Birch Moisture Boosting Serum

Not on the ingredient list below: fragrance or parfum, denatured or SD alcohol, essential oils, silicones, parabens, sulfate surfactants, mineral oil or petrolatum and added color.

Full INCI (38): Water, Butylene Glycol, Dipropylene Glycol, Betula Platyphylla Japonica Juice, Glycerin, Diglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Trehalose, Hydroxyacetophenone, Carbomer, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tromethamine, Sodium Phytate, Allantoin, Betaine, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract, Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Dextrin, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract, Ulmus Davidiana Root Extract, Pueraria Lobata Root Extract, Pinus Palustris Leaf Extract, Panthenol, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Flower Extract, Gluconolactone, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Malachite Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopherol, Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Potassium Hyaluronate

37 of 38 explained

Water solvent

Water is the base almost every serum, toner and cream is built on. It dissolves the water-loving ingredients and sets how light the finished texture feels. On an INCI list it is usually first, which only means it is the largest single ingredient by weight.

Butylene Glycol humectant

Butylene Glycol is a small glycol that does two jobs at once: it holds water in the top layer of skin and it dissolves plant extracts and actives that plain water cannot. It also thins a formula, which is why watery Korean essences lean on it.

Dipropylene Glycol humectant

Dipropylene Glycol is a glycol used as a solvent and a light humectant. Its main job is keeping the rest of the formula dissolved and the texture fluid rather than adding hydration of its own.

Betula Platyphylla Japonica Juice plant extract

Betula Platyphylla Japonica Juice is Asian white birch sap, tapped in spring. It is over 98 percent water with trace minerals and sugars, and Korean formulas use it in place of plain water as a hydrating base.

Glycerin humectant

Glycerin is the most used humectant in skincare. It draws water into the outer layer of skin and holds it there, and it is one of the very few ingredients whose hydrating effect is settled science rather than marketing. Higher amounts feel tacky, which is why it is usually blended.

Diglycerin humectant

Diglycerin is two glycerin units joined together. It holds water like glycerin but feels less tacky, so it is used where a formula needs hydration without drag.

1,2-Hexanediol humectant

1,2-Hexanediol is a glycol used for two reasons: it holds water like glycerin, and it makes a formula harder for microbes to live in, so less traditional preservative is needed. Korean formulas use it heavily for that second reason.

Trehalose humectant

Trehalose is a sugar that some desert plants use to survive drying out. In skincare it is a humectant that holds water in the outer layer and helps a formula feel comfortable rather than tight.

Hydroxyacetophenone preservative booster

Hydroxyacetophenone is an antioxidant that also strengthens a preservative system, so a formula needs less traditional preservative. Korean formulas pair it with 1,2-hexanediol constantly.

Carbomer thickener

Carbomer is a synthetic polymer that only gels once a base neutralises it, which is why arginine or tromethamine sits nearby on the list. It gives the clear, non-stringy gel texture a xanthan formula cannot reach.

Caprylyl Glycol preservative booster

Caprylyl Glycol is a glycol that conditions skin and, more importantly, strengthens a preservative system so less of the traditional preservative is needed. It appears in most modern formulas built without parabens.

Ethylhexylglycerin preservative booster

Ethylhexylglycerin softens skin and boosts a preservative system, which is why it is nearly always sitting beside phenoxyethanol or 1,2-hexanediol. It also cuts down the odour bacteria produce, so it turns up in deodorising products.

Market

Korean market, the version sold in Korea

Made in

Republic of Korea

Volume

30ml

Category

Serum & Ampoule

Actives

Allantoin, Birch Sap, Hyaluronic Acid, Licorice Root, Panthenol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Trehalose

Ships from

California or Korea

Orders ship from California or direct from Korea with tracked delivery to your door, and both routes carry the same Korean-market release. Shipping is free on orders of $100 or more. Returns are accepted for 30 days, by mail.

We split shipments free, so one out-of-stock item never holds up the rest of your order.

We stock the version of a formula that is sold in Korea, not the release a brand prepares for another market under the same name.

Every unit keeps its original barcode and batch code intact, so the unit in your hands can be checked against the brand’s own records.

Every order ships from California or direct from Korea, and returns run for 30 days.

Every claim on this page traces to the unit in the box, the barcode, the batch code and the price you can read for yourself.