Review: Skinfood Fresh Apple Sparkling Pore Toner

I've been using Origins Zero Oil toner for awhile now but thought that I'd try a new toner since my pores were still big and the oil control on my face could be better. As mentioned in my earlier post, I was excited about this new Skinfood line for enlarged pores & oily skin, so I bought their toner, 5 samples of their sparkling pore serum, and their smoothing pore cream to try. At $19 for 160ml, it was pretty expensive compared to your usual Korean skincare prices but it was still cheaper than my Origins toner.

Description (taken from eng.theskinfood.com):

• A carbonated toner with fresh unripe green apple extract that cleanses soap residue and skin impurities while tightening pores.
• After cleansing, pour onto a cotton pad and wipe skin gently, avoiding the eye and mouth areas. Reapply to oily/scaly areas if necessary.

My impression:

I think I used this for about 10 days (this photo was taken after I've been using it for 10 days). Since it is for oily skin and enlarged pores it makes sense that this leaves skin quite dry. But my skin felt a bit too dry. When I used my Origins Zero Oil toner I didn't moisturize my skin but it certainly didn't feel like the toner was stripping my face of all its water. But that's sort of how I feel when I used this toner, that I needed to put some lotion/serum on FAST before my skin starts drying up like a desert.

I didn't break out from this and it wasn't so drying that my face responded by producing even more oil so I'll continue using this. But I'll be trying to find another toner that can help my pores without feeling like its stripping away the last drop of moisture from my skin.

I bought Etude House's Wonder Pore Refreshner and have been using it for several days now. So far I'm liking it more than Skinfood's Fresh Apple Sparkling Pore Toner but I'm going to give it a few more days before I make my judgment.

Summary:

A little bit too dry for my skin
No breakouts but didn't see any difference in my pores
$19 for 160ml on eBay

Quality: 3/5 because I feel like it strips my skin away of all its moisture and I don't notice a difference in my pores

Value: 2.5/5 because it didn't do much for my pores and it's pretty expensive compared to other toners you can get from other Korean brands

Repurchase? No. Going to try Etude House's Wonder Pore Freshner and see how that goes.