Olive Young just opened a flagship store in Pasadena and they have a Olive Young K-Beauty Edit selection available at Sephora, so today I’m sharing all the best natural Korean beauty products you can find at OY. Here’s what to buy in store if you’re looking for natural and clean Korean skincare.

I visited the Olive Young store in Los Angeles and I’m sharing my brutally honest thoughts on my shopping experience, the services they offer, and my curated list of the best K beauty products.

Why should you trust me? I’m a Korean American beauty blogger with extensive skincare experience, not to mention growing up with a skincare loving Korean mom. Oh and I’ve been to many actual Olive Young stores in Korea.

This is from my last trip to Olive Young in Seoul which is multiple stories, has a clean beauty section and an enormous sunscreen section – a true heaven. The brands and products that are popular in Korea are never what’s popular in the US btw.

The American Olive Young store in Los Angeles is honestly very spacious, clean, well lit, well organized and enjoyable to be in. There’s k-pop music playing, but not overly loud, there’s no overwhelming smell of chemical fragrance, it’s very well lit but not too fluorescent, so not as hyperstimulating as Sephora. It’s nice to have a store that feels like a safe space for Asian Americans.

The key difference in Olive Young is all the tech and AI-powered beauty analysis offered so you can understand your skin, not just shop for products. Here’s the full list of what’s offered beyond products:

• Skin Scan: A free skin analysis that gives you product recommendations based on your skin concerns. It’s offered at both locations.
• Scalp analysis: A free scalp assessment in the hair care section
• Skincare lessons: Free sessions for K-beauty beginners, covering sunscreen, serums and double cleansing.
• AI-powered beauty devices: In-store diagnostic tools that pair analysis with personalized recommendations
• Cleanse Bar: A sink area for testing all types of cleansers
• Product testing: Testers are available of course so you can try before you buy

My Cons:

• There’s no clean beauty section like there is at the flagship Olive Young store in Myeongdong. That one actually has a very large section specifically for “clean beauty.” I even took a picture of it while there.
• Sunscreen: The Korean sunscreen section in Korea is obviously way better, but it’s understandable. The US regulates sunscreen which is classified as an OTC while sunscreens are sold as a cosmetic in Korea.
• Service isn’t as good in the US: no matter which OY store I went to in Seoul (they’re literally on every street) every employee was very polite, but in the Pasadena store I was surprised that some were straight-up unfriendly.

New member perks: There’s also some great perks if you sign up as a member. I got $5 for signing up and $40 off a $150 purchase.

Return Policy: Olive Young has a pretty generous return policy. You can return new and “gently used” items within 15 days at the same location. I’d take advantage of this now while they’re trying to get as many new shoppers as possible.

Best Natural K-Beauty Products at Olive Young

Here’s what to actually buy – I list my curated picks for clean beauty in the Olive Young K-beauty store.

I tried Purito Wonder Relief Centella Serum Unscented

Purito is an OG natural skincare brand in the K-beauty world. Their Wonder Releaf Centella Serum Unscented is fragrance free, gentle, sensitive skin friendly and made with Centella asiatica, the soothing plant behind so many Korean cica products. This one stands out from the sea of Korean cica skincare because it’s got NO fragrance or essential oils to irritate reactive skin. The serum is lightweight and absorbs quickly, so it layers under moisturizer and sunscreen without pilling. I reach for it whenever my skin looks blotchy or is acting up.

I tried Goodal Rice Milk Cream and Heartleaf Clear Pad

Goodal is another natural focused, vegan skincare brand in the K-beauty world that’s been around for 15 years. Rice Milk Cream is vegan, gentle and one of the most comforting moisturizers I’ve tried for a stressed-out skin barrier in K-beauty. Gimme rice everything seriously. It’s made with Jeju Sandui rice for softness, aqua ceramide to help hold in moisture and vitamin E for a little antioxidant support. The cream is rich enough for dry skin but still easy to layer, and it comes in a squeezy tube that’s travel friendly.

I tried CHUNGMIJUNG Kelp Hair and Scalp Essence

CHUNGMIJUNG has got to be the most slept on gem in K beauty hands down. They have BDIH organic certification and make hair care, skin care and body care using naturally derived and organic ingredients. This is so rare. So what’s a hair essence? It’s basically a leave-in conditioner spray treatment – same idea as a skincare essence but for hair! CHUNGMIJUNG’s Kelp Hair and Scalp Essence uses 100% plant-based and natural ingredients that focus on nourishing and repairing, not just conditioning and hydrating. It’s got Aloe barbadensis leaf extract, kelp extract, a trio of lactobacillus ferments made from soybean, kelp and turmeric, plus a TON of traditional Korean botanicals like eleuthero root, licorice, peony, centella asiatica and pine bark to nourish the scalp and follicles, condition strands and help prevent breakage. The texture is watery, and comes out as a very fine mist so it never weighs hair down or leaves the scalp greasy. The scent is subtle and comes from natural oils like apple, mint and orange peel.

Ongredients Skin Barrier Calming Lotion

Ongredients is a Korean skincare brand with a natural ingredient focus and their Skin Barrier Calming Lotion is gentle, simple and soothing. I love that it has centella asiatica and coptis japonica root extract to calm redness, and their own patented NB P-Complex, four plant ingredients including yerba mate and purple carrot, fermented for seven days. It also has a complex of nine peptides for bounce and moisture. It’s called a lotion but feels more like a serum – the texture is light and essence-like, so it sinks in fast and leaves skin smooth and supple, never greasy. This is great if you want minimal ingredients and to strengthen your skin barrier without using an actual cream. They’re a newer brand that came out in the last several years so I’d keep them on your radar.

Aromatica Rosemary Scalp Scrub

Aromatica is one of the first OG natural Korean skincare brands I tried almost ten years ago (they’ve been around over 20 years!). I love that they’re still doing well despite how competitive Kbeauty has become. They’re a EWG verified Korean skincare brand and the Rosemary Scalp Scrub is vegan, cruelty free, silicone free and sulfate free.

Sea salt is the very first ingredient, and it does the exfoliating, buffing away flakes, oil and dry shampoo buildup. Rosemary is the hero botanical, alongside ginger, pine needle, basil and oregano, plus caffeine, panthenol, salicylic acid and niacinamide. The salt granules melt as you massage, and the menthol leaves a cool, refreshing tingle that I look forward to every wash day. It has a fresh herbal scent that smells like a spa. Simple and straightforward.

Easydew Barrier Repair Cream

Easydew Barrier Repair Cream is a more clinically advanced clean skincare line in K-beauty. It’s backed by real pharmaceutical science, which makes it stand out among K-beauty moisturizers and has no fragrance, parabens or essential oils. It comes from Daewoong Pharmaceutical, which has spent over 30 years researching DW-EGF, a patented growth factor peptide. It’s also got Ceramide NP, panthenol, niacinamide, hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid, collagen and elastin, plus centella compounds like madecassoside and asiatic acid for calming. The texture is thick and nourishing without feeling heavy. This is a relatively clean product but not all natural.

Abib Gummy Sheet Mask Sedum Hyaluron Sticker

Sheet masks are a dime a dozen in K-beauty and they honestly all start feeling very similar to each other, but I really like the ingredients and hydrating effect of Abib Gummy Sheet Mask. I’ve tried all the popular collagen sheet masks by Biodance, Medicube etc, but I’m focusing this curation on more hidden gem under-the-radar type products. Gummy Sheet Mask Sedum Hyaluron Sticker is insanely hydrating and made with sedum sarmentosum, a water-storing succulent, and hyaluronic acid. The sheet sticks to your face, so it stays put while I move around or sit upright working, and each mask holds 27 ml of essence. They do use a couple of ingredients you may want to avoid like Disodium EDTA but overall has a relatively clean formula.

More Natural K-Beauty Brands

• ONETHING is another great natural Korean skincare brand that’s focused on minimal, natural ingredients
• Mixsoon is a vegan, natural focused skincare brand with a lot of single-ingredient essence toners and their Soybean Milk Pads are one of my top faves that are truly clean toner pads (a rarity!). I’ve got a full review.
• Roundlab sunscreen is wildly popular in the US (the brands popular in the US vs Korea are totally different), relatively cleanish though not a mineral sunscreen.These are my fave mineral face sunscreens.

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