Review: The History Of Whoo Soon Hwan & Gongjinhyang Special Gift Set

You must have known this one if you're into Korean skincare. It's from History of Whoo. High end brand from Korea from LG company. I bought this special set along with the Ja Saeng Set that I gave to my mom from a Korean seller that I forgot the name and the delivery cost me $4. I want something that works better on my skin so I bought this set, couldn't afford the big size, so expensive. This is my current favorite because I like how it works.

The History Of Whoo Soon Hwan Special Gift Set (5 pc) L-R:

- 1pc In Yang Eye Cream 4ml

- 1pc In Yang Cream 10ml 

- 1pc In Yang Lotion 20ml 

- 1pc In Yang Balancer 20ml 

- 1pc Soon Hwan Essence 15ml 

This is the box.. Simple and elegant. With the carving on the corner of the box. Looks so Korean.

Using them in order: 

1. Soon Hwan Essence

2. In Yang Balancer

+ Additional : Ja Saeng Essence

(maintain the skin texture and problems)

3. In Yang Lotion

+ Additional : Whitening Intensive

(whiten the dark spots and acne scars)

4. Qi&Jin Cream

5. Qi&Jin Eye Cream

1. Bichup Soon Hwan Essence

The Bichup Soonhwan Essence is the first step essence of Whoo, which creates your skin a radiant appearance by improving skin metabolism and blood circulation that is a fundamental factor in appearing healthy skin. 

It contains 'Gongjinbidan (a moist medium)' which is one of the secret formula used in the royal court, and 'Haeulhwan' which helps a circulation. The key ingredients enable your beauty to enhance as soothing a swelling and fever on your face and promoting vital energy.

The bottle is so classy, doff transparent, we can see what's inside. This is the only bottle in this set that made of glass. Even though this is a mini size, but this one I love it. History of Whoo is definitely know how to make a mini size. It is definitely the same with the original size.

The texture is quiet thick, as it is a serum but because it is used as 'first care' serum so this has to be used as the first step of the skincare, not after the balancer. It has granules in it but will be absorbed by the skin well. The color is a bit transparent brown. The smell is herbal but pleasant. Sulwhasoo has a stronger scent but Whoo is definitely more floral than herbal. 

As first step of skincare, this is amazing. With only a pea size, it can make the skin moist and softer, ready to the next step of the skincare. I love how the result is. It will make the absorption of the following skincare better.

The others are from Gongjinhyang series

2. Gongjinhyang In Yang Balancer

Inyang Balancer is an Oriental Herb Tonic that pro- vides softness and moistness by supplying water essence to dry skin. Inyang Balancer maintains clear and firm skin.

The bottle is like the original size with golden cap and whoo characteristic at the very top. It is made from plastic but sturdy and really cute, because I feel like I have the big one. It is a little bit transparent so you can see how much left you have. I like how I can look at it because it is the same with the lotion, so it helps a lot without need to read the name everytime I want to use it. It has herbal floral scent but more floral than the essence.

The texture is watery and runny like usual toner. Balancer in Korean is the same as toner. Use it with or without cotton pad. I don't like using cotton pad on this one because I think it will get soaked by the cotton pad so just pat it onto the face. Even if it is toner, it is a little bit denser than regular toner, because it has firming function so the product usually has thicker consistency. I like it because as a balancer, it also helps moisturizing the skin and make it softer & suppler. 

3. Gongjinhyang In Yang Lotion

In Yang Lotion provides gloss and life to skin by supplying sufficient nourishment and moisture. By penetrating deep into the skin, In Yang Lotion keeps your skin clean and healthy.

The bottle is the same with the balancer, the only differences they have is the printing. The one is balancer, this one is lotion. The scent is the same with the toner but softer.

Lotion is the same with emulsion. It is a light moisturizer that absorbed nicely. I like to use it as daily moisturizer if I don't want to feel too thick. Usually in the terms, it is used before the cream. I don't understand until now, why Asian product especially Korean has so many steps that makes me crazy. It needs a long time to do step by step.

4. Gongjinhyang Qi & Jin Cream

Qi & Jin Cream is an Oriental Herb Nutritional Cream that protects facial firmness from the facial outline damage can be caused by the flow of time. A Secret Court ingredients nourishes skins with energy from the deep inside.

The bottle is cute too... It is the same concept like the balancer and lotion, but this one is cream so it is in jar shaped. The cream and eye cream has exactly the same packaging, but the cream is bigger as it is has more product inside.

The inside is not full, but it is safe for travelling because it is small, made of plastic and sturdy. Whenever I travel, I always bring this set.

The texture is creamy and transparent with a bit of yellow tone. The smell is similar with the lotion or balancer. If I use this a set, the smell is a bit too pleasant, too floral I think so I need to calm it down for a minute or so then start to use them in a complete series again. If I use it just this cream, it will absorbed better and not sticky but if I use it as a complete series and this one as the last step, it will feel a bit sticky. We have to wait before going from step to step. One advise also, the Korean skincare routine always ended up with pressing warm palms to the face, cheek, forehead, and chin. That way, the skincare will absorbed better and to balance the yin and yang. Still don't really understand about the concept, but it helps a lot and I'm not feeling too sticky anymore.

After using to complete steps of the skincare, it feels moisturized and supple. The next day I wake up, my skin feels softer, smoother and suppler. The skin become clearer (not whiter). I also combine with ja saeng essence sometimes and whitening intensive to take care of the focused problems.

5. Qi & Jin Eye Cream

Qi & Jin Eye Cream is a cream firms the skin around eyes that has thin layers of skin with more tendency to wrinkle. Qi & Jin Eye Cream solve the problem of wrinkles around eyes with excellent wrinkle free ingredients.

The bottle is the same with the cream but smaller.

It is thicker or the cream isn't moved to the inside lid because it is thicker.

It is thicker than the cream. The color and the scent is the same with the cream. A little goes a long way. It is easy to apply, needs time to absorbed but works well. I feel my eyes skin got smoother after using it every night. I think it also helps the fine lines too.

Overall

I won't give pros and cons because they are different and contains many products. For me, it works well as a basic care of History of Whoo, it works nicely. For more concentrated problems, they give many ranges that can be chosen like Seol, Hwahyun, etc. As I see from other people, some of them do combine with another lines to get a proper result, especially like whitening. I'm pleased with this set and want to repurchase, maybe to try another line.. Still thinking about it.

It is recommended for dry, tired, dull skin in early age, like 20s. I'm 24 and I like to use it. If I reach 25 and higher maybe I'd like to try the Hwa Hyun series. Buying the gift set saved a lot of money. Thankful that Korean make them.