Vitamin C Oil Serum Review: Kiehl's, A'kin, Holy Snails, MooGoo
Vitamin C Oil Serum Review: Kiehl’s, A’kin, Holy Snails, MooGoo
In my last post I reviewed some water-based vitamin C serums containing ascorbic acid (Paula’s Choice, Ultraceuticals and Ausceuticals). Today, I’m looking at some oil-based serums containing a slightly modified version of vitamin C: ascorbyl isotetrapalmitate. There are a few reasons to use a modified version of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) instead of the real thing. Since ascorbic acid isn’t…
Image from Holy Snails’ Store, where this product is available!
I mentioned in a post about two weeks ago that I’d finally gotten my hands on a gorgeous little bottle of this handmade product (it’s often sold out). I wanted to review it that first week, but my skin was still too damaged from that Wyoming trip for me to be really sure about the product’s effects until the second week.
Product Description: A thin, jelly-ish serum that comes in a little 30-ml squeeze bottle. It’s intended to be used as a serum (i.e. before moisturizer), and its lineup of beneficial ingredients includes N-Acetyl Glucosamine, licorice root, green tea, sea kelp bioferment (hydrating), hyaluronic acid, and - you all know my favorite ingredient by now - niacinamide. The serum is unscented and has no noticeable smell whatsoever, which is great if your skin is sensitive to fragrances.
While we’re talking ingredients, I should take a moment to expressly mention that this serum doesn’t actually contain any shark-derived ingredients. I took the name a bit too literally when I first heard about the product, because it’s not uncommon for AB products to contain some pretty unusual animal ingredients (many of which I consider unethical), and avoided it for that reason. However, rest assured, the name is just a cute reference.
The thin consistency and fast-absorbing nature of this product makes it pretty versatile in terms of when/how you use it in your routine, though since it’s mostly humectants you don’t want to put much under it. I played around with different options for a few days before I settled on a method, which is to pat on about a (shelled) sunflower-seed-sized amount before my CeraVe PM in the mornings. It may feel like a tiny amount of product to use, but since there’s not much filler in this recipe, a little is all you need (and besides, at $1/ml, this stuff ain’t cheap!). It feels a tiny bit sticky after it’s absorbed, but the moisturizer on top takes care of that pretty much immediately.
I have to say, I didn’t notice a big difference immediately with this serum. It’s primarily a hydrating product, and considering how messed-up my skin was after that trip I told y’all about, hydration was pretty low on my list of problems at the time anyway. However, after about two weeks of use, I’m noticing that my skin tone is more even and my skin feels much happier and smoother during the day. Previously, my cheeks would often feel rough and bumpy by the end of the day, but Shark Sauce seems to have the right combination of humectants to complement my daily moisturizer and keep my skin hydrated for 12+ hours. I was concerned it would bump up my already absurd oil production, but it appears that fear was largely unfounded, which is another plus! Beyond that, it’s really helping to fade the PIH left from the blemishes that cropped up during my trip.
Overall: It’s not an overnight miracle product, but Shark Sauce is quickly becoming an integral part of my daily routine. The price can be a little steep for some budgets, but Holy Snails has posted a recipe to follow to make your own if that’s easier for you :). This serum plays really nicely with the rest of my routine and has definitely has nice effects so far; I’m really excited to see what it can do with continued use!
Review: 5/5
1: “I will never use this product again and intend to immediately throw it away or return it”
2: “I’m not a big fan of the product, but I’ll probably use it once in a while”
3: “I’ll use up what I have, but don’t plan to repurchase this product”
4: “I really like the product, and will keep using it unless I find a better replacement”
5: “I absolutely love this product, and will probably never look for a replacement unless it’s discontinued or the formula changes”
My order from holy snails came in today. Which means I am now the proud owner of Shark Sauce, a handmade serum that’s holy-grail status for a bunch of people over on the AB subreddit. Shark Sauce is usually sold out, but I managed to snag one, and I’m really excited to review it for you guys : )
(Expect the review in about 2 weeks; my poor skin is still recovering from that trip I talked about, so this week’s review is gonna have to be one of the ones I’ve got queued up)
