K-Beauty Routine Follow-Up: Estimated Costs of My Routine!

Thanks everyone for the great responses to my previous post!  I got one question that I want to answer as best I can--because it's an important one--how much would I be spending to do this routine?  It's hard for me to answer based on my order history for a few reasons--first of all when I discovered K-Beauty I did exactly what you're not supposed to do and went nuts and bought ALL THE THINGS, so I started products in March of last year but I had a bunch of things I tried out but don't include in my regular routine; for example, since March 2016 I have emptied 2 bottles of cleansing oil that wasn't my fave and then started my Kose Softymo which I really like and the bottle is about 5/6 full right now.  Also, I'm not perfect and there have been weeks where I didn't keep up much on my routine, especially if travelling, and sometimes just did micellar water cleansing and Clinique DDM instead of the whole shebang.  So I want to give a more accurate estimate based on my now-solidified routine and how, ideally, I use my products. This is a lot of math so I hope you appreciate it because I don't much care for doing math! XD

First off, how much I use: for serums, it's generally 2-3 drops.  I googled how much is a "drop" and it said 0.05 ml, so for those products I'll estimate 0.15 ml per use. 

For thin liquids, like Hado Labo lotion or the COSRX active liquids, I'd estimate 1/4 tsp, (it's like 3 shakes to get drops out of the bottle) so I'm going to say 1.25 ml.

For creams I'd say 1/8 tsp so we'll say 0.75 ml.  For sleeping packs I'd say 1/4-1/2 tsp so let's say 2 ml.  

KEEP IN MIND: I wanted to be sure to overestimate rather than underestimate! This is how much I use of these products based on eyeballing it, but your products could certainly last longer than I'm estimating...

So here we go, I'm going by today's prices on each product: 

Kose Softymo Speedy Cleansing Oil 230 ML

Purchase price $9.85

2 ml 1x/day--Bottle should last for about 4 months.  

Su:m 37 Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick 

Purchase price $22.30

This is a solid product so I'm not even sure how to measure but I will tell you that I've been using it at least 1x/day since September and it's still got a ways to go so I'm going to say it will definitely last at least 4 months.   **I'm being told from other k-beauty fans that this lasts WAY longer than 4 months. We'll see but that would certainly affect my totals a little. 

Thayer's Rosewater Witch Hazel Alcohol Free Toner 350 ML

Purchase price $12.25

Since I use this on a cotton pad I'll say 1/2 tsp 2x/day.  At 5 ML/day this would last about 2 months.

Benton Snail Bee High Content Essence 60 ML 

Purchase price $17.55

I think I use about 1/2 ML 2x/day so this bottle would last 2 months.  

Biore UV Watery Essence 2-pack 50 G 

Purchase price $16.49

You are supposed to use 1/4 tsp on your face which is about 1.5 g so a 2-pack would last a little over 2 months. **An anonymous commenter reminded me that you are actually supposed to use 1/2 tsp per day--1/4 for face and 1/4 for neck--so this would likely last for a shorter period of time.  I've likely overestimated on other products, though, based on reddit feedback, so I'm not going to update the totals just now. :) 

COSRX BHA liquid 100 ML

Purchase price $16.80

3x/wk 1.25 ml this would last about 20 weeks or 5 months.  Let's go with 4 months just to make things more consistent. 

COSRX AHA liquid 100 ML 

Purchase price $14.40

Same use as BHA liquid so 4 months.

Hado Labo Gokujyn Lotion 170 ML

Purchase price $12.15

1.25 ML x 2x/day--this would last about 2 months. 

Banila Co Miss Flower & Mr. Honey Essence Oil  30 ML

Purchase price $25.48 

I use 3 drops maybe 2x/week.  Love it but I don't need it often.  0.15 ML at 2x/week means this bottle would last about 2 years but it'd probably be expired so let's go with 1x/year purchase.

Missha Time Revolution Ampoule 50 ML

Purchase Price $26.30

3 drops (0.15 ml) per day, this bottle would last about 1 year. 

Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream 50 ML

Purchase price $25

Based on my estimates if you used this every day it would last you two months, however, I've had my first jar (which is close to being done) for much longer.  I don't use this every day because I don't always need this much moisture.  I'm going to go with every 4 months purchase.  

Mizon Snail Recovery Gel Cream 45 ML

Purchase price about $9

0.75 ml daily this would last about 2 months. 

Rosette Ceramide Gel 80 G

Purchase price $11.93

0.75 g 4x/week 

I don't know what I'm doing wrong with the math but it's saying this would last 26 weeks but I don't think so.  So let's go with 4 months. 

JUST LOOK AT ALL THIS MATH

Innisfree Wine Jelly Sleeping Pack 80 ML

Purchase price $12.56

2 ML 3x/week means this would last about 3 months.  **I was told by another k-beauty fan on Reddit that this lasts much longer than 3 months! I really slather this stuff on (it feels so cooling and tingly in a good way) so I don't think it will last me much longer but we'll see! 

Sooooooo.... 

TOTAL INITIAL COST FOR THIS ROUTINE:  $232.06

TOTAL MONTHLY COST TO MAINTAIN THIS ROUTINE (basing on annual cost for all products but NOT including the initial outlay so you would actually be paying less than this for a while): 

(Seriously this was some intense math!)

$66.25.

BUT WAIT!!! Don't freak out.  Depending on your circumstances, this may seem like pocket change or it may seem like an Ivory Tower.  I am quite fortunate that I'm able to keep up my routine but I KNOW it is not costing me that much. 

Shifu puppy photo to help you relax

1. DON'T YOU DARE GO OUT AND BUY ALL THIS STUFF AT ONCE SO HELP ME.  You need to introduce things slowly, and patch test new products.  What works for me may absolutely not work for you.  Start with cleansing oil, foaming cleanser, sunscreen and a moisturizer.  Jolse.com and RoseRoseShop.com offer sample packs of MANY of these products so start with those before you buy full size products.  You can also often get decanted samples on r/asianbeautyexchange. 

2. I am often able to get items on sale for much cheaper.  If you know things work for you, you can place a big order on RoseRoseShop.com and the lower costs will make the shipping worth it.  Google coupon codes, sign up for mailing lists and wait for sales.

3. Almost all of these things are available on Amazon Prime.  Ask for Amazon GC's for birthdays and holidays if you need to :) Keep your Amazon Wishlist current.  I got several of these items for Xmas. 

4.  For me, skin care is self-care.  It's a routine that makes me feel good, shows me positive results, and is enjoyable and relaxing to do.  This is why I feel comfortable spending money on skin care, and I'm economically privileged enough (but not wealthy by any means) to make it work.  My ultimate blog goal is to use it to support my product habit. :) 

5. Be careful to use your products sparingly**.  Even though I tried to estimate as best I could, I know I'm not going through this stuff as quickly as I've estimated.  Maybe I'm not as consistent with it as I think, or maybe the amounts are very generous estimates.  One thing that allows me to use my products more sparingly is I don't 100% let every layer sink in before applying the next.  This gives you a lot of "slip" so that you can evenly apply less product in each layer.  

6. Before you blanch at the cost, do you know what you are currently spending on skin care?  I have never looked at it in-depth like I've done on this blog post.  This may not be much more than you're already spending, and you may have spent even more impulse-purchasing products with spectacular claims that didn't end up working for you.  

So, my darlings, there it is.  I do wholeheartedly feel that the K-beauty style routine that I've developed is worth the price and is far less expensive than quality Western products in a lot of cases. You're worth it!

**Except sunscreen.  DON'T SKIMP ON SUNSCREEN.  1/2 tsp for face and neck, darlings!