the ordinary

The Thoughts |The Ordinary’s Vitamin C Derivative Offerings

There are few products that made such a difference in my skin with short-term use as using the Paula’s Choice Resist C15 Super Booster – a water-based preparation of 15% ascorbic acid. Unfortunately, I can find it irritating on my reactive skin when used twice a day along with the other actives in my routine and that I struggle to use up the product before it oxidizes.  As a result, it’s expensive with the low value of the Canadian dollar, when it can only remain stable for three or so months. I’d describe my skin as reactive and quite dry on the cheeks and chin, and prone to dullness and uneven tone. Also, I’m prone to under the skin bumps and the occasional pimple in my cheeks and chin that take forever to go away. I struggle with my skin taking forever to heal from these occasional blemishes. The Paula’s Choice offering really helped with the healing time for post inflammatory hyperpigmentation and truly evened out and brightened my skin. I found myself trying a few different products from The Ordinary to potentially use in its place after seeing their prices and hearing the company’s boasts about their products stability.

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The Ordinary Ascorbic Tetraisopalmitate Solution 20% in Vitamin F ($17.80 CDN)

I was so excited to try out this brightening vitamin c derivative because it’s formulated along with essential fatty acids that are incredibly helpful in the maintenance and repair of the skin barrier. On the positive side, this product was not irritating in the least but I also did not see much in terms of notable results. It was nothing even comparable of the effect of the Paula’s Choice and I’d say that this is because vitamin c derivatives require the skin to perform an extra step to convert the ingredient to ascorbic acid so even if it fully converts, the concentration of vitamin c would be lower than the 20% advertised. It performs as a regular antioxidant in my routine and unfortunately for me, I did not enjoy the coconut alkane base; I found it made my dry skin feel almost greasy  and felt kind of almost gritty, without ever truly absorbing into the skin. I didn’t find myself wanting to use the formula even at night because it didn’t feel great on the skin. And I note that this is as someone with dry skin who does not typically mind oilier formulas. There’s definitely research that indicates that ascorbyl tetraisopalmitate has deeper penetration than other derivatives, has excellent skin brightening ability and has good stability. We just don’t have the research that it stimulates collagen in the way that ascorbic acid does and helps to prevent and reverse skin damage when used along with sunscreen.

Ingredients: Coconut Alkanes, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Ethyl Linoleate, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Solanum Lycopersicum (Tomato) Fruit Extract, Squalane.

The Ordinary Ethylated Ascorbic Acid 15% Solution ($18 CDN)

Much like the former product, I enjoyed the product’s gentle formula but wished there was more in terms of notable results. I think that I saw a slightly more pronounced brightening effect with this one and less of a gritty texture but I had the same issue with its stable water-free formulation – it felt oily on the skin and never quite absorbed. As someone who loves oils, I was shocked to learn that the oily texture was so unappealing and even impacted foundation wear on my normal areas of my drier skin. I like to use vitamin c during the daytime for extra antioxidant protection and the texture of this product made daytime wear incredibly unappealing. It’s a more stable derivative, or more precisely, an ester of ascorbic acid, that has some research that suggests that it may produce more similar effects to pure ascorbic acid with increased stability but we aren’t there yet at knowing for sure. It does have notable brightening ability, seems to help with collagen synthesis, inhibits the formation of melanocytes and has significant ability to repair the skin from sun damage. The body metabolizes ethylated ascorbic acid as l-ascorbic acid but there is first a conversion that occurs and its unclear how much l-ascorbic acid this formula converts to. The formula is incredibly simple and only contains two ingredients, so this may be a good option for skin types that are often irritated and avoid long ingredient lists. It’s merely ethyl ascorbic acid and a hydrating penetration enhancer. My complaint is merely that I don’t find it to be cosmetically elegant and appealing for daytime wear.

Ingredients: Propanediol, Ethyl Ascorbic Acid
What’s your favourite vitamin c?
Maggie, x.

 

The Beauty Bargain | The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10%+ HA

After experiencing that beginning of winter skin freakout, I’ve been on a real skincare kick. After getting the dryness and irritation under control, I’ve really enjoyed layering different products that I have and the whole ritual of morning and evening skincare application – it’s been more than simply going through the motions for me. Recently, I’ve discovered a few products in my arsenal that I haven’t reviewed as of yet but want to share my thoughts on. The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA 2% ($6.70 CDN/ 30 mLs) is one of these products.


For the sake of this post not being a few thousand words, i won’t get into the controversy over Deciem’s ownership and their ex-CEO – The Ordinary is one of the many brands under the Deciem umbrella. This product is a simple chemical exfoliant formula with some hydrating and soothing properties. It contains 10% of the alpha hydroxy acid, lactic acid to gently exfoliate the surface of the skin, help to unclog pores, smooth and hydrate the skin’s surface and decrease the look of imperfections and discolourations over time. I will emphasize that this won’t exfoliate the pore to the same degree as salicylic acid does so if clogged pores are your primary concern, I’d be more tempted to try salicylic as your chemical exfoliant of choice. It did do all of these things mentioned above in a gentle fashion because it’s formulated at the correct pH and does not contain irritants such as drying alcohols, or irritating plant extracts and essential oils. It performed well as a gentle alpha hydroxy acid exfoliant for me but I will note that I didn’t notice a real wow impact of using it compared to other products in the category upon first use. However, I may be biased because I continuously use acids in my regimen. It definitely helped to even out the texture of my skin and to keep my skin clear but I found this lactic-acid based exfoliant shined at drawing moisture back into my dehydrated skin. The formula does include 2% hyaluronic acid which is incredibly helpful as a humectant, especially in combination with lactic acid and glycerin. Another novel ingredient of note in the formula is the Tasmanian pepper berry that has research indicating that it has excellent anti-inflammatory activity and can function as an antioxidant. I believe that the addition of these soothing and hydrating ingredients play a part in how gentle the formula is whilst being effective.

Ingredients: Aqua (Water), Lactic Acid, Glycerin, Pentylene Glycol, Propanediol, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Tasmannia Lanceolata Fruit/Leaf Extract, Acacia Senegal Gum, Xanthan Gum, Isoceteth-20, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Ethylhexylglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol.

The acid is housed in a frosted glass bottle container with a dropper, which works well to dispense the gel-serum texture of the exfoliant. I suppose it’s slightly sticky in texture but most skin types will need to apply something over the top in order to seal the moisture into the skin (as it contains humectants) and consequently, the tackiness should not be an issue. The dropper works well for the fluid texture of the product and I don’t believe that this product contains anything that could be compromised by this packaging style. It feels lightweight and hydrating on the skin, quickly sinking in. If you’re interested in trying a water-binding acid exfoliant, I’d highly recommend trying this one. It’s not complicated and is effective and gentle at a very affordable price tag. I do find that I go through the bottle a little more quickly than some other acid exfoliants but it’s so affordable that I don’t care. It’s free of animal testing, I believe. I will note, however, that the formula isn’t as robust as some of the much more expensive exfoliants I also enjoy from Paula’s Choice.

Any thoughts?
Maggie, x

 

Skincare Sunday | The Cold/Allergies/Sleep-Deprived Routine

As I write this post, I’m sitting beside my well-loved bottle of artificial tears and a heaping glass of water (with loads of ice) because I have a major case of allergies and I’m exhausted. From what I’ve gathered, many of us are sick, tired and suffering from allergies so I thought I’d share my pampering skincare routine for helping when we’re under the weather and our skin definitely shows it. I’ll remind you here that my skin is dry and dehydrated for the most part, with a tendency to get eczema whenever it gets upset or the weather changes.

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1. Gentle Cream Cleanser

I used the Paula’s Choice Skin Recovery Softening Cream Cleanser ($18 US) to remove the residual skincare products from the night before and whatever grime was on my face. My skin was dehydrated with my allergies and change of season, as I think many people experience, so a gentle cream cleanser is essential.

2.Hydrating Toner or Essence

This is one of the occasions where I think incorporating one of these products makes the greatest difference. When your skin is dehydrated and a bit irritated, adding back those essential substances that make your skin glowy and hydrated immediately after cleansing helps. I used one of my favourites, the Paula’s Choice RESIST Advanced Replenishing Toner ($24 US), which definitely helped calm my skin, adding back essential fatty acids to restore the skin barrier along with some antioxidants.

3.Azelaic Acid

Depending on your skin care concerns and the state of your skin, this could be replaced with a more traditional chemical exfoliant; after all, the verdicts still out whether or not azelaic acid performs technically as a chemical exfoliant. Because I live in Canada where azelaic acid isn’t available over the counter, I actually used Finacea, a prescription only product. It’s anti-inflammatory activity keeps my skin the most calmed, clear, bright and radiant that my skin has ever been.

4. A Powerhouse Serum

This step will differ depending on your skin concerns, but you want it to be gentle and loaded with beneficial ingredients. I went with Laneige Bright Renew Original Serum ($59) because it has a gorgeous milky texture and soothes the skin while brightening, with niacinamide, squalene and liquorice root extract.

5.A Facial Oil

There’s something about the extra antioxidant boost from applying a plant oil that makes the skin look better. I’ve been reaching for The Ordinary 100% Organic Cold-Pressed Borage Seed Oil ($4.20).

6. An Eye Cream

I normally believe that eye creams and overpriced an unnecessary but when you’re suffering through a cold or allergies, you can typically use something a bit extra in the under the eye area, but it needs to be gentle. My pick was the Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado ($39).

7. A Good Moisturizer

This seems like such a blah heading but it’s all I could come up with. This will have sun protection in it, if you’re going the routine during the day (and got your life together before 5 pm unlike me) and will perhaps be a little richer in the evening. Because my skin is so thirsty, I slathered on the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask ($35) but I’m sure this would entirely be too heavy for someone who is not on the drier end of the spectrum. This step is going to depend heavily upon your skin type.

Any thoughts?
Maggie, x.

August Skincare Empties

Contrary to what the lack of activity over the last six months or so might suggest, I am not dead. And I used up products:

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Tony Moly I’m Real Sheet Mask ($3-4/20g): I’ve gotten into that whole sheet mask shebang and out of all the ones I’ve tried, these ones are my favourite – and I’ve used loads of them, in different varieties. They don’t contain harsh or irritating alcohol and, instead, contain beneficial ingredients like glycerin, panthenol, allantoin and hyaluronic acid. Most of all, they aren’t obscenely priced for a single use mask. After use, my skin feels soothed, plumped and enriched with a dose of dewy hydration. My favourite has to be the Radiance variety. Definite repurchase.

Paula’s Choice Resist Advanced Replenishing Toner ($24 US/118 mL): Paula’s Choice toners weren’t one of the first products of hers that I tried, but they were among the most life-changing. I really liked this one, enriched with fatty acids along with her more typical antioxidant, hyaluronic acid and anti-irritant based formulas but I decided to repurchase the Skin Recovery  offering instead because I liked it about as much, with its milky texture and nice variety of anti-irritants, antioxidants and oils and you get more for less. In short, it’s great for fighting inflammation and repairing the barrier but it might not be as cost efficient as her other offerings.

The Ordinary Lactic Acid 5% + HA 2% ($6.50/30 mL): This was my first foray into the brand and is a simple, AHA formula that isn’t irritating, is formulated at a functional pH and contains hyaluronic acid and a tasmanian pepper berry derivative to soften the blow of the acid. At first, I wasn’t in love with the gel formula because I didn’t notice anything different and didn’t find it as gentle as other formulas, but once I started layering my skincare again as I was dealing with dryness, I started to really enjoy how it resurfaced while drawing moisture to the skin. At first, I dealt with the tiniest tingle on my beyond sensitive skin but that did subside. I think I even repurchased this in the stronger formula a few days ago. Someone really needs to monitor my late night online shopping.

Hylamide Booster Sensitive Fix ($20/30 mL): As someone who suffers with random bouts of seemingly random sensitivity, I decided to try Hylamide’s offering for this sensitivity. I can tell you that I liked the product but with all the jargon in the claims, I’m not sure it completely performs in comparison. It contains sodium hyaluronate to soothe and hydrate the skin, along with  lactobacillus ferment extract that has research supporting its ability to help with barrier repair and fatty acids that have the same function. It also contains a few plant extracts with anti-inflammatory activity. It’s not that I don’t like the serum – I did, and would consider repurchasing -, its more that these extracts that the serum boasts have questionable abilities to completely fix skin sensitivity and I hate how convoluted the language is on the website. This was a nice serum to layer underneath a moisturizer or oil to help reduce inflammation and sensitivity.

CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser: This cult classic is among the very best of affordable cleansers out there, fragrance-free and formulated without harsh cleansing agents. I have a couple of cleansers on the go so I won’t repurchase immediately but I definitely will. It’s excellent for sensitivity and dryness. Even though the ingredients are rinsed off, I think the hyaluronic acid, ceramides and fatty acids are a nice touch for barrier repair – but the real superstar ingredient is the lack of barrier disrupting ingredients in the formula.

Josie Maran Argan Oil: This was a sample sized product that I got out of one of those Sephora Favourites Kits that I adore but it was large enough that I deemed it worthy of mention. Seeing as I’m not a huge fan of essential oils in skincare for myself, I liked that this was purely an antioxidant rich plant oil, in an organic cold-pressed form. It wasn’t my absolute favourite and it wasn’t a sophisticated blend, but I enjoyed applying it to add a boost of hydration, do some soothing action and provide some extra nourishing. I don’t think I’d repurchase but it’s nice.

Any thoughts?
Maggie, x.

 

A March Weekend Wishlist

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Rosegirls Cool Beans Muffins($7 US/5.2-5.6 ounces): I’m starting to get to the point where I’ve purchased more vendor wax than I will reasonably burn through, but I still feel the need to order a few more things when the vendors I’m interested in open. I should probably have prefaced this with saying that I’ve gotten majorly into burning vendor wax, though… I’m a major fan of Rosegirls’ Lavender Peppermint blend as an everyday kind of mellow scent and this features the same notes, along with the additional Vanilla Bean Noel. Too much bakery can be overwhelming for my sensitive nose, but i think the hint of VBN will be nice.

Rosegirls Strawberry Peppermint Coconut Milk ($10.50 US/ 8 ounces): With today’s Rosegirls opening, I actually struggled with what other specific scents I’d like because although I love her wax, I’m not partial to fruity bakery scents. Even though neither strawberry or coconut are my thing, I’m really interested in this scent because in my experience, her peppermint is amazing and I’ve heard that the strawberry and coconut are in the background of the scent. I’m also partial to the ease of the chunk bag format.

Sassy Girl Aroma Black Sea Shaving Cream Chunk Bag ($9.95 US/9-9.5 ounces): I am well aware that I need to get a handle on this wax buying that I’ve been doing and not overbuy before I accumulate more than I have a chance of burning but another vendor that I’ve ordered from and enjoyed beginning to melt is Sassy Girl Aroma. I like that they are a ready-to-ship company with twice-monthly restocks and their sheer variety of scents. This scent was not available from this week’s opening but I expect that it will return again, especially with the trending of these slightly masculine shaving cream offerings from vendors. I’m really intrigued to try out this aquatic cologne and fresh scent, especially as a contrast to these other scents that I’ve been trying that take me further out of my comfort zone.

The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10% ($7.90/30 mLs): I promise that now this post is returning to the expected beauty content here and is not going to entirely be dedicated to my newfound wax obsession. Those who have read my posts before will know my love of gentle acid exfoliants and in the same vein, I’ve been dying to try one containing azelaic acid and struggling to find one available to me. It functions as a brightening chemical exfoliant in the standard sense but is also known to function as an antioxidant while providing these benefits.

Nine Zero Lacquer A Night With the Cats ($9 US): I’m still really wanting to try Jessface90’s indie nail polish brand but still have not bit the bullet. This crelly-glitter-mix really strikes my fancy because I’m really into the sheer white combination glitters and that I know that she has reviewed a million of these polishes and would expect perfection from hers as a result.

I’m well aware that I’ve been the worst blogger as of late but I promise that I’m getting myself into gear. I’ve just been stressed about a whole lot of nothing and been left with zero energy and motivation. If I don’t get back to blogging on a semi-regular basis, I might scream at this point.

Any wishlist related thoughts?
Maggie, x.