Feelin' Fancy: Sulwhasoo Hydro-aid Mist Review

Summer skincare usually consists of cleanser, chilled sheet masks, maybe a BHA chemical exfoliant to battle my oily and sweaty pores, and mists. Lots of mists. 'Tis the season for mists, because it's hot and humid and everyone is miserable, and mists are light and most importantly, refreshing.


Sulwhasoo Hydro-aid Mist Review
Benefit of photographing a mist: you can use it in between shots to cool off. Which I dd. A lot.


Although this is a fancy full size bottle, I've actually used (and emptied) a travel size of this mist before. You might recognize the travel size from posts such as K-Beauty & Portion Control: Why Sometimes Good Value Can Be a Bad Idea, and Winter is Coming: Plotting My K-Beauty Skincare Routine for Colder Weather.


In this post

  • Product details
  • Ingredients
  • 4 ways I use mists
  • Where to get full and travel-sizes
  • Final thoughts


Unfortunately, I have no idea where my travel size bottle has gotten to; it's probably sill buried in an unpacked box somewhere, like 99% of my post-move beauty stash. However, during the recent snail rout in NYC, I received a gift bag of goodies from Amore Pacific and conveniently a full size of this mist was in it.

So while bottle in these photos is from Sulwhasoo, it's a product I've already purchased and used on my own. It's no longer sold on their US site regardless. I haven't opened this one yet, but I'll happily commandeer it for photos.

Just as a quick reminder: this blog uses both affiliate and non-affiliate links, and if you choose to click the former before you shop, your purchase may contribute a tiny amount to the maintenance of this blog.  See full details at the end of this post! #receipts


Sulwhasoo Moisturizing Mist
Summer is a good excuse reason for mists. I tell myself that while sliding another one into my cart.


Product details

Full product name: Sulwhasoo Hydro-aid Moisturizing Lifting Mist
Purpose: A facial mist.
Scent: Mmm. It's got some of those herbal notes that make me love Sulwhasoo, but it's more floral than horny pine forest. I'm into the "shoved up against rough bark and things get wild" Hanbang scents, but this is pretty tame.
Texture: Typical mist texture, leaves a bit more moisture than others I've tried. Mist nozzle is decent, with just a few drops peppering an otherwise fine spray.
Quantity: The travel size is 30ml, the full size is 100ml.
Rating:  3.5/5; I liked it quite a bit, and it's one of those rare Sulwhasoo products that isn't completely out of the reach of my wallet.
Where to get it:  Amazon | eBay
Repurchase:  Well, one of the other Snailcast members isn't into mists and is going to be sending me hers, and by the time I finish a second bottle. I'll probably want to change it up. I was keeping an eye out for a full size of the mist to replace my empty travel size, though, so otherwise I would.


Sulwhasoo Hydro-aid Mist Packaging
I absolutely loooove the trademark stylized flower motif on all things Sulwhasoo. They often have this pattern gradient on their packaging, which I hate to throw away because it's so purty.


I need more Sulwhasoo flower motif-themed things, because of ... reasons. Especially if it's shiny.



Ingredients

Here's the Cosdna entry for it. The ingredients are as follows:


Sulwhasoo Hydro-aid Mist Ingredients
I love it when brands include translated ingredients lists.

A few standouts for me are the licorice extract (Glycyrrhiza Uralensis), green tea (Camellia Sinensis), ginseng (Panax Ginseng), and the signature Sulwhasoo herbs: peony (Paeonia Albiflora), lotus (Nelumbo Nucifera), lily (Lilium Tigrinum), Solomon's seal (Polygonatum Officinale), and Rehmannia (Rehmannia Glutinosa). It also contains honey and hyaluronic acid.

There's no major red flags, but like most mists, it does contain alcohol (for cooling through rapid evaporation), glycols, and stearic acid.



4 ways I use mists

The usual. So obviously the most common way to use mists is to mist it on your face, with bonus points for dramatics and/or crooning "Smeeeeelll" as you do it, Ajumma Daesung style.


Ajumma Daesung mist smell
Fab-u-loussss [source]

I really don't like hot, humid weather (I'm from Canada, I prefer cooler climates) so I like to carry a mist in my bag so I can cool off my face at a least when I feel like I'm melting. Which is pretty much April through September.

Cushion puffs. I also like to mist my cushion puffs before makeup application, because I prefer puffs over beauty blender type sponges for everything from cushions to BB creams to foundations to sunscreen application.

If I feel like it's going to soak up product, or I want a thinner coverage, or just to add hydration, I'll spritz the puff before I use it. This is one of the tips I mentioned in Making the Most out of K-Beauty: 5 Simple Hacks.


Mmm, pretty cushions. Image from Sulwhasoo Golden Bird 2017 Limited Edition Cushion.

Makeup finishing. I suck at makeup application and my skin likes to hoover the hydration out of products, so sometimes by the time I've got everything on, including powder, things are looking a bit rough. Although there's actual setting sprays, I just can't pull off that full coverage, full face look and a bit of regular facial mist helps my makeup to look more natural, and adds much-needed hydration.

Between products. I like to apply my various skincare layers while the previous layer is still damp, and I like to give my actives a wait time so I can extract the maximum benefit from them. Some products need a bit of 'slip' to spread evenly, especially if you're applying a small amount. Spritzing with mist gives me that slip without overloading my face with product.




Where to get full and travel-sizes

I love, love, looove getting travel sizes ad deluxe sample sizes of luxury products so I can decide whether I want to invest in the full size. Or just to add a little bit of luxury to my routine without destroying my wallet.


Image from Winter is Coming: Plotting My K-Beauty Skincare Routine for Colder Weather

I also like the fact that deluxe sample/travel sizes often have beautiful packaging in their own right, which makes it a win-win for me.

In Hanbang for the Holidays Gift Guide I: Little Luxuries Under $15, I talk about how I do this at length; in fact this is where I got the travel size of the Sulwhasoo mist!

You can get the travel size (30ml) from eBay, and Amazon.

Although Sulwhasoo full sizes are pricey, this mist is (relatively) affordable; it's around $40 so it's not something that makes me turn the colour of a dying seagull the moment I spot the price.

The full size (100ml) is available on: Amazon | eBay



Final thoughts

If you're looking for hard-hitting skincare that's going to make a big change in your skin, this isn't it. If you really love the format of mists, you might want to decant a first essence into a mist bottle instead, so you know you're getting a serious dose of skincare ingredients.


Sulwhasoo Hydro-aid Mist Review
Seeing the full size makes me appreciate how fancy the travel size is, despite being a glorified sample.


However, if you want a refreshing mist that smells nice and makes you feel fancy AF when you slide the pretty bottle out of your purse and spritz down your face because you're sticky, hot, and disgruntled, this fits the bill.

Have you used this mist, or do you have one that also comes in a pretty package? Hit me up on Facebook or Twitter and let me know!

Have something you'd like to share with me in general?  Snap a pic and tag me on Instagram at @snowwhiteandtheasianpear because I'd love to see it!

All the best,
-Cat

**Disclaimer: The original bottle of this mist was purchased by me. The full-size bottle of this mist was received in a gift bag of products from Amore Pacific US. It was not a press sample provided for review, this post is not sponsored or compensated in any way. This blog contains both affiliate and non-affiliate links, and clicking the former before you shop means that this blog may receive a small commission to assist in this blog supporting itself.  Please see my Contact Info & Disclaimer policy for more information.

3 comments

  1. Sulwhasoo's products always seem so luxurious. Especially their cushion compacts! Or maybe it's just the unattainable (at least for me) price tag. I don't think I'd be willing to drop 40 dollars for a mist, though I can't lie, I'm feeling pretty tempted to try the travel size...

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  2. OMGGGGGG that Daesung gif is 100000% me!!! I love a good mist and just going to town spraying it on my face lol. I've actually had this one in my mind to get but haven't seen much talk about it online or with posts. Sulwhasoo just gets me every single time I swear, especially lately I've been so bad and bought a few things to celebrate me graduating from uni haha. Lovely post as always!

    xoxo

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  3. Any clue where the pH of this sits? Looks lovely. My current mist (repurposed witch hazel and rose water toner) is around 6, so if I can find something in the gold range that would be great!

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