The Brightening Game: Arcona Brightening Drops, Dermaceutics Mela Cream, Andalou Enlightening Serum & Jurlique Purely Bright

So there's been this pigment spot I got last year...

The thing about pigment spots is that they are easy to contract, but super-difficult to get rid of. Somewhat like a STD? And the continious functioning and re- re- re- applying sunblock as the contraceptive? Or, abstain from the sun if you want to be safest!

Yes, I already had a couple of IPL laser session but some pigment is still there. I have brought in four of these creams that make a difference. 

 

 Arcona Brightening Drops: 

 

Arcona is classified as natural but with a Cosmeceutical approach. This is the most liquidy of the four. It feels like a essence or toner that feels slightly zingy when applied. I apply it topically on the spot itself, as all over.

Ingredients:

Agua (Distilled Water), Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Extract, Azelaic Acid, Gallic Acid, Lactic Acid, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) Ester, Kojic Acid, Arbutin, Red Raspberry (Rubus idaeus) Extract, Bilberry Extract, Grapefruit (Citrus Grandis) Seed Extract. 

----

 The main focus is on exfoliation by the various acids with a natural background. Arbutin, Vitamin C and Bilberry are ingredients that target hyperpigmentation

Dermaceutics Laboratoire Mela Cream:

 

I got this from a dermalogist who was probably too busy to give me IPL and adviced me this cream instead (I know, how weird, right?). It packs a lot of active ingredients that target lightening, like:
Kojic, Salicylic, Phytic and Mandelic acids, Arbutin, Niacinamide, Retinol and Licorice Extract.

It does feel like a real retinol treatment that you have to build up the intensity over time. I alternate it with Arcona brightening drops and use it in the evening about twice a week.

Andalou Tumeric & C Enlightening Serum

 

I finally went back to my early thirties habit of Vitamin C! I actually feel this one is the most effective of the four in terms of making my skin more glowy. I've been using it for two weeks now (morning) and since then my skin gotten brighter. Best thing, unlike the two above: this one does not sting and feels even calming.

Ingredients:
Aloe Barbadensis Juice*, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Oil*, Vegetable Glycerin, Cyamopsis Tetragonolobus (Guar) Gum*, Fruit Stem Cells (Malus Domestsica, Solar Vitis) and BioActive 8 Berry Complex*, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Extract*, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate (Vitamin C), Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Lauric Acid, Cetearyl Alcohol, Hyaluronic Acid, Vitis Vinifera (Grape Seed) Polyphenols, Borago Officinalis (Borage) and Rosa Canina (Rosehip) Oils*, Glyceryl Monolaurate, Linum Usitatissimum (Flax), Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) and Hippophae Rhamnoides (Sea Buckthorn) Oils*, Camellia Sinensis (White Tea) Extract*^, Laminaria Digitata (Kelp) Extract, Allantoin, Cetyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Phenethyl Alcohol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Oil* 

Wholey Cow (must be the Tumeric), there is a buckload of effective ingredients in there. I already take tumeric as a morning drink so I believe in its clarifying properties.  I could rave a while but look at makeupalley.com who loves it too (here).
 

Jurlique Purely Bright Night Moisturizer

 

One of my mid-thirties brighteners I come back to every time. It takes a month or two but I feel it has an effect on me.

Ingredients:
Aqua (Water), Glycerin, Heptyl Undecylenate, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Citrus Unshiu Peel Extract, SD Alcohol 40-A (Alcohol Denat.), Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides, Squalane, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Althaea Officinalis (Marshmallow) Root Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Rosa Gallica Flower Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, Viola Odorata (Sweet Violet) Extract, Viola Tricolor (Pansy) Extract, Sambucus Nigra (Black Elder) Flower Extract, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Extract, Prunella Vulgaris Leaf Extract, Terminalia Ferdinandiana (Kakadu Plum) Fruit Extract, Anogeissus Leiocarpus Bark Extract, Cichorium Intybus (Chicory) Root Extract, Fragrance (Parfum*), Tocopherol, Silica, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tetrahydrodiferuloylmethane, Totarol, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Limonene*, Linalool*, Citronellol*, Geraniol*, Eugenol*, Benzyl Benzoate*, Isoeugenol*.
  
Even a longer list. I am most enthousiastic about the liquorice compound in this one. It it not a completely natural brand but I seem to tolerate the rest of the ingredients as well. It smells somewhat soothing like a light babypowder.

Up close, serum-y: 

Arcona has the most liquidy texture, Dermaceutic is your typical Retinol with a kick and slightly more lotion-y. Andalou is a light daycream and Jurlique is also quite light for a nightcream. 

 Obviously, I use all four for a different reason. The ingredients of each are different but still came out as effective in (some) studies. Ok Ok, I am sceptical enough not to believe "studies say"-rhetorics but when various outcomes are good, I'm willing to try. 
My skin is rather sensitive but I can tolerate most of them at the time being. I hope I can still brighten the *&^ out of that spot before winter time.

Then it will be time to balm up again in all types of soothing concoctions....

So what's your Brightening Game?

Using, Used, Gonna Use...

Happy Friday!

 

About a year ago I had a regular column for each wednesday called 'Midweek Quirkologies': it was a way to counteract the midweek blah's, and I hope nobody had them this week. If you did, this friday will probably feel more anticipated which is a good thing. So I hope you will have the Friday Jitters and the anticipation of a good weekend, which might be rewarded with a good weekend in reality.

Using:

Easy one: NARS Riding up the Moon has been my favourite for eyes this week! I love Argentina for highlighting and Isolde for the peachy lid colour. I shade my crease with Fez but I use some of the bottle-green Night Porter for the edges of my eyecrease too. 

Used:

I finished my Personalised MyCodage serum  some weeks ago but I forgot to mention it until now. I think it has been wonderful in targeting some priorities I have listed: * Improving skin comfort and * combatting signs of ageing. One sidenote is that it is quite fraganced. I have switched to another serum again: I prefer to alternate my serums so my skin doesn't get too used and lazy to its ingredients.

Another staple during summer is my Jurlique Purely Bright Night cream. My 1st time using it was in 2011 during holidays and I noticed that it did a good job at brightening the odd pigment spot at my right temple. I try to avoid new pigment spots, but summer & high sunscreens does not always guarantee a no-sun exposion. Hence, a good brightener can step in to avoid new pigment spots to reappear.

Gonna Use:

I haven't gone for Asian BB creams for a while and the few Western BB's I tried were either organic (see here) or samples that I didn't like that much. Sharlynn from BlackMentosBeauty recommended her readers the The Face Shop Power Perfection BB Cream. I think she has one of the glowiest complexions out there, even without makeup, so I gladly took this recommendation.
(ps: I 'm trying it today and *gosh*...it has high coverage! As I said: I haven't used Asian bb's for a while so this one even covers more than my Armani foundations/etc)

Ok, again a happy weekend!

Brighteners & hair-improvers

Sorry for my lack of updates: I've been a bit too busy for blogging. I have been happily testing the rest of my latest Armanis, and I have to say that I'm impressed by the concealer.

I still like blogging so I'll give a short update on something new, something tried & something repeated.

Brighteners:

I am about to finish up the Kieh's Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution and I have to say that I have not been impressed by it's lightening quality. This summer I used lots of sunblock, however, I sometimes was a bit late reapplying it after a swim, so I had/ve to battle some pigmentation again.

 I went for Kiehl's because, simply

• I was curious
• it was featured in the magazines
• it's easily available in Holland in a brick-and-mortar shop

However, it isn't as effective as my previous lightener love Jurlique Purely Bright Night Moisturizer. So in the picture above I paired them up, but will be glad if I finished the Kiehl's and get started with my 3rd (!) tube of Jurlique Purely Bright. Jurlique is not on sale over here, but with a bit of patience I get my sweet package from the UK and have the opening-the-box pleasure.

Hair:

• Oribe Mask for Beautiful Color (sale)
• Oribe Royal Blowout Spray

I ran out of most of my L'oreal Professionel masks I featured a couple of times on the blog (here) and saw that Oribe was on sale. Well, professional goddesses such as Jennifer Lopez, Giselle Bunchen & Jennifer Aniston seem to be liking these products, and these women have awesome hair so I wonder if it works on the mortals as well.

The Royal Blowout spray got a massive rave on makeupalley (here) so I added it to my cart to get free shipping, and ofcourse for some smoothing after ironing my hair: one of MUA's reviewers said that it's for ironing too and not just for blowouts, which is a good thing as I hardly do those; too much fumbling with brushes and the hairdryer at the same time: that's something for the pros at the saloon or people being really good multitaskers. So the Royal spray for straightening my hair: curious about that too.

Seasonal changes often make my hair slightly lacklustre so hopefully with these potions my good hairdays are here to come...

last week in beauty

I actually want to make a general post today about the things I (re)discovered in beauty last week.

First, I ventured on Sleek blush in Flamingo, which, pricewise, was not an expensive venture. After reading many descriptions of it being terribly bright in the pan but subtle on the face I decided I wanted this particular poppy pink. Ehm, people who follow me know I'm spoiled with my high-end blush and that is my first disclaimer: I'm a blush-snob! 
To me, this one looked as scarily on my face as in the pan, probably worse because the pigmentation went bezerk on my unmadeup face (tryout). A good quality blush has the ability to look good on an unmadeup face, because the pigmentation will even out, but yeh...I looked like a kid playing with the makeupbox..
So this one can be used, only with a stippling brush/care/lots-of-time-on-my-hands. Somewhat, I expect it will end up far away in my beautycloset or I will add it in a giveaway.

Already feeling spring-like by adding lot's of pastels to my nails. Catrice is quite cheap but I really like the quality of their nailpolishes.

Another good-quality Catrice is that blue-ish eyeshadow I added. Also, I varied the safe neutrals with a pop of colour...

I almost finished my second tube of the Jurlique Purely White Skin cream. I think it really works: I already noticed this the first time when I had to correct some odd pigmentation on my forehead due to forgetting to add sunscreen that day. This time I noticed, cheapskate me, that my neck was darker than my face. Reason: I only slathered it on my face instead of the neck.

I finally jumped upon the Ellis Faas lip -hype, the glazed versions. I already have her foundation (post here) and I really liked the look of the L307 after seeing it on Kate (drivol). On me that L307 looked like a weird apricot muddy pudding, so testing is always good before you buy. Anyway, I loved to go a bit more red and I found a rather perfect red in the L303.

Ellis Faas L303

The best thing is that it fades in the most beautiful way: reds are always so dangerous with fading and they are normally so high-maintainance but this one really fades into a stain...so gorgeous.