5.0 out of 5 stars My first time using anything like this before!

Y. · October 10, 2025

After experimenting for a bit with this product, I found a few things quite promising: Firstly, the freeze-dried collagen capsules dissolve cleanly into my serums and feel lightweight on the skin upon application. It lends a subtle firming and hydration boost which seems to align with what the brand claims about “anti-aging, firming, plumping, hydration”. That said, the effects are MODEST rather than dramatic, especially on deeper lines or elasticity over a short trial period, and because it’s essentially just hydrolyzed collagen, results rely heavily on consistency and what you mix it with. Overall, I am quite fond of the gentle texture and ease of layering, though I wish it delivered more visible results more quickly. In the future I might pair it with stronger actives. Lastly, one box only contains 7 capsules labeled Days 1-7. It's a very short "treatment" with a very heavy price tag (about 24 dollars).

4.0 out of 5 stars Unique Collagen Balls for Weekly Barrier Care

M.o.K. · September 15, 2025

It needs to be said, we can not boost collagen production with topical collagen because collagen molecules are too big to penetrate the skin. However, topical collagen is great for moisturizing skin and acting as an occlusive barrier to lock in hydration.These freeze dried collagen balls are really effective when combined with a serum or moisturizer to boost their moisturization properties. I have combo dehydrated skin that gets very oily if I don't hydrate and moisturize. So having something that locks all of my hydrating toners and serums into my skin overnight is very important to me. I find that most occlusives like petrolatum based products are too heavy for me - so I love these 100% Collagen Boosting Balls from K-Secret Seoul 1988.These come in a 7 pack of individual blister packs that can be separated from the pack with a perforated breakaway (great for travel.) You peel back the foil on the blister and reveal a little boba-pearl of collagen. You can either combine this with serum/moisturizer in your hand, or you can use the blister packet as a tiny mixing bowl and drop your serum/moisturizer in with the ball and mix them that way. I prefer to do it the second way and use a small spatula because I don't like dipping my fingers into products for hygienic reasons. The product package was safety sealed.I typically do one "barrier care" routine a week with no exfoliators or retinoids - and for a month I've been incorporating these collagen balls into that night routine to boost my barrier support serums. The first time I used this I mixed it with my most watery serum, because collagen can be sticky feeling on the skin and I wanted to make it feel as light as possible. Unfortunately, even with a light, watery serum, this made it too sticky. As someone with sensory issues, that is not something I can handle. Topping it with a moisturizer helped, but because collagen can be an occlusive, I felt like my moisturizer didn't absorb and just sat on my skin. The next week I mixed it in with a light emulsion moisturizer, and that was a win!!! The emulsion was not heavy enough for me to use a final moisturizer before, but with the addition of this collagen ball, it's now the perfect weight. The fluid-y milky emulsion became a light-weight yet occlusive moisturizer and while it did still feel a little sticky for about 30 minutes after applying, it wasn't overwhelming and didn't trigger my aversion. The next morning my skin was plump and glowing, like I had used an over night mask. After a month of 1x weekly application, I feel like my skin barrier is much improved and that my regular routines the rest of the week are absorbing better with more long lasting effectsI really like these as part of a weekly skincare routine and they are a good value for that. I would not think that these would be good for a daily routine with only 7 application per package. If your skin could use a little moisture on a weekly or more occasional basis, can handle a little bit of stickiness, and understand that this kind of bathroom-chemistry approach can take a little trial and error, I would recommend these! If you are looking to add collagen for a daily routine, I would recommend looking for a serum that is already formulated with collagen.

5.0 out of 5 stars fun, interesting, innovative way to turn any serum into a collagen serum

p. · August 10, 2025

First things first: topical collagen is less about skin absorbing the collagen and more about forming a bit of an occlusive layer to help whatever else is in your skincare absorb more fully. I have never tried a collagen-containing product that wasn't sticky/film-forming, although they do vary in stickiness.These little balls of pure freeze-dried collagen look like little feather-light pearls, individually blister packed to enable mixing just about any serum you'd like. They are unscented and colorless. You can drop the serum directly on to the ball in the blister, and it sort of melts down as it mixes in. For my first attempt, I used a serum that I knew to be 100% NOT sticky, so I could judge the stickiness added by the collagen (and I did mix it in my palm, oops). (The orange color pictured is from the serum, not this product being reviewed.) It did thicken the serum a bit, and yes, after applying, absorbing, and drying, there was a bit of a sticky film. I'd give it about a 7 out of 10 on stickiness. For that reason, I'd label this strictly a nighttime serum additive.Despite the film-forming action, these do not add any oiliness or greasiness to my serum, and I do feel like it helps with the absorption of the rest of my skincare overnight. The mornings after I use these, after waking and rinsing, my skin looks and feels better hydrated and not at all like it has been exuding oil all night.Although this is a concentrated dose of collagen, I think that being pure collagen, it would be gentle enough to use frequently. However, a weekly treatment is probably enough to increase skin's hydration retention, and more frequent use would add up quickly and reduce the value for price.

3.0 out of 5 stars Wasn't quite working for us

D.d.S. · August 17, 2025

Hmmm... we are unsure about this one. I think the nature of this products leaves too much room for error on the user's part. Maybe some instruction or recommendations is needed on what to mix it with for different skin types? My wife was using this one, and she has dry skin, which the description says this should be beneficial for. But unfortunately, this product seemed to make her skin drier so she stopped using it before finishing it. This is not to say it's necessarily a bad product, it just wasn't working for her, but again, maybe that has something to do with the product she was mixing it with. But these little freeze-dried balls are otherwise as described. They could be a tad pricey for what they are/how much you get, and the extra step needed of having to mix it with something else.