From left: Korean Dr. Young Cho performing Juvelook Volume on a Filipina patient; a patient after a Glass Skin Booster treatment
Philstar.com/Deni Rose M. Afinidad-Bernardo; Hernel,ph via Instagram
MANILA, Philippines — “Who doesn’t want to have glass skin? I also want to have glass skin!”
Such was how Korean doctor Young Cho reacted when asked to describe Korean glass skin.
Specifically, he described “glass skin” as “clean” in texture, small in pores, and brighter in skin tone.
More than just an influence of Korean pop culture, glass skin is very sought after, he believed, as it gives the person more confidence and makes him or her feel trendy.
“Actually, the ratio of our clients is 50-50 right now,” he said, pinpointing the percentage of women and men asking to achieve glass skin from Cho’s Hernel Korean Aesthetic Clinic at the ground floor of Seibu Tower, 24th corner 6th Avenues, Taguig City.
“I think more and more males are also starting to get interested in aesthetic procedures, grooming,” said the Korean doctor to Korean stars, who hails from the beauty capital of Gangnam in Seoul. One of his Korean celebrity clients, who he said is “bigger than Lee Min Ho,” is going to visit Hernel soon.
Cho has established his aesthetic clinic in South Korea for seven years and two years in the United States, before moving to the Philippines two years ago due to stiff competition in South Korea. He came to the Philippines after visiting several times one of his cousins who has been successfully running a business in the country.
“He encouraged me to open a clinic with him because there’s so much potential in this market, as compared to Korea… In Korea, competition is really, really high. I don’t see that much competition in the Philippines and I see that not all procedures and solutions are yet introduced in the Philippine market so I’d like to introduce some of these new stuff we’re using in Korea,” Dr. Cho told Philstar.com in an interview exclusive.
Hernel Korean Aesthetic Clinic offers authentic K-beauty treatments. Since opening in July last year, the clinic has been the go-to place among local politicians and international beauty queens and celebrities.
For photo-ready skin, Dr. Cho has two top picks: Glass Skin Booster and Juvelook Volume. These are both well-loved treatments in Korea that focus on achieving a picture-perfect look with dewy, hydrated skin rejuvenated from the inside.
To help people achieve Korean glass skin, Hernel vouches for Glass Skin Booster, a microneedling treatment reportedly popular in South Korea, Europe, and other parts of Asia. Designed to transform one’s skin's texture and tone, the booster is inspired by the flawless complexion of Korean celebrities. It uses Hycoox (microneedles) to precisely deliver a blend of hyaluronic acid, amino acids, Botox, and other anti-aging ingredients into the skin, with minimal downtime effects.
The result, said Cho, is healthy and hydrated skin that looks dewy, delicate, with zero visible pores and reduced inflammation.
“Usually, we use Botox to paralyze and shrink the muscle. (With Glass Skin Booster), we only inject it in the skin layer so what it does is it blocks only the skin layer located at the sebaceous gland, which secretes the sebum that causes pimples and other skin inflammations. So Botox blocks that receptor,” he explained, assuring acne-prone people to see “significant improvement” in their complexion after the treatment.
Hyaluronic acid, meanwhile, makes skin brighter and smoother, Dr. Cho noted.
To ensure long-lasting glass skin, Dr. Cho recommended constant hydration through drinking plenty of water and using moisturizer; blocking ultraviolet rays by using sunblock even indoors; proper cleansing; and having the Glass Skin Booster every two to three weeks or combining it with other other skin boosters such as Rejuran (regeneration), Chanel (brightening), or Exosome (healing).
Elyse Aesthetics, located at the ground floor of Northeast Square Greenhills in San Juan, also offers treatments that help maintain one’s glass skin. Among these are non-invasive Radio Frequency, High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) and Trio for the face, which can be taken one after the other for a younger-looking face that looks thinner and more lifted.
“Then, people want to look something significantly different. But now, they want something more natural. They don’t anymore want to hide, or to hide that they did something to their face,” shared Dr. Cho, predicting that the “more natural” look would be the biggest trend in the beauty industry for many years to come.