Product Review

-- Product Review --

 

I discussed this review project on April 6^{th –} 8^th with 180cosmetics.com e-commerce manager -  Ayala Solzi-Tretman, and it arrived in the mail on April 21.

Instructions are: “apply several drops to the face gently massaging in circular motions. Wait until fully absorbed before applying facial cream or makeup. Use twice daily, morning and night.” Avoid contact with the eyes. 

Ingredients include: mineral water, hyaluronic acid, Magnesium Ascorbil Phosphate (the most powerful and stable Vit. C.), sorbic acid, benzyl alcohol – a preservative, apparently.  

 I was actually surprised to see alcohol listed in the ingredients and usually vit. C is a preservative so I’m not sure why this was added as well… of course they have their reasons, I am sure. But this ingredient is eco-certified for fair trade and sustainable resources. I looked this ingredient up on Wikipedia and it says that it is “used as a general solvent for inks, paints, laqures and epoxy resin coatings. It is also a precursor to a variety of esters used in soap, perfume, and flavor industries. It is also used as a photographic developer.” It is apparently produced naturally as well by many different plants. Still it’s presence does make me question, because I have delicate skin I usually avoid any alcohols or chemicals. 

This serum is the second one I’ve tried in my life (both fairly recently) and found it interesting to compare the two brands somewhat. This one is thicker and does have a fragrance almost a faint flowery smell, but very faint – possibly from the benzyl alcohol. This product is not tested on animals, does not contain animal derived ingredients and is approved by the ministry of health. It has a 12-month shelf life. According to one of the product symbols the manufacturer also contributed to the cost of recycling and collection of spent containers and packaging. I looked this up on the Chemicaloftheday.com site and found that when used as a preservative (as opposed to where it is found naturally in plants) it is actually known to cause skin sensitivity, can be allergenic, can induce asthma – however a pharmacist stated that it was unlikely to cause reactions when used in beauty products because of the small amount used. This product packaging has it listed as the last ingredient; these lists are usually in the order of the highest amount of ingredient first, and the least amount used is at the last place position.

The company also has a stronger serum by the same name, followed by “forte” which is designed to treat older skin, that some people may want to check out.

The 15 ml./.5 oz. smoky-glass bottle itself did not have a plastic seal on it like most other products, but the box was sealed. It comes with a dropper, for application. My face did feel a little warm afterwards the first time I tried it but I was also in the sun that day. I did notice that my face felt softer after I showered and applied the first time. Later that evening my face still felt a little hot, looked flush, and my pores seemed bigger. I hesitated to try it one more time, just in case. Of course I have very sensitive skin so this may not apply to other people.

Over at Amazon.ca the original list price was $93.49(Canadian) but was slashed down to $14.98. Whereas on Amazon.com  it had an original price of $89.89 and that was slashed down to $19.29. When I see that kind of price slashing I wonder if the product just isn’t popular or was originally over priced. On Amazon.com, there seems to be more positive reviews, whereas over on Amazon.ca there are a lot of negative ones.

I think with products like these it is always a personal thing – some people with have reactions, others might not see positive results, and still for others they may have a good deal of improvement of wrinkles and softer skin. Most of the reviewers who had something positive to say were saying it didn’t really give them anti-aging qualities but certainly gave them softer skin, and some people did find the fine lines around their eyes were not as pronounced.

Personally, I found the product doesn't measure up to the other brand I tried - my face definitely flushed red and felt hot, but it soaked in easily. I'm not sure I'd purchase this myself, but would certainly recommend others try it out. 

Find Dave and Lillian Brummet at: http://brummet.ca

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