美國女性愛上了韓國化妝品
First came the wave of manufacturing, with Samsung and LG; then the K-pop stars, whose ubiquity reached its regrettable height with Psy. Now comes the latest import from South Korea: a formidable array of beauty products.
先是以三星和LG爲代表的製造業；然後是韓國流行歌手，可惜他們的巔峯止於鳥叔(Psy)。現在是韓國的最新進口產品：一系列勢不可擋的美容產品。
It all started with the BB cream. In early 2011, the Korean brand Dr. Jart introduced two BB creams at Sephora in the United States. They had dermatologic roots, intended to protect and heal patients' skin after treatment, and had been popular as all-in-one skin-care and makeup products in Korea for several years before they came to the United States.
一切都始於BB霜。2011年初，韓國品牌蒂佳婷(Dr. Jart)在美國絲芙蘭化妝品商店(Sephora)推出了兩款BB霜。BB霜有皮膚病學的淵源，最初是爲了保護和修復治療後的皮膚。作爲一款全效護膚化妝品，它進入美國前已經在韓國暢銷了好幾年。
The cream was a hit. Major beauty companies took note. Soon enough, it had spawned versions from L'Oréal, Smashbox, Clinique, Jane Iredale, Stila and Dior — and paved the way for a Korean beauty invasion of the United States.
BB霜很受歡迎。大牌化妝品公司紛紛效仿。很快，歐萊雅、Smashbox、倩碧(Clinique)、珍愛芮德(Jane Iredale)、絲狄拉(Stila)和迪奧(Dior)等品牌都推出了自己的BB霜，爲韓國化妝品進軍美國鋪平了道路。
The beauty market has long been led by European countries, which were thought to be the source of innovation. But in recent years, American women (and beauty companies), their interest piqued by the BB cream, began to look more closely at Korean multistep skin-care regimens, and they liked what they saw.
長期以來，化妝品市場由歐洲國家主導，歐洲被認爲是創新之源。但是近些年，美國女人（以及美國化妝品公司）對韓國的興趣被BB霜勾了起來，開始更密切地關注韓式多步護膚法，她們對其護膚效果也感到滿意。
"It shifted our consciousness on what it means to take care of your skin," said Megan McIntyre, the beauty director at the lifestyle site Refinery29. Seeing the care Korean women devote to their skin made consumers curious about new techniques, Ms. McIntyre said, adding that the often adorably twee packaging, high-tech innovations (peel-off lip stains, overnight masks) and affordable prices have not hurt, either. But let no one think that Korean women just slap on a BB cream and call it a day.
“它改變了我們對護膚的看法，”生活方式網站Refinery29的美容總監梅根·麥金太爾(Megan McIntyre)說。麥金太爾說，顧客們看過韓國女人對護膚的投入後，對新技術很好奇。她補充說，況且韓國化妝品的包裝大多很可愛，又有高科技創新（撕拉式脣彩、睡眠面膜），價格也能承受。但是可別以爲韓國女人塗上BB霜就完事了。
"The American approach is: the simpler the better, the faster I can get out the door," said Cindy Kim, a founder of Peach and Lily, one of a number of online retailers, including Soko Glam and Memebox, that sells Korean beauty products. "The Korean mentality is comprehensive and detailed."
桃子與百合(Peach and Lily)是一家銷售韓國化妝品的在線零售商（類似的還有Soko Glam和Memebox）。它的創始人辛迪·金(Cindy Kim)說，“美國女人的方式是：越簡單越好，這樣我就能更快出門；韓國女人的心態則是全面而細緻。”
And it is exhaustive. First, there's cleansing, often with two different cleansers (one oil-based to remove makeup, then a foaming cleanser), followed by a toner to balance pH levels on the face.
而且韓式化妝非常徹底。先是潔面，通常要用兩種潔面產品（先是卸妝油，然後是泡沫潔面乳），然後用柔膚水平衡臉上的pH值。
Then there are "essences" and serums, which is "where the number of steps can blow up," Ms. Kim said. The serums often target single issues: aging, radiance, hydration, redness. An eye cream, plus moisturizer, and BB cream (for day) or an overnight sleep mask are applied next and all sealed with a mist. There is even a term for the desired plump and sticky feeling after application of these products: "chok chok."
之後使用精華液。“這裏的步驟可以無限多，”金說。精華液通常是針對單個問題的：延緩老化，提亮膚色，補水，使臉色紅潤。然後用眼霜、滋潤霜和BB霜（白天用）或睡眠面膜，最後用噴霧定妝。韓語中甚至有個詞來形容用完這些產品後所期待的飽滿水潤的感覺：chok chok（大意是水靈靈的）。
Taking a half-hour for your skin-care routine "isn't weird,"said Esther Dong, the senior vice president for marketing at the Korean line Amorepacific, whose Time Response anti-aging moisturizers are selling well in the United States. "When people describe a beautiful girl in the U.S., it's all about the body, and the third or fourth sentence is about the face. When you describe a beautiful girl in Asia, it's about her face and how pure and fine her skin is."
韓國化妝品公司愛茉莉(Amorepacific)的市場營銷高級副總裁埃斯特·董(Esther Dong)說，花半小時護膚“不奇怪”。該公司的時光幻彩(Time Response)抗老化保溼霜在美國很暢銷。“美國人描述美女全是在說身材，第三或第四句話才提到臉。亞洲人說美女是說她臉龐俊秀、皮膚純淨。”
Such standards are reflective of Korean culture at large. "The culture of South Korea is very much tied with technological advancement and the rapid pace of life,” said Richard You, the deputy general manager for Dr. Jart in the United States. “Everyone has a smartphone, is concerned about their looks, and companies are working around the clock to provide new products. Word gets around quickly regarding what's working and what's not." In Korea, more than one television show is devoted to reviewing new beauty products.
這樣的標準反映了韓國文化的整體面貌。“韓國文化與科技進步和生活快節奏緊密相關，”蒂佳婷美國區副總經理理查德·劉(Richard You)說，“每個人都有智能手機，很在意自己的相貌，化妝品公司夜以繼日地開發新產品。關於產品效果的評價很快就會傳開。”在韓國，不止一個電視節目致力於評價美容新產品。
Even if American women aren't likely to massage five different creams into their faces for 30 minutes, they are willing to try new products. Alicia Yoon, the other founder of Peach and Lily, reported that most of its customers are non-Asian and that, month to month, its sales nearly double.
雖然美國女人不大可能花30分鐘時間往臉上抹五種面霜，但她們願意嘗試新產品。桃子與百合網店的另一位創始人艾莉西婭·尹(Alicia Yoon)說，該網店的大部分顧客不是亞洲人，而且銷量幾乎在逐月翻倍。
"The appetite is huge," said Priya Venkatesh, who oversees the merchandising of products with Korean roots at Sephora. And not just for Korean brands. Korean-inspired masks and essences from Dior, Shiseido and SK-II are emerging as popular, she said.
普里亞·凡卡泰斯(Priya Venkatesh)在絲芙蘭公司負責與韓國有關的美容產品的促銷活動。她說，“顧客們很感興趣”，而且不只是對韓國品牌，迪奧、資生堂和SK-II等品牌受韓國美容產品啓發開發的面膜和精華液也開始流行。American companies are also hoping to strike a chord with similar products. Peter Thomas Roth, a skin-care line in New York, makes a CC cream (a lighter sibling to the BB cream) in South Korea. Its answer to the Korean essence, a step between cleansing and treatment, is its Un-Wrinkle Turbo Line Smoothing Lotion. It also has a sleeping mask (a concentrated mask you wear overnight) and an oil-like product made from squalene, which comes from sugar cane and has long been popular in Asia.
美國化妝品公司也希望用類似的產品打動顧客。紐約護膚品牌彼得羅夫(Peter Thomas Roth)在韓國生產CC霜（一款比BB霜清淡的姐妹產品）。它的精純胜肽精華(Un-Wrinkle Turbo Line Smoothing Lotion)是一款與韓國的精華液（清潔和護膚之間的一個步驟）類似的產品。它也有睡眠面膜（可以敷着入睡的濃縮面膜），還有一款用鯊烯做的卸妝油，這種從甘蔗中提取出來的鯊烯在亞洲流行已久。
For sure, there is an exoticism to Korean ingredients, with products like LadyKin Vanpir Dark Repair Cream (which touts Red Dragon Blood Resin Extract) and Mizon Returning Starfish Cream (with 70 percent starfish extract). Alpha-hydroxy acid-based peeling foot masks that remove layers of dead skin have been gaining followers here, the most popular being Baby Foot. (Best not to Google the product. Eeew.)
毫無疑問，韓國護膚品的成分具有異國情調，比如LadyKin吸血鬼暗黑復活面霜(LadyKin Vanpir Dark Repair Cream，含有紅龍木樹脂提取液）和謎之芬海星再生面霜（Mizon Returning Starfish Cream，含有70%的海星萃取物）。果酸去死皮足膜在美國也被追捧，最流行的是寶貝腳(Baby Foot)牌的（最好別去谷歌上搜索這種產品。呃！）。
So pronounced is the interest in Korean products among Refinery29 readers that Ms. McIntyre recently hired Joyce Kong, a Korean-American writer in Seoul, as its Korean beauty correspondent.
Refinery29網站的讀者們對韓國護膚品的興趣非常明顯，所以麥金太爾最近聘用首爾的韓裔美國作家喬伊斯·孔(Joyce Kong)擔任韓國美容記者。
"Every month there's something new, so much of my job is to figure out, is this a fad or something that's going to be a real trend?” Ms. Kong said. “There has been snail cream and snake venom lotion. Right now donkey milk is a thing."
“每個月都有新產品，我的工作很大一部分是弄清楚某種新產品只是一時流行還是會成爲真正的潮流，”孔說，“曾有過蝸牛霜和蛇毒液。現在新出現的是驢奶。”
A contender for the next blockbuster is the single-use sheet mask, a piece of thin paper or fabric coated in active ingredients. "Say my skin routine focuses on hydrating and firming," Ms. Yoon said, “but I've been tired so I want something to promote an inner glow. That's where a mask comes in.”
下一個熱門可能是一次性薄片面膜，就是一片塗有活性成分的薄紙或薄布。“比如，我平常護膚主要是補水和緊緻，”尹說，“但我感到疲倦，想提升皮膚的內在光彩。這時就需要面膜。”
In Korea, these are already ubiquitous. "You walk into any drugstore and there are walls filled with sheet masks that cost anywhere from $1 to $10," Ms. Kim said. “They're very much part of the routine over there."
在韓國，這些已經非常普遍。“你走進任何一家化妝品商店，都能看見牆上擺滿薄片面膜，售價從1美元到10美元不等，”金說，“在韓國，面膜幾乎是必用的。”
Ms. McIntyre said she thinks the next big things could be sleeping masks and cushion compacts, in which BB cream in a compact form comes with a spongelike applicator for a dewy finish.
麥金太爾認爲接下來流行的可能是睡眠面膜和氣墊BB霜。BB霜緊密地填在盒內，附有海綿狀的敷抹器，能讓皮膚最後呈現出水靈靈的感覺。
One sure thing is that beauty companies will continue looking to Korea. Ms. McIntyre said, “It has become almost an arms race to see what the next big thing will be."
有一點是可以肯定的：化妝品公司將繼續向韓國學習。麥金太爾說，“大家都爭着開發下一個熱門產品，有點像軍備競賽。”
