Elucent Whitening Moisturisers

Gah! For some reason, I thought I had a post all scheduled and ready to go for last Friday (Friday, kids, is when Aus Best Beauty Buys will be bringing you my latest thoughts this year, providing I don't get muddled again!) but it turns out I didn't ...

Which is a shame because I have a truckload of products waiting to be written up.

But here we go with these two moisturisers - day and night - part of the 'whitening' range from Elucent.  I received these sample sizes as part of a little package of samples from a beauty website.  I have definitely used an Elucent product before but I'm stuffed if I can remember what it was.  I remember I liked it though.

The Whitening range is supposed to brighten your skin and reduce uneven skin tone.  As someone who has a little bit of pigmentation (hey, I grew up in Australia ... these things can't be helped!) I'm always keen to try out products like this.  I used the day and night creams in sync for a good couple of weeks and definitely noticed lovely, smooth, well hydrated skin during that time.  Did the creams reduce pigmentation and uneven skin tone? I can't say because I didn't take before and after shots but because they worked at their core business of moisturising my skin looked good.

The day cream
The day cream is SPF 30 - yay! A moisturiser with something approaching serious sun protection.  The cream is quite light and goes on easily and is absorbed quickly.  It does have a little bit of a white cast to it but that disappears when the cream is absorbed.  The cream does have the slight feel of sun cream to it but it hydrates and provides a pretty good base for foundation too.

The sunblock side of this cream definitely does its job - I wore this on a ferry crossing when I stood on deck for almost the full 45 minutes and didn't get sunburnt.

The night cream
The night cream is a completely different texture to the day cream.  It's thicker and feels richer but it is quickly absorbed and I didn't wake up feeling like I had a greasy face.

These creams aren't cheap and they're not widely available. But you can pick them up at Chemist Warehouse.

Innoxa Skin Clear Clarifying Night Complex

 

 I bought this through OzSale and as it's no longer listed on the Innoxa website I guess it was run-out end-of-line discontinued stock.  However, it meant I picked it up for $8 rather than the $35 Innoxa night creams are normally.

The Skin Clear range is for oily/combination skin which is pretty much perfect for me - I have the typical oily t-zone and dehydrated (rather than necessarily dry) cheeks.  I also used this product over winter, which is a great litmus test for me with a moisturiser, as over winter is when my skin really struggles.  By which I mean it becomes so dehydrated that it starts to flake and then wearing foundation becomes a real challenge.

I loved this night cream.  It was very light and very easily absorbed, both of which can be a bit tricky to find in a night cream.  Initially I was concerned that it wasn't going to do the job because it was so light - but I've come out the other side of winter with remarkably smooth skin (maybe my day cream needs some credit too, but you know what I mean).

It was very lightly fragranced, I didn't need a lot of it (the 50mL jar lasted the whole of winter) and it did not cause any breakouts.

Things get better because this product is Australian made (I love being able to champion a locally produced product) and it's paraben free, dermatologically approved AND not tested on animals.

The only thing that's not to love about this is that you can't get hold of it!  However, my really positive experience with this does mean that I'll have no qualms about trying out other Innoxa products in future.  The Skin Clear range at the moment only carries a cleanser and anti blemish shine control lotion but other ranges, such as Anti Ageing and Sensitive, have a much fuller set of products.
Innoxa products are widely available.

Innoxa.

Source: online purchase.

Sanctum Moisure Concentrate

A while back I read a piece in the Guardian about how, when buying moisturisers (or skin care in general) it's a good idea to have a quick read of the ingredients list.  If it's dominated by water (sorry, aqua) and mineral oil then you're really paying for glorified baby oil.  If it's dominated by the so called 'active' ingredients, then you're getting a bit more bang for your buck.

This Sanctum Moisture Concentrate (which I received as part of a prize) ticks the second box with the plenty of things like aloe, vitamin A, cocoa seed butter and jojoba oil.  It's also Australian made and owned, not tested on animals, vegan friendly and 87% organic.

So before you even use this, you feel good.

How does it stack up as product?  I really liked it.  It has a very herbal, savoury smell that is dominated by rosemary.  I liked this as it reminded me of expensive facials where they use very concentrated products!

I used the product morning and night (always a plus, in my mind) and found it a good base for foundation.  It did a good job of hydrating my skin although it wasn't always quite up to the winter weather.  At the same time, it didn't cause any breakouts but it is quite emollient so if you have oily skin (rather than combination) or you're prone to breakouts you might want to try one of Sanctum's other moisturisers.

This is another product I would definitely buy.  It's only $20 for a 75g tube and it lasted me for quite a while.  It seems like it might be a bit tricky to get hold of.  Here is South Australia it is supposedly available at Foods for Life in Gawler Place but the FfL website doesn't list it.  You can, however, buy it through the Sanctum website.  Sanctum offers loads of different products, including ones for men and babies, so if you are interested in organic and sustainable skin care you should have a look.

Available:  check the store locator on the Sanctum website or buy online. $19.95

Sanctum Australia.

Source:  prize.

Griffin + Row Nourish Moisturiser

Griffin + Row is an Australian company, making botanical based skin care products.  The Griffin + Row skin care routine is five steps which sounds excessive, but one of those steps is actually a night cream. 

The products are all based around the centess+ complex, which seeks to addresss the four causes of ageing (lack of hydration, free radicals, lack of oxygen and diminished collagen).

First up, this cream (which is step 4) is quite thick and smells very strongly of lavender.  I'm not a huge fan of strongly scented creams and this did have a bit too much of an 'old lady' smell about it.  It immediately made me think of the type of product one of my grandmas would use.

I felt the cream was too thick for me to use as a day cream, so I've been using it as a night cream.  While it is emollient I don't really find it hydrating at all.

Not for me at all, I'm afraid.

Available online and at selected retailers.  RRP $32.99.

Griffin + Row.

Source:  trial sample.

Puretopia Glowingly Smooth Body Polish

With an insanely long name (Glowingly Smooth Exfoliating and Renewing Body Polish) this might be a tricky one to remember.  With Amazonian Acai and Guarana it's "for everyone".

But is it?

The good points about this body scrub are many:  it's a good mix of both coarse and smooth beads (which I love), it rinses off really easily and I found myself with lovely soft skin afterwards.

So far, so good.

However - the smell.  My goodness - it smells like Midori.  Strongly.  Which, in my books, means it smells horrible.  I also can't imagine too many chaps being thrilled to use a product that smells like this!!!

At least the smell doesn't hang around (you don't leave the shower smelling like a cocktail) but for me, that's enough to put me off.

Also paraben and sulfate free, and both Australian owned and made.

Widely available for around the $15 mark.

Puretopia.

Source:  prize