Then I Met You Giving Essence Brightening & Hydrating Treatment.

Mists & Essences

About this product

A hydrating essence combining 5% niacinamide, galactomyces ferment filtrate (sake derivative), polyglutamic acid, and red algae to prep skin for subsequent skincare layers.

Full ingredients

Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate, Aspergillus Ferment Extract Filtrate, Saccharomyces Ferment Filtrate, Propanediol, Niacinamide, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Ellagic Acid, Aronia Melanocarpa Fruit Extract, Polyglutamic Acid, Glycerin, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Morus Alba Root Extract, Allantoin, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Ribes Nigrum (Black Currant) Fruit Extract, Rubus Coreanus Fruit Extract, Lycium Chinense Fruit Extract, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract, Rubus Fruticosus (Blackberry) Fruit Extract, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Fruit Extract, Betaine, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Aristotelia Chilensis Fruit Extract, Euterpe Oleracea Fruit Extract, Vaccinium Angustifolium (Blueberry) Fruit Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Flower Extract, Solanum Melongena (Eggplant) Fruit Extract, Gardenia Jasminoides Fruit Extract, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Xanthan Gum, Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Water, Methylpropanediol

Guru Score

85%

Yay

4 experts · Moderate agreement

What the gurus are saying

This essence hydrates without irritation despite its 5% niacinamide concentration, which gurus found gentle enough for sensitive skin. The fermented sake ingredient and polyglutamic acid work together to plump skin, even tone, calm breakouts, and soften dark spots, with one expert noting it delivers comparable glow and hydration to pricier alternatives at a lower cost. The formula lands exactly where an essence should in a routine, prepping skin to drink in the rest of your layers.

Synthesized from 4 expert reviews · most recent take August 2026

What they liked

Preps skin to absorb other layers better

What they flagged

Nothing. None of the experts who reviewed it raised a problem.

Best for

Oily skin Combination skinNormal skin

Type

Mists & EssencesLiquid

Key actives

Niacinamide Hyaluronic acid

Formula notes

Fragrance-freeNo drying alcohol

Where to buy

Sephora → Amazon → Google →

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What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

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No BS Beauty

89k subs

✓Yay

"For brightening ingredients this contains a lot of berries, niacinamide, white mulberry extract which is a really great brightening and antioxidant ingredient, turmeric root which is another great brightening ingredient, and azelaic acid, which is a really great brightening ingredient, I haven't really seen it in a lot of products until this one."

Kelly Driscoll

91k subs

✓Yay

"I would say that the product that I most recommend from Then I Met You is the Giving Essence. I'm a really big fan of this particular product. It's a really good example of what an essence is in the Korean skincare world because the names, toners, essence, even serums and ampules have all kind of blurred and blended together in a very interesting type of way."

Top Pick: essence

James Welsh

1.58M subs

✓Yay

"For £44 you can get the giving essence from Then I Met You, all the benefits of galactomyces ferment filtrate, but this one kind of makes my skin feel a lot more hydrated than the SK-II, probably because of the added polyglutamic acid and the red algae."

All 2 takes from James Welsh

I've Been Spraying Chlorine On My Face? + Other Skincare I've Been Loving

"Whenever I use a product from Then I Met You I forget how much I enjoyed using the product, not only that but the good stuff that actually does for my skin. This contains some fermented ingredients as well as 5% niacinamide, which I would usually find quite irritating for my skin, but it just doesn't do that in this. It almost feels like gentle for my skin."

Viral Skincare Products & Their BETTER Alternatives - Tiktok Skincare Compilation

Lab Muffin Beauty Science

863k subs

✓Yay

"There's also the Then I Met You Giving Essence, which is a nice niacinamide product that also has a bunch of fermented ingredients."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Niacinamide

Niacinamide has evidence behind it for redness, uneven tone and supporting the skin barrier, and it is usually well tolerated even by skin that reacts to most things.

Source: DermNet

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is Then I Met You Giving Essence Brightening & Hydrating Treatment?

A hydrating essence combining 5% niacinamide, galactomyces ferment filtrate (sake derivative), polyglutamic acid, and red algae to prep skin for subsequent skincare layers.

Is Then I Met You Giving Essence Brightening & Hydrating Treatment worth it?

Yes. All 4 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 85%.

What is Then I Met You Giving Essence Brightening & Hydrating Treatment's Guru Score?

Then I Met You Giving Essence Brightening & Hydrating Treatment holds a Guru Score of 85%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 4 expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.