Moisturizer

now that fall has arrived, are you thinking of changing up or adding a little extra something to your skincare routine? as the weather changes during the fall and winter, we often need a little extra in terms of moisturization. i’m happy to report that Algenist’s Anti-Aging Repairing Oil is an excellent candidate for consideration!

Algenist Advanced Anti-Aging Repairing Oil

Anti-Aging Repairing Oil is a fast absorbing, non greasy, light oil formulated with microalgae oil, ceramides, and brown algae extract to help with skin regeneration, restoring firmness and elasticity, increasing water retention, and preventing moisture loss. it accomplishes all this with flying colors! i can especially attest to the skin regeneration part. earlier this summer, i sunburned my shoulders the day before i got on the plane for vacation. at first it was just tender, but by the time i arrived at my destination, it had become painful. i mixed a few drops of Anti-Aging Repairing Oil into my aloe body lotion, and it felt much better the next day! all that remained was a little bit of tenderness in the morning. i applied another few drops, mixed in with my body lotion, before i left the house for the day and reapplied when i got home at night. the next day all the tenderness was gone! i’ve never had a sunburn stop hurting that fast!

because of it’s great ability to increase water retention and prevent moisture loss, Anti-Aging Repairing Oil is also a great travel companion! having this in your arsenal while you’re traveling gives great flexibility to your skincare routine. you can add a drop or two extra if you need an extra boost in moisture or mix it with your serum and skip your lotion/cream if you need to lighten up your routine. i have dehydrated skin that usually needs the wax in lotion/cream to help seal in moisture; otherwise products tend to evaporate quickly, leaving my skin to feel dry again. this even happens in humid, asian weather! however, my skin was happily moisturized when i used only Anti-Aging Repairing Oil mixed with a serum during the 3 weeks i was out there this summer.

Anti-Aging Repairing Oil is really a product that plays well with others. curious to see how powerful it’s ability to retain moisture was, i’ve used it just with a very thin, non-hydrating serum, and my skin was happily moisturized. then i tested it with a rich cream to see if it would be too much, and again, my skin was happily moisturized with no extra grease. best of all, over time, i’ve also noticed an improvement of the fine lines on my forehead.

Anti-Aging Repairing Oil works great as a day time moisturizer under makeup too! after cleansing my face in the mornings, i’ll mix some serum and oil together and slather all over my face. by the time i’m done brushing my teeth, my skin is ready for my makeup. how’s that for fast?

it’s not just me who loves this stuff too! a close friend complained that her pregnancy gave her patches of flakey skin that nothing was helping. i introduced her to a sample of this, and shortly thereafter she told me the flakey skin was gone and that she was ready to commit to a full sized bottle. my aunt, who has lots of high end products in her bathroom, including la mer, asked me to bring her back two bottles of it for her own use after just a few days of trying it out while we were traveling together.

Readers, are you a fan of facial oils? what will you be doing to get ready for the drier winter weather? please share your tips with me!

i’ve been eyeing Tatcha for a while now, and i’m so glad they finally revamped their discovery kit. i forget what the complete set had before, but it included a full size of their blotting paper, (which i don’t really use) and a complete sampling of their famous Polished Rice Enzyme Powder. it now offers a more reasonable cross sampling of their products. the kit is $59 and includes deluxe sample sizes of their Pure One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil (25ml), Polished Rice Enzyme Powder in packets (14x1g), Radiant Deep Brightening Serum (10ml), and a facial cream. there are four different boxes for different skin types: Oily, Combination, Dry, and Gentle. the difference between the boxes will be how rough the Polished Rice Enzyme Powder is and what kind of facial cream you get. all the boxes have the Supple Moisture Rich Silk Cream, except the Dry kit which has Ageless Enriching Renewal Cream. Both the Gentle and Dry kits also have the the Polished Rice Enzyme Powder in gentle. Shipping is complimentary both ways via USPS Priority.

Tatcha arrived in an simple but aesthetically pleasing package. i appreciate that all the different skin type kits are the same price despite the fact there is a price difference in the full size creams.

Tatcha Ritual Discovery Kit in Dry

although the website states that the usual 3 complimentary samples were not available with Ritual Discovery Kit, i was able to add them to my order along with a code for a free travel size sample of their cleansing oil, which you can get by signing up for emails. the travel size is slightly smaller than the deluxe in packaging and lighter in weight but actually contains 5ml more in product (30ml vs 25ml)

the Ritual Discovery Kit comes with a booklet giving you product information and usage instructions, and the samples come with their own information cards. again, everything is beautifully presented, and while i appreciate the aesthetics, the environmentalist in me cringes at the paper wastage. (instructions on packet?)

i will offer a more full length review once i’ve had plenty of time to test out these goodies, but here are some first impressions. Pure One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil has a wonderful floral scent but doesn’t seem to emulsify well. this leads to difficulty in removing the makeup completely. a couple of times i still had dark circles under my eyes after i rinsed off Pure One Step Camellia Oil. Radiant Deep Brightening Serum is a very thin liquid but seems to offer good hydration. Ageless Enriching Renewal Cream is a thick cream that doesn’t feel greasy but takes a long time to fully absorb.

lastly, my kit came with a welcome letter with a handwritten note at the bottom thanking me for my order and offering me a 10% off code for my full size purchase, to be used within 3 weeks (actually just a little under). normally, i’d feel this is a pressure sales tactic, but since Tatcha offers free return shipping and no set time for returns, i’m not put off by the promotional code’s limited time frame .

Readers, what do you think? have you had your eye on Tatcha? what brands are on your radar to try?

truecolorjoy

makeup, skincare and food

Adaptive Multi-tasker: Algenist Anti-Aging Repairing Oil

Tatcha Ritual Discovery Kit: First Impressions