Review – Zelens Provitamin D Treatment Drops

Hi everyone, I’m finally back with a new post! Sorry for disappearing from my blog for so long but now that I’m back, let’s start with a review of a product that I’ve been using for the past 6 months. Yes, 6 months! As always, when I test a product for a much longer period of time, there’s a reason for it. Read on to find out more!

As always, the ingredients list is as below for your reference:

Ingredients

Coco Caprylate/Caprate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, C10-30 Cholesterol/Lanosterol Esters, Caprylyl Caprylate/Caprate, Isoamyl Laurate, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Lipids, Zea Mays (Corn) Oil, Linoleic Acid, Phospholipids, Octyldodecanol, Isoamyl Cocoate, 7-Dehydrocholesterol, Plankton Extract, Ganoderma Lucidum (Reishi) Extract, Agaricus Bisporus Extract, Lentinus Edodes Extract, Usnea Barbata (Lichen) Extract, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Extract, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Sterols, Glycolipids, Lecithin, Linolenic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid, Tripeptide-29, Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate, Ethyl Linoleate, Ethyl Linolenate, Ethyl Oleate, Arachidyl Propionate, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopherol, Pelargonium Graveolens Leaf Oil, Citronellol, Geraniol, Linalool

The ingredients list is very interesting to me because unlike a normal oil, you would find that this product actually has both Linoleic Acid (omega-6) as well as Linolenic Acid (Omega-3) listed. Now why is that special? Typically, oils have a composition that consists of a mixture of Linoleic Acid, Linolenic Acid, Lauric Acid and Oleic Acid. These acids, also known as free fatty acids, are the reason why applying facial oils to your skin might have greater benefits to your skin than just preventing transepidermal water loss (TEWL). For example, lauric acid is strongly antibacterial and is useful for treating acne. Oleic acid is a barrier disruptor (meaning it can help to restore skin moisture barrier), while linoleic acid can fade pigment. By and large however, most facial oils in the market would not have ingredients list that consists of the free fatty acids listed as such. Additionally, there’s this concern that facial oils do not breakdown efficiently enough onto the skin itself for the skin to reap such benefits (read here for more info!). Therefore, when you have a facial oil with free fatty acids already broken down for you, you know that it’s quite special indeed! Enough with the ingredients analysis, so how did it fare for me?

Reference from @goalstogetglowing instagram

How did the Zelens Provitamin D Treatment Drops fare?

Zelens Provitamin D Treatment Drops is a light facial oil enriched with Provitamin D and bio-mimetic lipids similar to those found naturally in the skin that helps to restore the skin’s natural barrier and build skin’s resilience. It also claims to help protect against microbial attack (helping to keep blemishes at bay and control skin conditions such as dermatitis), wards against environmental stresses and helps to fortify skin’s fragile fabric.

So, did it work for me? Well, my answer to that would be both yes and no. To be honest, I could only use this product whenever I feel that my skin’s moisture barrier is compromised or when it’s feeling a bit drier or more sensitive than usual. Using this product at night over 2 or 3 days would help to restore my skin to a healthier state without fail. It’s kinda like a fail-safe skin repair and restoring oil for me.

However, when I try to use this product while my skin feel quite healthy, I would discover that it causes me to breakout a little. I’m not quite sure why this situation occurs for me though. This situation frustrated me and I was on the fence for this product for some time. I wanted to test it over a much longer period of time and it wasn’t until 6 months later that I feel confident enough to sum up my thoughts in this post.

I think that if you have ultra-sensitive skin with a compromised skin barrier, you should find this oil to be quite life-changing. However, if you already have relatively healthy skin, you might not see much benefits from it. Nowadays, I would use this product on a weekly basis after using the aha/bha mask as an excellent skin-restoring oil to repair my skin and protect it while it’s in a slightly weaken state.

A light-textured treatment oil

 

Where can you find it?

I bought this product from CultBeauty Online. It retails at £115.00 (30ml sized).

Thank you for reading!

Review – Oskia Citylife Cleansing Concentrate

Today’s review is about another Oskia product that I’ve been using lately. Introducing the Oskia Citylife Cleansing Concentrate – a lightly foaming cleanser from Oskia’s NEW anti-pollution range that leaves skin pH balanced, fresh and free from pollutants, make up and impurities. I was introduced to this product via one of Caroline Hirons’ videos on the brand overview of Oskia. However, what really spurred my decision to purchase was the fact that this cleanser is at pH 5.5!

 

This cleanser has a beautiful pH of 5.5!

 

As usual, ingredients are below for your reference:

 

How does the Oskia Citylife Cleansing Concentrate fare?

Oskia Citylife Cleansing Concentrate is a low-foaming pH balanced cleanser that’s enriched with some pretty interesting ingredients. Vitamin F & Aquacacteen, a refined cactus stem cell elixir, calm, hydrate & protect irritated skin. Willow Bark extract & Phytic Acid gently exfoliate. Malachite, rich in copper, protects against environmental oxidative stress and detoxifies. Vitamin A, C & E boost skin health & protect. MSM, the most bio-available form of sulphur, Eucalyptus & Lavender soothe the skin. However, the internal critic in me is highly sceptical that a product that is on your face for at most 1 to 2 minutes would be enough time for all those ingredients to have any effect.

In any case, I had a gut feeling that I would like this cleanser even before I use it based on the fact that it is a low-pH foaming cleanser and I was right! I not only like this cleanser, I love it! For my dehydrated combination-dry skin, this cleanser is perfect as either a second cleanser after removing my makeup in the evenings or as a single morning cleanse. It works well either way and always leaves my skin feeling fresh and comfortable! Now, because I’m so used to double cleansing in the evening, I didn’t try to use it to remove my makeup. The fact that I wear very water resistant sunscreen and a super waterproof Japanese mascara means that I highly doubt this product would be able to clean them off thoroughly. Also, I’m not quite sure if drier skins would take to a foaming cleanser but I don’t think that it would be as stripping as other foaming cleansers.

The only con I could think of with this product is that it is relatively pricey. £36 for a 40ml sized cleanser isn’t exactly affordable for many people but I guess that it’s tough to measure the worth of many things due to different perceptions from different people. Just buy the best that your skin likes and you can comfortably afford! If you are in the market for quality skincare and you don’t mind paying higher prices, you can consider this cleanser.

Where can you find it?

I bought this product from Cult Beauty Online. It retails at £36 (40ml sized).

If you are based in Singapore, Bud Cosmetics Online also stocks this product. It retails at S$69 (40ml sized).

Thank you for reading!

 

 

 

Review – Oskia Renaissance Mask

Oskia’s Renaissance Mask is one of the products that was included as part of the Cult Beauty X Caroline Hirons box in Dec 2017. I’ve used it roughly once or twice a week for around 2 months and I’m ready to provide my verdict on it. Oskia is not a common brand in Singapore. In fact, I think that very few people in Singapore would actually be exposed to this brand. However, I came across this brand a few years ago when quite a few of the beauty blogs that I’d followed were raving about their Renaissance Cleansing Gel. Therefore, even though I didn’t really try to explore this brand at that time, I was quite aware of its existence.

Oskia is a brand that was launched in 2009 by Georgie Cleeve. The backbone of Oskia’s skincare range is an ingredient called MSM. A natural form of organic sulphur, MSM boosts collagen production, promotes circulation and helps decrease inflammation for a brighter, younger looking complexion. Interestingly, MSM was first introduced to the market as a joint supplement for race horses about 30 years ago by Georgie’s father. When Georgie had a serious cartilage damage in her own knees caused by a skiing accident at a young age, she began taking MSM supplements to repair the damage. She experienced a phenomenal response to the MSM and her joints repaired more than any surgeon had thought possible. However, she had made a surprising discovery when she was taking those supplements. There was major improvement in the symptoms of her acne, eczema and generally poor skin, together with striking benefits to her complexion and the condition of her hair and nails. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Ingredients

Glycerin, Aqua (Water), Cetearyl Olivate, Methyl Sulphonyl Methane, Sorbitan Olivate, Lactic Acid, Sodium Lactate, Carica Papaya (Papaya) Fruit Extract, Maltodextrin, Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Fruit Extract, Passiflora Quadrangularis Fruit Extract, Ananas Sativus (Pineapple) Fruit Extract, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Fruit Extract, Benzyl Alcohol, Parfum (Fragrance), Alcohol Denat., Xanthan Gum, Lepidium Sativum Sprout Extract, Inulin, Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide, Ribose, Petasites Japonicus (Butterbur) Root Extract, Lecithin, Dehydroacetic Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Bisulfite, Phenoxyethanol, Geraniol, Citronellol, Linalool, CI 77491 (Iron Oxide)

How does the Oskia Renaissance Mask fare?

Oskia’s Renaissance Mask is dubbed as a “peel in a mask”. This mask is a beautifully buttery soft balm that turns from pink in its jar to white once it is massaged into the skin. It is formulated with MSM, natural fruit acids (such as papaya fruit extract, lemon fruit extract, pineapple fruit extract and grape fruit extract) as well as lactic acid (an AHA) and prebiotics to gently exfoliate, leaving the skin smoother, more refined and illuminated.

This mask actually reminds of a lot of the FRESH Vitamin Nectar Vibrancy-Boosting Face Mask (Read my review of it here!) in that it’s an exfoliating mask that relies mainly on fruit acids to do the job. However, I think that the main difference between these 2 masks lies in their texture. While the FRESH mask has a marmalade jam-like consistency, the Oskia mask has a soft luxurious creamy texture. Also, even though I love its effects, sometimes the FRESH mask stings my face a little if my skin is feeling more sensitised than usual. However, the Oskia Renaissance Mask is quite gentle despite containing a variety of ingredients that are meant to exfoliate your skin. I have never felt any stinging sensation or tightness while I had this mask on. I think that even sensitive skins should be able to use this mask comfortably (although I would always recommend a patch test first for sensitive skins!). In fact, although the instructions call for you to rinse off this mask after 10 to 20 minutes, I actually forgot that I had the mask on (since it feels so comfortable on my skin) and I only remembered to rinse it off after one hour. After I removed the mask, I noticed that my complexion was glowing and the skin feels very soft, smooth and velvety. I especially like to use this mask as the first step during my Sunday facials to just gently slough off the dead skin cells and prepare my skin for all the subsequent masking that I would do on my face.

If you are interested in trying Oskia’s products, I think that the Renaissance Mask is a very good place to start with. I feel that this product will make you understand the ethos and philosophy of the brand, as well as letting you experience the difference in their ingredients.

Where can you find it?

I bought it from Cult Beauty Online. It retails at £51.00 (50ml sized).

If you are based in Singapore, Bud Cosmetics actually stock this brand as well. It retails at S$98 (50ml sized).

Thank you for reading!