[REVIEW] HYDRABIO GEL-CREME

Bioderma does it again with another outstanding product. My skin has been absolutely insane this summer and not only that, it has been constantly flipping back and forth from dehydration to producing excess oil. My skin most certainly is responding to the humidity and the constant shift of cool to hot weather in a very negative way. Although I enjoy rich and creamy textures, I do prefer to wear more lightweight and gel formulas during the day time because it’s more comfortable on the skin and does the job.

Bioderma Hydrabio Gel-Creme
40 ml ~ price may vary between 25 ~ 30

How to use:

You can apply this evenly throughout the face or you can use this as light treatment for skin irritation and use another moisturizer if needed. I often have irritation on my nose and cheeks and a lot of products I normally use, do not work for my skin during when it’s irritated. I find this is quite mild where I can use it as a topical treatment to calm down and soothe my irritation.

Claims

• The gel-cream is an innovative and physiological lamellar emulsion
• The technology allows active ingredients to deeply penetrate into the skin at ease
• It’s able to merge skin’s lipids and the lamellar emulsion strengthens skin’s barrier
• It’s formulated with Salicylic acid which is able to smoothe and even out skin’s texture along with Vitamin B3 that can stimulate skin’s cohesion and resistance and has Cucumber Extract that soothes the skin. Glycerin that can store skin’s capacity to retain moisture and Vitamin E can aid against stress.
• Recommended to be used for the morning, evening, 7 days a week. The gel-cream can be used once or twice a day, seven days a week.

Ingredients:

Water, Glycerin, Isododecane, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dipropylene Glycol, Niacinamide, Squalane, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, C14-22 Alcohols, Hdi/trimethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Ammonium Cryloyldimethyltaurate/vp Copolymer, C30-45 Alkyl Cetearyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Carbomer, Pentylene Glycol, Tocopheryl Acetate, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Steareth-21, Disodium Edta, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Mannitol, Xylitol, Hexyldecanol, Peg/ppg-18/18 Dimethicone, Rhamnose, Malachite Extract, Pyrus Malus (apple) Seed Extract, Brassica Campestris (rapeseed) Sterols, Tocopherol, Fragrance (parfum).

Overall:

• Texture: 5/5 – lightweight cream, gel formula that absorbs easily into the skin without any residue left behind. Comfortable to wear alone and with makeup if needed. Apply this on prior to SPF then layer SPF on after. Remember folks, do not forget to SPF! It is a crucial step.
• Scent: 3/5 – There is a scent to this however because it’s so low on dosage, I’m not bothered by it. However, I do prefer skincare that has no fragrance in it. In the past, I said I didn’t mind skincare with fragrance however my skin is quite hit or miss with fragrances so better to stay safe than sorry.
• Price: 3/5 – The price may vary where you decide to purchase this from. The dermstore has this product for 24.90, which is quite reasonable because you only need a little bit to apply evenly throughout your face.Performance: 4/5 – It’s pretty good. It definitely met my expectations I had for it and provided me long-lasting hydration to my skin and was super comfortable to wear with and without makeup.
• Packaging: 5/5 – Practical, compact and comes with a pump. The pump is easy to control and does not squeeze out too much. I find it really travel-friendly too!
• Overall: 4/5 – Nice! I like it a lot. There are a few question ingredients as I put them on italics for you to reference off of but that’s up to you whether you think it’s best for you. Personally, I’m ok with alcohols as long as they don’t irritate my skin and eyes. The first place that reacts to alcohol-based products are my eyes, they go bloodshot red and stay that way until I remove off the product. For this, I didn’t have that issue at all. I know there’s some controversy behind silicones/dimethicone but I personally do not mind silicones. Silicones do aid against water loss and can assist with delivering active ingredients deeply into the skin. You’ll likely find a lot of products that are marketed for skin repairing/healing do contain silicones in them. However, if your skin does not like silicones, please do a patch test prior to using or ask for a sample of the product.

 

 

Disclaimer: I was given this product in exchange for an honest review. All views and thoughts of this product are my own. What may work for me, may not work for you so please keep that in mind. Some links on this post are affiliate links. This means that I will earn a small commission if you purchase from these links.

 

 

[REVIEW] IOPE BIO ESSENCE ~ INTENSIVE CONDITIONING

 

Good morning, friends. I hope you had a fantastic start to your week. I wanted to come on here and share a product I have been trying out for the past 3 weeks. Don’t be deceived by the amount I used – these are photos I shot when I first got it. I also used this before I got a chance to take a perfectly new bottle.

Question for you all before I begin my review, do you take photos of everything you first get?

I try my best to take pictures of brand new products but it’s just so exciting to open new products sometimes. I’m sure some of you can understand and relate, haha!

Alright, so today’s product we will be talking about the Iope Bio Essence ~ Intensive Conditioning. This was kindly gifted to me through Meibe Korea in exchange for an honest review of the product.

Iope Bio Essence – Intensive Conditioning
Available at: eBay | Meibe Korea|Amazon – Prime CA | Amazon US
168 ml ~ prices may vary where you decide to purchase this. 

Claims:

This is a water-based essence that helps strengthen the skin and to create a clear and smooth appearance. This essence can quickly absorb into the skin and able to penetrate deeply into the skin; which allows long-lasting moisture to the skin. This contains advance Bio-Redox A components that recharge the skin natural strength on a daily basis so that skin becomes strong against time or changes in the environment. This essence also evens out skin oil and moisture balance. For long-term use, it provides conditioning, wrinkle-improvement, and whitening.

My thoughts:

There’s a lot of essences in the market and I’ve tried quite a few. The two popular ones I’ve tried were the Missha fte and also SK-II fte, both were alright. I personally found this did more for my skin than both of those two individually and possibly, combined. My skin instantly felt hydrated the moment I applied this onto my skin and absorbed so quickly! After 2 weeks of continuous use of this product, I noticed my skin was so much plumper, brighter and made product absorption a lot quicker + easier. The reason why I believe this was the product that allowed my skin to absorb more product is that this was the only product I changed and added to my existing skincare routine and even facial oils absorbed a lot faster into my skin when I use this. I usually rely on cotton pads when I am using toners, eye makeup remover, and micellar water but for essences, I like to dose it directly on my face so I don’t have any wasted product. (Yes, I’m serious. It may sound silly but it works and the thought of no wasted products brings me joy, ha!)

TIP: Pour small amounts of the essence on your hand, apply on face then pat and repeat if you need more. If you pour out too much, you make spill some off your hands.
Out of the essences, I’ve tried I prefer this one out of all of them. I would most likely repurchase this because it works best for me!

• Texture: 5/5 – It’s exactly what it’s named. Micro essence, it’s like water but thinner in consistency. It’s super lightweight feeling and absorbs beautifully into the skin without making it looks wet or leaving any residue/water drips behind.
• Scent: 5/5 – There is no scent to this and this is for those who are sensitive to scent/prefer to have no scent in their products. It also does not have that ferment scent like SK-II FTE does.
• Price: 5/5 – I personally think the price is reasonable for what you’re getting. It’s really well made and is a fraction of the cost of many expensive essences out in the market. This will last you a while before you need a replenishment. I’ve had mine for 3 months and barely am halfway in my bottle. I also use this about 4-5 days a week so it has been lasting me for a while now.
• Performance: 4/5 –  My skin is usually really dull and dehydrated, along with a lot of congestion issues going on around my t-zone. I find this product alone helps other products I apply on my face absorb more faster. Facial oil tends to sit on my face for a while before they absorb in properly and I find this essence allows my skin to drink up the skincare products I decide to apply on. How awesome is that?!
• Packaging: 5/5 – Packaging feels luxurious and made of a frosted glass bottle with a metal bottle cap, everything is easy to read and clear. There’s a good weight and feel to it but do be careful because it’s made of glass and is fragile.
• Overall: 4/5 – I would repurchase this and would recommend you to try this if you were interested in getting into facial essences. It’s a great addition to a skincare routine!

Well, that’s it for today! Please feel free to comment below if you have any questions about this product or a product you would like me to try and review for you. I’ll try my best to get it ~ Have yourself a wonderful day!

[REVIEW] Iunik Black Snail Restore Serum

Hello, hello friends. It has been a VERY hectic little bit for bit I’m managing my time wisely today to share this wonderful serum I have been anticipating to share my thoughts on this serum I have been using consistently in my evening beauty routines. The reason why I don’t always share all of my products in my photos because it can quickly get all congested and look too busy. As well, I wanted to use this a fair amount of times to develop and actual opinion on this.

I was kindly gifted this product from Iunik in exchange an honest review.

Iunik Black Snail Restore Serum – 50 ml

Available on: Unique4U | Yesstyle

• Prices may vary where you purchase the serum from. It ranges between $20 USD -$23 USD

Product Claims

1. Nutrition: Contains 70% of black Snail extract instead of purified water to nourish the skin’s natural strength
2. Anti-Aging – Contains 5 Black Super Foods (black beans, black sesame, black rice, kelp and eggplant) to help with anti aging.
3. Skin trail relaxation – Incoperates Centella asiatica extract to help alleviate traces
4. Facilitate skin recovery – Contains patented Natural HG ingredients to help tired skin recover
5. Whitening/wrinkle improvement – Confirmed as a pharmaceutical functional ingredients by KDFA Contains niacinamide and adenosine to improve whitening and wrinkle.

Key Ingredients

• Snail mucin is shown to have antioxidant properties as well the ability to promote collagen production and increases wound healing. It is packed with hyaluronic acid, which is humectant ingredient that is able to retain moisture within the skin.
• Centella Asiactica is a plant-based ingredient that has multiple healing properties. The extract is rich with amino acids, fatty acids and etc that can help treat and prevent acne, calming down skin inflammation and promote collagen growth.
• 5 Black Super Food ingredients all have something in common, they are all rich in antioxidants, have natural dextoxifying properties and rich in Vitamins (B & E). Kelp in particular helps calm, soothe and nourish the skin.

Here is how the serum looks like when applied on my hand: 

My thoughts

As you can see as the demonstrated photos, this serum is very lightweight and watery. It leaves no sticky/tacky residue behind and absorbs into the skin seamlessly. It can be layered with other products as desired. I have combination skin however it’s quite dehydrated even in my oily regions. I also have some acne scars on my cheeks. I would mix this serum into a skincare cocktail with my vitamin C serum and would notice my skin is not only brighter the following day but within a month of continuous usage, I noticed my acne scars were less red and prominent. One thing I really appreciate about iunik is that there is a generous amount of product and their dropper is high quality Their dropper is sturdy and allows you to control how much you want.

Overall:

• Texture: 5/5 – Lightweight and perfect for layering with other skincare products, can be used in skincare cocktails.
• Scent: 5/5 – There is no scent at all to this, which is fantastic for everyone since fragrance is unnecessary to have for skincare products.
• Price: 4/5 – Standard pricing for serums and there’s a lot of product in this so you won’t need to repurchase for a while.
• Performance: 5/5 – I’ve used this consistently every single night consistently for 2 whole entire months and I am impressed. Initially, I didn’t see any results on my skin because it was too short of duration for my product trial to even have an opinion of it however as I used this. I noticed a huge difference in my skin’s texture and overall moisture levels. Usually during the winter seasons, I would struggle with very dried and damage skin but with this, I feel like it’s protected my skin from the Canadian cold and harsh winter days.
• Packaging: 5/5 – Packaging is simple, easy to read and you can visibly see how much product is left inside so you know when to repurchase. The dropper is sturdy and well made where you can control how much serum you want to apply onto your skin.
• Overall: 5/5 – I have nothing to complain about this. This is another fantastic iunik product and I highly respect this brand for it’s reputation and quality. They honestly are the very few brands out in the market that care about their ingredients. See on Cosdna with the breakdown ingredients. There are no harmful filler ingredients and it’s completely free of silicones and parabens. Did I mention that they are cruelty free? I’m so blown away with iunik and I’ve been using their products even when I first started getting into skincare. I recommend this everyone because it’s such a beautiful and versatile serum that can be used in all skincare routines.

Thank you again for swinging by and reading my review on another fantastic skincare product. Cheers to beautiful skin days!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I was given this product in exchange for an honest review. All views and thoughts of this product are my own. What may work for me, may not work for you so please keep that in mind.

[REVIEW] JKosmmune Toner Mist

Good afternoon, dear friends.

How are you? I know black friday was quite chaotic yesterday. In case you missed out on any special deals, do keep in mind that Cyber Monday is right by the corner with tons of new deals.

Here is my long anticipated review… You’ve seen it in my skincare routines and also my stories talking about this product. This was kindly gifted to me in exchange for an honest review.

JKosmmune Toner  ~ 150 ml for $29 to $31
Available on: JKosmmune Official Website
Made in Korea

Product claims:

• Gently revitalizes and refreshes skin
• Highly pure and potent beta glucan
• Reduces appearance of redness
• Soothes skin irritation and re-hydrates skin
• Maintains skin pH balance
• Free of irritants and most importantly, alcohol
• Free of Paraben, Ethanol, Talc, Mineral Oil, Silicon Oil, Benzopheone, Phenoxethanol, Parraffin/Perfume!
• This toner is enriched with 99.9% beta glucan and the formula is able to penetrate deeply into pores, leaving the skin feel refreshed and comfortable
• Excellent for all skin types

What is Beta Glucan?

Beta Glucan is a polysaccharide sugar derived from yeasts/oats. It has skin soothing and some antioxidant properties that are fantastic to improve the skin’s appearance by reducing redness and any signs of inflammation.

My thoughts

I’ve used this toner mist consistently for 3 whole weeks every single day and I have noticed a huge significant difference in my overall skin’s complexion. Firstly, I noticed the redness around my cheeks are drastically less prominent and also my forehead does not produce as much as oil as it use to. I’ve used this toner alone and also mixed in with other toners, it doesn’t affect or have any negative affects on my skin.

Do you ever get that dry, dehydrated, cracky skin feeling after a hot shower?
I always seem to have that issue so the moment I step out from my shower, I would dose myself with this toner all over my face. SokoGlam Charlotte Cho shared that towel drying your face after a shower isn’t a good idea so what I do is, the moment I step out from the shower I would spray this toner mist all over my wet face.

This is a fantastic product to be used under or over skincare and makeup. I’ve brought this with me to work to refresh my makeup and it doesn’t shift or affect my makeup. Unlike most mists in the market, this beauty is free of irritating chemicals and also has a shelf life of 9 months, which indicates that it doesn’t have a lot of preservatives to it. Be sure to mark the bottom of the mist the date you opened it. Also, please be very careful with getting this mist too close to your eyes. It’s formulated with citric acid so it will burn your eyes if you get it too close.

I have been introducing my skin to a lot of new products and I noticed I would break out from them. Everytime my skin is irritated, burning or even red, I would quickly mist this all over and I would the inflammation and swelling go down with half an hour. How fantastic is that? I have combination, acne prone skin so my skin will have days where it may be more sensitive than others. I would do my regular double cleanse routine, mist a generous amount of this toner and let it sit then apply my iunik propolis viatmin synergy serum and my moisturizer of choice.

Lately, it has been a lot colder and dryer so my current moisturizer pick is the Cerve Moisturizing Cream (formulated with ceramides and hyaluronic acid). I tend to pick ceramide based creams during winter because they’re more on the thicker side and dense in concentration to rehydrate and restore my skin’s moisture barrier. I also like to use hyaluronic acid to retain my skin’s moisture.

Here is a photo of my skin after 3 weeks of continuous use to this product. If you’re curious how red my normal skin usually is, please reference from the photos below for my haruharu repetitive cream.

Overall:

• Texture: 5/5 – Lightweight and effective
• Scent: 5/5 – No scent what so ever! Non-scented products are perfect for all skin types as well!
• Price: 4/5 – It’s a fair price for what you get and it’s free of irritants so I would highly recommend this to everyone especially those who suffer with skin redness and often have irritation
• Performance: 5/5 – This is one of very few mists I love and use every single day. It’s so effective and the ingredients are pure. My skin looks brighten and refreshed from every use and I often like to use this as my skincare base and finisher to seal in everything!
• Packaging: 5/5 – Packaging is practical, easy to read and use. Nothing complicating and perfect to bring on the go.
• Overall: 5/5 – I am REALLY happy with this mist and will repurchase this when I run out. It’s one of very few mists that do what they claim. Sure, many mists in the market are able to give a “cooling and soothing” feeling temporarily but this is probably the first facial mist that has tremendously saved my skin’s irritation. I am quite blown away with the results and how happy my skin is now.

Thank you for swinging by and reading my review. If you have any further questions of this product, please feel free to leave a comment below and I will be sure to read it and respond within a timely manner. I wish you all beautiful skin and have yourself a wonderful weekend.

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I was given this product in exchange for an honest review. All views and thoughts of this product are my own. What may work for me, may not work for you so please keep that in mind.