[Review] SK-II Cellumination Deep Surge EX

SK-II Cellumination Deep Surge EX

Product description

This light daily moisturizer is infused with an advanced whitening complex Aura Bright Cocktail EX with Pitera™, which deeply hydrates, evens out your skin and boosts its luminosity. With every use, dullness and appearance of spots are minimized to reveal your skin’s natural translucent glow.

Ingredients

Water, Cyclopentasiloxane, Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Triethylhexanoin, Isopropyl Isostearate, Pentylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Butylene Glycol, Cetyl Alcohol, Sucrose Polycottonseedate, Sorbitan Stearate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose Stearoxy Ether, Batyl Alcohol, Behenyl Alcohol, Benzyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine, Methylparaben, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Aminomethyl Propanol, Sodium Benzoate, Disodium EDTA, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Squalane, Panthenol, Polysorbate 80, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Fragrance, Sodium Methyl Stearoyl Taurate, Centella Asiatica Extract, Lecithin, Polymethylsilsesquioxane.

Price: USD 150 for 50 g

Good morning beauties!

It’s still the continuation of SK-II skincare ark lol. Today I’m moving on to moisturizer, Cellumination Deep Surge EX. As usual, I received this as part of GWP. The sample I had was travel size tub. It’s pretty handy once I’m done with it as I can use it as my traveling container :P.

Cellumination Deep Surge EX hails from the latest line of SK-II skincare products aim at brightening effect. I’ve seen the full size tub in real, and oh boy it’s such a pretty packaging with all those pearlescent packaging, I’m a sucker lol. The first thing I noticed when I first used this moisturizer is the presence of shimmer. I was like, omigosh what’s shimmer doing in moisturizer?? However, once applied the shimmer was not noticeable. Maybe the shimmer contributes to translucent glowing effect that SK-II promises. Putting shimmer asides, this is actually a pretty great moisturizer. It’s creamy but very light and was absorbed almost readily. I’m using patting motion for application. It may get a little slippery during application due to the presence of silicone, but once absorbed I feel nothing but moisturized supple skin.

There’s a faint scent of citrus and rose which doesn’t bother me. It’s relaxing actually. I took a good sniff and it never gave me headache so I just proceeded and got addicted to the scent eventually haha. Performance wise, I noticed after a month of use, my skin is noticeably brighter and also I no longer have dry patches. Do notice that I said brighter, not fairer. My skin just looks better and more radiant, but it does nothing to my pigmentation.

Now, I exclusively use this a night moisturizer. The website recommends using it daily, both day and night. Some bloggers stated it should be incorporated into nighttime regimen. It’s a little confusing, but given the light texture you can use it as daytime moisturizer as well. It’s just a personal preference, really. Whatever works for you, right? I prefer lighter texture for day moisturizer, like gel as I like to layer my skincare in the morning so it’s better for me to slap on lighter textured stuff. It cuts down the absorption time.

Will I get myself a full size tub once I’m done? Maybe, I’m still contemplating. Besides I still have the Stem Power moisturizer to try on. I will see how it fares with the other moisturizer and make my decision :P. If I do, I will need to rearrange my beauty financial budget to fit this in, haha. Baby is top priority for now lol.

Plus: moisturizes skin well, brightens skin, eliminates dry patches, light texture easily absorbed, relaxing scent

Minus: does nothing to pigmentation, contains silicones and alcohol (so stay away if you’re allergic to these)

Do you have any suggestion for cheaper alternatives? I’m dying to know..

See you on the next post!

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[Review] SK-II Facial Treatment Repair C

SK-II Facial Treatment Repair C

Product description

A serum that contains Concentrated Pitera with effective moisturizing complex that helps to improve skin’s appearance by reducing the look of fine lines due to dehydration. Pump a pea-sized amount onto finger-tips. Smooth over entire face, especially around the eyes and neck which are prone to fine lines and dryness.

Ingredients
Saccharomycopsis Ferment Filtrate**, Aqua (Water / Eau), Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Pentylene Glycol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Methylparaben, Sodium Benzoate. *Pitera

Price: USD 160 for 30 ml

Onto the fourth review of SK-II products, please bear with me.. Just two more review including this and I’m done, at least for now :P. As per my previous samples, I received a travel sized bottle from GWP. The bottle it came in looks exactly the same like the full sized one. The bottle contained 15 ml of product. First thing first, I love the bottle! It survived numerous traveling and I experienced no spillage whatsoever. Even after I finished the content I still keep the packaging for future use.. Oh well you never know when this jiffy stuff might came in handy.

At first I was perplexed by its name, I was questioning myself what the ‘C’ in Facial Treatment Repair C stands for. After consulting Dr. Google turns out it stands for concentrate. Ring any bell? Yes you guess it right, it contains concentrated form of Pitera, in other words the thicker version of Facial Treatment Essence and it’s 10 times as smelly lol. The concentrate was a thick clear liquid which spread quite easily and dried out pretty quick after a few patting down. My skin was significantly moisturized afterwards. The leaflet it came with recommended 1 to 2 pumps for each application, but 1 pump is pretty much sufficient. I tried using 2 pumps before and it took forever to sink in. I’m not usually skimpy when it comes to the amount of skincare I slather on my face but trust me 1 pump is enough, no need to waste precious goody, it ain’t cheap.. Well unless you have a larger surface area then you may need more, just adjust accordingly.

Combined with the Facial Treatment Essence and Cellumination Deep Surge EX (review coming soon) I woke up to a fully moisturized face and smooth canvas for makeup application. So far this has been my routine night skincare regime, alternating between Facial Treatment Repair C and The Spot Specialist. I seem to always go back to this serum whenever I need that boost of hydration. Speaking of reducing fine lines, I can’t vouch for that as I don’t have noticeable fine lines 😛 (for now at least).

So the next big question is would I repurchase? I love it, need I say more? I know I’ve been praising SK-II skincare because they work for me. What works for me might not work for you, so if you planned to splurge do try to score some sample as I notice quite a lot of people I bumped into are allergic to these Pitera-loaded skincare.

Pros: moisturizes skin well, give smooth canvas to work on makeup

Cons: the yeast smell might be too strong for some people

I’m not going to comment on the price as I can justify myself to pay that amount as long as my skin’s happy 😉

Zoom zoom!

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[Review] SK-II Facial Treatment Essence

SK-II Facial Treatment Essence

Product description

This unique Pitera-rich product by SK-II moisturizes to improve texture and clarity for a more beautiful, glowing complexion. 

Ingredients

Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate, Butylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Water, Sodium Benzoate, Methylparaben, Sorbic Acid.

Price: IDR 2.027.100 at Luxola / USD 134 at Lotte Duty Free Shop for 215 ml

Don’t kill me just yet, I still have a few of SK-II reviews lined up lol. This is the infamous holy smelly water, yes it smells a little yucky, yeast kind of smell when I first used it. By now I have developed immunity towards the smell haha.  Like any other SK-II products I’ve reviewed so far I received this in a 15 ml travel-sized bottle. I use about one teaspoon and the sample lasted me for about 1 month of regular use, both day and night. It’s either a love or hate relationship when it comes to this smelly water. Some people rate this as their must-have item whilst quite a lot totally detest this. So which category do I fall into? Read on 😉

SK-II Facial Treatment Essence (I will just call this FTE) used to come in a heavy sturdy glass bottle but recently they have changed it to plastic bottle. It was light alright but somehow it feels cheap. You pay not only for the content but also the packaging too, no? Or maybe it’s just me, just let it slip, will ya? The so-called Pitera-rich product is very watery, just like your good ole tap water with hideous scent. Again it’s said to come from the yeast extract they use. You either pour sufficient amount of this product onto cotton pad and pat to the hole face or you can opt to pour a teaspoon to your palm, spread it across your face and pat dry. I opted for the latter. I’d rather have my hands soaked up the goody rather than the cotton pad. It’s absorbed pretty quick after a bit of patting down, and immediately I can feel my skin’s moisturized. Not too moisturized that I can totally skip my moisturizer. Mind you, you still need your moisturizer after applying SK-II FTE. It’s just an essence, it’s supposed to help your skin absorb the next step of your skincare better. Some kind of booster.

I notice that whenever I’m using SK-II FTE, my serum and moisturizer are absorbed faster. It’s either this FTE works or my mind is playing some trick on me lol. What I notice after regular use is that my skin is significantly hydrated, dry patches around my nose and mouth started to diminish and makeup applies better.

So.. am I a convert? Duh, yeah~~ I’ve purchased full sized bottle ever since I’ve finished the travel sized bottles. I’m on my third bottle now. Each bottle lasts me about 6 months, so I can still deal with the price, me thinks.

Pros: hydrating, readily absorbed, plumps skin up, boosts absorption of skincare

Cons: plastic packaging, mind-boggling yucky smell

Have any of you tried this? Do let me know your opinions on the comment section. Toodle 🙂

 

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[Review] SK-II Facial Treatment Clear Lotion

SK-II Facial Treatment Clear Lotion

Product description

Containing AHA, this wipe-off clarifying lotion gently removes dirt and dead skin cells to allow skin nourishment. Leaving skin clean, lively and perfectly conditioned.

Ingredients

Water, Saccharomycopsis Ferment Filtrate*, Butylene Glycol, Polysorbate 20, Glycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate, PEG-150, Cellulose Gum, Disodium EDTA, Citric Acid, Salicylic Acid, Lactic Acid, Malic Acid, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Benzoate, Methylparaben. *Pitera.

Price: USD 60/150 ml or IDR 722.100 at Luxola

Yes, another SK-II product :P. Don’t get bored just yet because I still have few other posts reviewing SK-II skincare products. Again, just like the previous cleanser, I received travel-sized sample from buying other SK-II products. The sample bottle contains 15ml of product which lasted me for 1 month with regular use. I usually pour few drops of Facial Treatment Clear Lotion onto a cotton pad, work my way from T-zone then the rest of my face and neck.

This Clear Lotion aka toner is clear liquid, just like any other toner, with no discernible smell. It boasts to have the content of SK-II miracle ingredient, Pitera. For those who don’t know what Pitera is, it’s a yeast extract claimed to soften and give youthful appearance to aging skin. I do notice that it isn’t drying, but it may be due to lack of alcohol. Also, it contains hyaluronic acid as well that is well known to attract moisture. My skin does feel a little moisturized upon application. It isn’t significant but just a tad more moisturized compared to other toner I have used before. It does a good job too to remove any makeup residue I may still have after cleansing :).

Overall, considering its performance for the past 4 months (Yes, you read it right. Four months, because I received 4 bottles of this good stuff lol) I will likely to purchase the full size after finishing up my bottles of Kiehl’s Clearly Corrective Toner. It maybe a little pricey but I’m willing to fork out that extra moolah because my skin loves it. I’m open to suggestions for other toners that work similarly with much more wallet-friendly price haha.

Pros: hydrating, removes makeup residue well, contains hyaluronic acid

Cons: none so far.

Toodles 🙂

 

 

 

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[Review] SK-II Facial Treatment Gentle Cleanser

Product description

Infused with Pitera™ and white willow extract, this foam cleanser with natural rose scent cleanses impurities around and inside pores while enveloping your skin with silky smoothness. Feel the immense conditioning effect even after cleansing

Ingredients
Aqua (Water), Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Propylene Glycol, PEG-150 Stearate, Saccharomycopsis Ferment Filtrate*, Sodium PCA, Glycol Stearate, Butylene Glycol, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Extract, Glycolamide Stearate, Hydrolyzed Linseed Extract, Rosa Canina Fruit Extract, Phenethyl Alcohol, Cocamide MEA, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Triclosan, Phenoxyethanol, Butylparaben, Ethylparaben, Methylparaben, Propylparaben

Price: USD70/120g or IDR 774.300 at Luxola

I received a sample set of SK-II products from my mum few months ago when she switched her skincare to SK-II. Gosh she was my enabler, in the end I follow her suit after trying this set of SK-II key products. I have been incorporating these items in my daily skincare and I will be reviewing them one by one.

SK-II Facial Treatment Gentle Cleanser comes in a squeeze tube with small nozzle just like any other conventional facial wash. The one I’ve been using is the sample size which contains 15g worth of product. This sample lasts me for quite a while, about 2 weeks day and night use. It’s a creamy cleanser which lathers well, I usually just need a dollop and it’s already sufficient. It’s lightly fragrant, it doesn’t bother me but to those are sensitive might want to reconsider. I do find the scent to be calming, lavender-ish like scent, if such word even exist :P.

Performance wise it does clean up any makeup residue really well (note that I double cleanse every evening, I use cleansing oil prior to using facial wash). It doesn’t leave my skin feeling tight which most foamy cleanser does. Nonetheless I don’t think I will be splurging on facial cleanser knowing that there are many others perform just as well with just  fractions of the price. It’s pretty hefty price tag just for something that goes down the drain. This cleanser is paraben-ladden for those who are concerned.

This foamy cleanser reminds me of Lancome Absolue Premium Bx Advanced Creamy Foam Cleanser. It lathers just as well, smells similar and does the same job. However I still can’t justify myself to pay so much just for something I rinse every other use (me being el cheapo). For now I will stick to my Kiehl’s Ultra Facial cleanser.

Pros: lathers well, gentle to skin, lightly scented, cleanse well

Cons: not paraben-free, considerably pricey for cleanser

See you at the next post!

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