Review – DCL’s C Scape High Potency Night Booster 30

In my previous review for the DCL Detoxifying Clay Mask (Read full review here!), I had mentioned that the mask was a free gift (GWP – gift with purchase) that was given to me as part of the promotions running on Cult Beauty for the launch of DCL brand on their website. The product that I was actually purchasing is this – DCL C Scape High Potency Night Booster 30. Now that I’ve had it for around 3 months, I think I’m ready to tell you guys about my experience with this product.

As usual, ingredients for the product are listed below:

Ingredients

Isohexadecane, Ascorbic Acid, Ethylene/Propylene/Styrene Copolymer, Butylene/Ethylene/Styrene Copolymer, Isononyl Isononanoate, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Citrus Paradisi Peel Oil, Citrus Aurantium Amara Peel Oil, Squalane, Ubiquinone, Isomalt, Hydrated Silica, Limonene, Hydrolyzed Corn Starch, Phenoxyethanol, BHT

How does the DCL C Scape High Potency Night Booster 30 fare?

DCL’s C Scape High Potency Night Booster claims to be a collagen-boosting dynamo formulated with a 30% concentration of L-ascorbic acid, plus a ground breaking Vitamin C complex that are gently released into skin both immediately and over time for maximum efficacy and absorption. Advanced technology strengthens skin’s other structural components to improve elasticity and help fend off lines and wrinkles. Intense hydrators deeply moisturise, as antioxidants valiantly safeguard skin from environmental assailants. Meanwhile, focused brighteners even out skin tone creating a healthier, more radiant and beautifully uniform complexion. TLDR; it’s a dedicated Vitamin C serum with a 30% concentration.

I bought this product solely based on Caroline Hirons’ recommendation. If you have read some of my previous posts, maybe you would know that one of my problems that I hoped to correct for  my skin is the PIH marks that were left over after my hormonal acne subside each month. I’ve found that those marks on my face do not really respond to my constant use of acids or retinol. Only by diligently using Vitamin C serums do I see a slight improvement. Therefore, I’m constantly on the lookout for great Vitamin C products that would help me.

First of all, this product is an anhydrous formulae (meaning that it does not contain any water) which greatly aids in the stability of the Vitamin C and prevent it from oxidising so fast. My main beef with quite a lot of Vitamin C serums is that they oxidise so quickly! Although you could prolong their shelf life by placing them in the fridge, sometimes you just want your products kept where you can grab them easily. Therefore the fact that this product is kept stable by eliminating water (which is the main cause of oxidisation for Vitamin C products) wins quite a lot of points with me.

The moment this product reached me, I slather it on my face that very night. The product itself is a white gritty cream (very unlike most watery type of Vitamin C serums) and I felt a strong tingling sensation when I applied it. Because the texture of this product is so thick and gritty, I find that I could only layer a moisturiser over it and call it a night. If you want to layer a lot of subsequent products over it, you will have “rolling” and this product will just flake away. The next morning, I was blown away by how bright and clear my skin looks! I thought that I had found the perfect Vitamin C serum!

Unfortunately, after trying this product on and off for 3 months, I find that it’s just not suitable for my skin for a very simple reason. This product makes my skin break out! Although I was blown away by its results the first night, subsequent uses saw my cheeks and forehead break out in tiny little bumps. I knew my skin well enough to recognise that it’s a sign that this product does not agree with my skin. I tried again on and off over the next 3 months without much success. It’s always the same pattern. I would see great brightening effects the first night and yet with subsequent uses, I would always find my skin breaking out in places where I normally don’t. You know, I wanted to like it so much, or even love it because it’s quite expensive and my mama didn’t raise no quitter! However, as with all skincare, your mileage will vary (YMWV) and not all skincare will work for your specific skin type. You just need to experiment to find out what your skin likes or dislikes. Therefore, I’m not going to bash this product because I could totally see it working for someone else. Sadly, that person is not me!

Where can you find it?

I bought this product from Cult Beauty Online. It retails at £108.00 (30ml sized).

Thank you for reading!

 

Review – Philosophy Resurface – The Microdelivery Dual-Phase Peel Set

The OG and the Best!

Philosophy’s Microdelivery Dual-Phase Peel and I go back a long way. In fact, I think that I first starting using this product nearly 10 years ago when my elder sister bought it. Throughout the years, I’ve repurchased it many times and it is one of the few products that truly wow me every time I use it. So I thought that I should share my love of it with you guys since I truly think that it deserves more hype!

Ingredients

Step I: Peg-6, Sodium Bicarbonate, Oleth-20, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Silica, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Retinyl Palmitate, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Oil, Tribehenin, Sorbitan Isostearate, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Beta-Carotene, Isopropylparaben, Isobutylparaben, Butylparaben, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

Step II: Water, Lactic Acid, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Linoleamidopropyl Pg-Dimonium Chloride Phosphate, Salicylic Acid, Polyquaternium-10, Propylene Glycol, Diazolidinyl Urea, Methylparaben, Propylparaben

How does the Philosophy Resurface – The Microdelivery Dual-Phase Peel Set fare?

The Philosophy Microdelivery Dual-Phase Peel is a two-step, in-home peel that resurfaces and rejuvenates sun-damaged, hyperpigmented and aging skin. Unlike other peels that only exfoliated, this peel delivers peptides and vitamin c to the skin as it is being rapidly exfoliated. It resurfaces and replenishes the skin at the same time with essential skin-brightening vitamin C and peptides with absolutely no downtime.

You’ll need to use the product in the following manner:

Step 1 – Vitamin C/Peptide resurfacing crystals – apply a teaspoon amount to clean, dry skin. Once applied, crystals should appear almost like a mask. Gently massage in a circular motion over entire face for up to 60 seconds, avoiding eye area. Remember, do not scrub! Use less pressure for sensitive skin.

Step 2 – Lactic/Salicylic Acid (AHA & BHA) activating gel – place a generous teaspoon amount in the palm of your hand. Massage gel onto fingertips, and apply on top of crystals. As the activator is applied, a warming sensation will occur. Do not be alarmed! It’s supposed to feel that way! White foam will appear, indicating activation. Just leave the foam on 2-3 minutes to infuse Vitamin C and peptides into the skin (massage foam for extra exfoliating benefits or let it sit for sensitive skin). Rinse thoroughly.

After you rinse off the mask, you’ll be shocked at just how smooth your face feels! For me, my skin is left feeling so soft just like velvety rose petals and it literally looks one shade lighter. Pores look minimised and my whole face just looks so bright and even. It’s love at first peel! This product is great just before a big event when you absolutely need your skin to look its best. It’s a complete makeover for your skin in just minutes! However because this product is so intensively exfoliating, I do not recommend that you use it more than once a week or even once every fortnightly for the more sensitive skin types. I also highly discourage you from using any other actives in your subsequent skincare steps if you use this mask beforehand to avoid over-stimulating your skin.

I think that this is definitely one of the best in-home peels that I’ve tried and my love affair with it looks set to continue for a long time. Try it now!

Where can you find it?

I bought this product from Sephora Online. It retails at S$109 (2 numbers of 2 oz product).

Thank you for reading!

 

Review – Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum

Drunk Elephant is a skincare brand that I was always curious about. It is a skincare brand from the US that claims to use only “clean” ingredients that are both safe and effective. I was looking for a Vitamin C serum which would give better results than what I had experienced with the Wishtrend’s one and came across rave reviews on the Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum. Therefore I ordered this product from their website just to try and see if the rave reviews were justified.

As usual, the ingredients of the product are as below for your reference.

Ingredients

How does the Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum fare?

Drunk Elephant claims that this serum is a super-potent vitamin C day serum packed with a 15% potent antioxidant complex of L-Ascorbic and Ferulic Acids plus Vitamin E. It helps to “neutralise” pollution, environmental stressors and damaging free radicals while replenishing lipids and visibly reducing the appearance of dark spots and wrinkles. Formulated with pumpkin ferment and pomegranate extracts, C-Firma™ enzymatically dissolves dead surface skin cells for smoother texture. Sodium hyaluronate crosspolymer quickly penetrates skin and provides intense hydration. The result is a noticeably diminished appearance of photo damage, replaced by incredible radiance and luminosity.

A genuinely drunk elephant who just wants another fermented Marula fruit! *LOL*

When I first applied this serum to my face, I was surprised by its texture. I was previously using the Wishtrend’s C21.5 Vitamin C serum and that product has a watery texture typical of Vitamin C serums. However, the Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum has a gel-like/ oil-serum texture which threw me off a bit. Due to its texture, I find that I needed to adjust the amount of hydrating serum, which I usually apply after my Vitamin C serum, to be lesser than what I would normally use during my daytime routine or risk looking overly dewy by mid-day. I believe that its special texture comes about due to the inclusion of Sclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil (aka Virgin Marula Oil) in its formula. Since this product is fragrance-free, you can literally smell the metallic scent of Vitamin C when you apply it. Sometimes I would even catch whiffs of it on my hands mid-day. Although this is not a con for me, I’ve seen reviews from some people that couldn’t stand the scent. Another detail which I need to inform you is that this serum has a light golden hue. Normally for colourless Vitamin C serums such as Wishtrend’s, having the colour changed to be more golden or even amber signifies that the Vitamin C has already oxidised. But I’ve noticed that since the ingredients in this product itself includes the anti-irritant tetrahydro curcuminoids (which naturally has a yellowish colour), this golden hue didn’t seem to be due to the Vitamin C oxidising. Nonetheless, I would still recommend that you keep this product in the fridge in order to prolong the potency of the Vitamin C content of this product.

After cleansing and toning with my Mizon AHA BHA Daily Clean Toner, I would apply 2 pumps of this serum to my face. Then I would wait for about 15 minutes before I continue with the rest of my routine. Unlike the Wishtrend’s Vitamin C Serum, I’ve never experienced any stinging sensations from the usage of this serum. The initial results from the application of this serum came fast. In fact, I noticed as early as 2 days in that my face was looking more glowy than usual and had a luminous quality to it (think of the glowing skin that chaebol heiresses in Korean dramas possess). The brightness in my skin was always amplified whenever I use this product so I knew that this is the special product responsible for the glow. One other effect which I’ve came to notice after around one month of usage is that my dark circles seemed to have lightened a bit. I usually do not use a dedicated eye cream as my eye area is very prone to milia seeds. No matter how light the texture of the eye cream is, I would still get more milia seeds if I’m using a dedicated eye product. Therefore I would usually just swipe a bit of whatever serum that I use on my face at my eye area. I was also doing the same thing this time with the Drunk Elephant C-Firma serum and was surprised to find that my dark circles seemed to be lighter. Unfortunately even after around 1.5 months of using it, my PIH still hasn’t lightened too much. I guess I would really need around 1 year of using dedicated Vitamin C serums to see a significant difference. *le sigh*

 

Where can you find it?

I bought this product from the Drunk Elephant online website. It retails at US$80 (30ml sized).

Thank you for reading!