sae rosyeoneul balla bonikka naemsaega ganghaji anhaseo johasseoyo.

새 means new.

In Korean, 새 is a very common shortened determiner form used directly before a noun:

• 새 로션 = new lotion
• 새 옷 = new clothes
• 새 차 = new car

새로운 also means new, but it is the full adjective-like form:

• 새로운 로션 = a new lotion

Both are possible, but 새 로션 sounds very natural and simple in everyday speech.

The particle 을 marks 로션 as the direct object of 바르다.

바르다 means to apply / to spread on something, especially things like:

• lotion
• cream
• sunscreen
• lipstick
• paint

So:

• 로션을 바르다 = to apply lotion

That is why 로션 takes the object marker 을.

바르다 means to apply, to spread, or to put on something by smearing it onto a surface, especially skin.

Examples:

• 로션을 바르다 = apply lotion
• 선크림을 바르다 = apply sunscreen
• 약을 바르다 = apply medicine/ointment

English speakers sometimes want to translate it as wear, but for skincare products Korean uses 바르다, not 입다 or 쓰다.

-아/어 보다 added to a verb means to try doing something.

So:

• 바르다 = to apply
• 발라 보다 = to try applying it

Here, 발라 보니까 means something like:

• when I tried applying it
• after I tried applying it
• once I put it on and saw how it was

It implies the speaker learned something from the experience.

Also note the spelling:

• 바르다
  • -아 보다
• 바르- becomes 발라
• so it becomes 발라 보다

In this sentence, -아/어 보니까 expresses discovering or realizing something after trying an action.

So:

• 발라 보니까 냄새가 강하지 않았어요 means
• After trying it/applying it, I found that the smell wasn’t strong

It is not just I tried applying it. It carries the nuance:

• I tried it, and then I realized/found out...

That is a very common Korean pattern:

• 먹어 보니까 맛있었어요 = I tried eating it, and it was delicious
• 입어 보니까 작았어요 = I tried it on, and it was small

Because 강하다 describes the smell, and the smell is the thing being described.

• 냄새가 강하다 = the smell is strong

Here, 냄새 is not the object of an action. It is the subject of the descriptive verb 강하다, so 가 is used.

Compare:

• 냄새가 강하다 = the smell is strong
• 냄새를 맡다 = to smell/sniff the smell

In your sentence, the idea is:

• the smell wasn’t strong so 냄새가 is correct.

This is made from:

• 강하다 = to be strong
• 강하지 않다 = to not be strong
• 강하지 않아서 = because it is not strong / since it is not strong

Breakdown:

1. 강하다
2. adjective stem: 강하-
3. negative form: 강하지 않다
4. connective ending -아서/어서: 강하지 않아서

So the phrase means:

• because the smell wasn’t strong
• since the smell wasn’t strong

This is a very common way to make negatives in Korean:

• 맵지 않다 = not spicy
• 비싸지 않다 = not expensive
• 크지 않다 = not big

좋았어요 is the past form of 좋아요.

Here the speaker is talking about a past experience:

• they tried the new lotion
• they noticed the smell was not strong
• they felt it was good

So 좋았어요 means:

• it was nice
• I liked it
• it was good

Even though English might sometimes say I like it because the smell isn’t strong, Korean often uses the past tense when describing how something turned out after trying it.

The subject is omitted, which is very normal in Korean.

From context, 좋았어요 can mean:

• it was good
• I liked it
• that was nice

The implied subject could be:

• the experience of using the lotion
• the lotion itself
• the fact that the smell was not strong

Korean often leaves this kind of thing unstated when it is obvious from context.

So the full idea is something like:

• After trying the new lotion, I liked it because the smell wasn’t strong.

Korean frequently omits pronouns when they are understood from context.

A native English speaker might expect something like:

• I applied the new lotion and I liked it because its smell wasn’t strong

But in Korean, that would often sound unnecessarily repetitive.

So this sentence naturally leaves out:

• I
• it
• its

The listener understands them from context.

This is one of the biggest differences from English: Korean often focuses more on the situation than on explicitly naming every subject and object.

Yes, it is very natural.

Literally it is:

• Because the smell wasn’t strong, it was good.

But in natural English, it means something like:

• I liked that the scent wasn’t too strong.
• It was nice because the smell wasn’t strong.
• I liked it because the fragrance was mild.

Korean often uses simple wording like 강하지 않다 rather than a more specialized word like mild. So even though the Korean is structurally simple, the meaning is very natural.

Yes, but the nuance changes.

1. 발라 보니까

   • very conversational
   • when I tried applying it / after I tried it, I found...

2. 발라 보니

   • similar meaning, slightly more written or concise
   • after trying it, I found...

3. 발라서

   • just means because I applied it or after applying it
   • it does not clearly include the idea of trying it and discovering something

So 발라 보니까 is a great choice here because it naturally conveys:

• trying the lotion out
• then noticing what it was like

That fits the sentence very well.