31
This is one of my favorite Korean sunscreens.▶ 0:46–0:48
I actually gave out little samples of this at my wedding.▶ 0:56–0:59
The old formula was really good for me. It was really glowy, and I really enjoyed that.▶ 1:27–1:37
I know some people did feel that was too heavy or glowy, especially in summer.
The main thing I saw this recommended for is cooling and calming and I feel like this 100% lives up to that.▶ 5:58–6:04
I found this a very lightly hydrating product.▶ 6:04–6:05
The cooling effect does last for a good amount of time after taking it off. I found that it lasts for maybe 10 to 15 minutes.▶ 6:57–7:01
I found that using this worked really well.▶ 7:07–7:09
There is also a conditioner which is designed to smooth hair and that reduces breakage.▶ 8:59–9:03
They made a shampoo and a leave-on treatment with active ingredients in them.
There was less oxidative stress.▶ 6:25–6:27
The scalp barrier was also better with the active ingredients.
You can see there is more hair with the active ingredients.▶ 6:59–7:06
They found that there was less shedding with the actives.▶ 7:53–7:56
These three work extra well together.▶ 8:40–8:42
People immediately start to see their hair looking thicker - that's probably because of the serum, there is a polymer in here that can help hair stand up a bit.▶ 9:07–9:15
After a month, people see less hair in their brush and drain.▶ 9:15–9:23
They made a shampoo and a leave-on treatment with active ingredients in them.
There was less oxidative stress.▶ 6:25–6:27
The scalp barrier was also better with the active ingredients.▶ 6:33–6:39
You can see there is more hair with the active ingredients.▶ 6:59–7:06
They found that there was less shedding with the actives.▶ 7:53–7:56
These three work extra well together.▶ 8:40–8:42
People immediately start to see their hair looking thicker.
After a month, people see less hair in their brush and drain.