The History of Whoo, like Sulwhasoo, is one of Korea’s high end/luxury skincare brands. In fact, I believe LG launched Whoo in 2003 to directly compete with Amore Pacific’s Sulwhasoo.
Naturally, I was intrigued, and decided to start with a couple of staple items in my recent Koreadepart visit. The lip gloss I’d wanted was sadly out of stock, so I ended up with just The History of Whoo Jin Hae Yoon Sun Cream.
Unless I’m at home where UV protection films (a story for another time) have been installed on the windows, I will always wear sun block. As such, I look for nothing less than a combined SPF40 and PA+++, the latter of which is especially important because it’s what protects against UVA rays, the primary cause for premature skin ageing.
With SPF50+ and PA+++, this sun cream certainly fits the bill!
Mild sun cream with gongjinbidan a moist medium will enlighten your skin tone while protecting the skin from sun. Also, this sun cream comforts the skin that is damaged by the infrared ray.
I’ve not been able to find much info on this mysterious “gongjinbidan”, except for it being a collective name for the six medicinal herbs apparently used by the royal family to smooth fine lines and give lustre to the skin. It is also known to have outstanding moisturising and anti-inflammatory benefits. Gongjinbidan is basically Whoo‘s signature ingredient.
Compared to the rest of Whoo‘s skincare line, for example The History of Whoo Soon Yeon range, the packaging of the sun cream is rather plain looking.
The Soon Yeon range with their ♥ at first sight pink bottles – I think this range is targeted at dry skin types, so (reluctantly) I’ll have to pass on it. Though I might get just one to display on the dressing table. Maybe… Anyway…
Most of the Whoo range is targeted at mature/dry skin and I can certainly see why. This texture of this sun cream feels so deliciously creamy that it’s almost like applying a moisturiser. There’s a very small amount of stickiness after application, but I think that’s inevitable due to its richness.
Given the sun cream is packed full of herb extracts, it’s no surprise that the scent is… indescribably herbal – not something I dislike, but I’d take Sulwhasoo‘s ginseng scent any day. Then again, I do love ginseng.
Well moisturised skin, no white cast:
Unfortunately, my combination skin found this sun cream too rich; it left my already oily t-zone feeling like an oil slick. On the other hand, my cheeks & neck like it, my dry hands love it. So, it has now been re-purposed as a rather extravagant hand sun cream. Better than it going to waste, at least.
Therefore, I don’t recommend Whoo‘s sun cream for combination skin, definitely not for oily skin, but normal/dry skin types will really enjoy this, especially in winter.
The ingredients list is only supplied Korean, so I have no idea what the ingredients are other than that Whoo does not contain parabens.
List of ingredients:
