What Is Glass Skin? (And Is It Realistic?)

Have you heard this new term, glass skin, floating around in the TikTok and YouTube world? If so, you might think it’s an unrealistic expectation – and, you might be right. In this blog, we’re going to chat about glass skin, answering all of your questions from a scientific perspective. We’ll answer questions like what is glass skin, how do you get glass skin, and (on a related note) what does healthy skin look like?

So, What Is Glass Skin?

“The term “glass skin” is commonly used in the Korean beauty world to refer to a smooth, clear, and intensely hydrated complexion that appears transparent.” - Healthline

Essentially, “glass skin” is meant to refer to skin in its best state. It’s well-moisturized, it’s at peak health, it’s almost translucent, it’s blemish-free, and it’s luminous. This is an especially popular term in Korea, and it’s become a beauty standard that is spreading across the globe.

But who started this K-beauty trend and should it be a beauty standard?

How Did This “Trend” Start?

This term “blew up” when Ellie Choi used it in one of her tweets where she listed out her skincare routine and posted a supposedly filter-free image of her skin – and boy was it perfect. Hundreds of thousands of likes and tens of thousands of reposts later, all of America is now jumping on Ellie’s “glass skin routine” bandwagon.

How Do You Get Glass Skin?

According to these glass skin supporters, the secret lies in the K-beauty masks and sugar scrub masks. Ellie also recommends not eating “fried and greasy foods.” She also says drinking plenty of water and eating more fruits and vegetables has helped her, too. Ellie follows a very specific skincare routine that can be found many places online, but… is it realistic to assume one person’s skincare routine will work for you, too?

Is “Glass Skin” Realistic?

What do you think? Here at Rejuvaskin, we know that there are so many factors that play into skin health – dozens, in fact. Your skincare routine can help you manage some of those factors, but a lot of them are still uncontrollable. Factors such as:

Stress
Fluctuating hormones
Exposure to pollution
Common illnesses

Our opinion is that “glass skin” is a stretch goal. The main goal should be to have skin that is healthy enough to be naturally resilient – not bulletproof! Our skin is a living part of our bodies and it’s subject to stress and normal changes, too. To expect perfection of any part of our bodies is admirable but unrealistic.

What Does Healthy Skin Look Like?

Ok, so what does “healthy” look like? Healthy skin is going to look a little different on each person, and require different routines, ingredients, products, etc. to maintain. Typically, though, healthy skin has the following characteristics:

Well-moisturized, without flaking, dryness, or red patches
Relatively smooth, with minimal breakouts (Yes! Breakouts happen sometimes! It’s part of life – we are hormonal creatures!)
Recovers from damage quickly with minimal scarring.

And that’s it. Notice how we didn’t say anything about your pores. We didn’t say anything about baby-smooth complexion. But, how do you get healthy skin? By using reliable, gentle products that cater to your skin type. You can’t just pick up someone else’s routine and assume it will work well for you. Instead, we recommend you start with gentle products and add or remove things from your routine as your skin’s needs change.

Rejuvaskin, Your Home for Products That Support Healthy Skin

Here at Rejuvaskin, our goal is to come up with, create, and sell you skincare products that help your skin be as healthy as it can be. We aren’t following fads or trends to entice you to spend money you don’t need to be spending! If you’re looking to swap out some of your harsh-er products with more gentle ones, here is a basic skincare routine we recommend: