Paula's Choice Niacinamide 10% Booster (20ml for $44)
I have seen many people "loving" this product so much. Yup, you guessed right -- I am not one of them. It's a nice product, don't get me wrong, but the price tag for 2/3 of a normal size is simply not okay in my books for a Niacinamide serum. It doesn't do great things worth $44.
Paula's Choice Power Berry Serum (30ml for $31)
I associate the brand with high quality "no gimmick" products, but this serum definitely feels like a gimmick. I am sure the formula is rich with antioxidants (or at least I hope so), but the colour, the texture and the seemingly confused thought of "I don't really see it doing anything" does not give me hope. I think, the brand has some stellar serums (like the omega one, for example), but this one ain't "it".
Paula's Choice Hyaluronic Acid Booster (15ml for $36 or in Sweden, $45)
Sorry to misguide you yesterday, this product does NOT come in 30ml, just 15ml. So, technically, if it was 30ml, the price would be $72...for Hyaluronic Acid! I'll give you a second to let that sink in. Okay, second over. Being one of the most expensive hyaluronic acid boosters/serums on the market, we have to wonder WHY it costs so much. Hyaluronic Acid and ingredients out of that family come straight after water and glycerin. Straight after that, we also have ceramides. In the middle of the list, some panthenol. However, we don't even know what the strength of the HA is, so it makes it hard to assess whether the price is justifiable or not. Furthermore, the packaging. I want to see how much product I have left, especially when it costs as much as it does! The pump is one of those plastic ones integrated into the bottle structure, so I can't 100% know that I finished the product... Or maybe, the pump just stopped working. Having said all that, I must say, the product itself is great. It feels slightly cooling on the skin -- I really enjoyed it. But like I said, I will probably not repurchase as there are so many questions and cheaper alternatives available.
Paula's Choice Resist Omega+ Complex Serum
According to Paula's Choice, "this serum contains robust levels of Omega 3, 6 and 9 oils plus skin-identical ceramides and hydrating ingredients to visibly improve skin’s health". Furthermore, "concentrated levels of omega fatty acids help replenish dull, dehydrated skin, revive a beautifully smooth, supple feeling, plus visibly soften the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles". You get 30ml of product for $37. Favourite of many, as it is suitable for all skin types. Pros: yes, it is a good serum, like really. And considering how expensive some serums are, this is a reasonably priced one. Cons: again, with skincare, it is important to give a product a try. Like, not once (unless you have an allergic reaction). But honestly, I can't think of cons for this product. Would recommend? Yes. If you just want to have one serum, you should really consider this one.
Paula's Choice Advanced Replenishing Toner (118ml at $24)
This is a toner created especially for dry skins. It is of a milky liquid-y texture, and in our opinion, does a good job hydrating the skin. It is an anti-aging toner. It is "enriched with essential omega fatty acids and potent, unique antioxidants research has shown can help skin look younger while protecting and nourishing skin’s barrier". Now, we have only been using it for less than 2 weeks, so we cannot confirm the anti-aging claims, but the hydration claims are true. We use this toner only in the morning because we like to have a very hydrating base underneath our makeup. In the evening, we prefer using a calming toner (as we normally clean our face more thoroughly, and we want to soothe it from all of that). Overall, a great toner. However, we believe that Holika Holika's Ceramide toner performs similarly but is a bit cheaper.
Paula's Choice Skin Recovery Enriched Calming Toner ($21)
Paula's Choice says that this "hydrating toner soothes dry, flaky skin and helps revitalize and recover moisture loss while infusing skin with anti-aging antioxidants". Personally, although this is a good toner, it is probably not my favourite that my hand leans to. Maybe because I love my Elemis Apricot and Babor Rose ones. But this is not bad, and of course, I will finish it.
Paula's Choice Resist Daily Smoothing Treatment with 5% AHA (full size 50ml for $33)
Remember, I promised you a cheaper alternative to Drunk Elephant's Framboos and Sunday Riley's Good Genes? Well, here it is. Look at that price! You can also buy the travel size (the one in the photo) for $8 to try it out. It has a bronze-coloured cream consistency. If you exfoliate your face, it will tingle (I put this one right before the moisturiser), if not, it won't really tingle. It says that it designed for dry skins-- not sure about it. I am pretty sure all skin types can benefit from it equally. "The formula includes glycolic acid to continually revitalizes skin’s texture, visibly evens skin tone, and helps promote visibly firmer-looking, smoother skin. A specially selected mix of antioxidants helps fight the impact of free-radical damage, while ceramides and peptides bind moisture for beautifully radiant skin", according to the brand. Indeed, I do like it. I do see a similar result as from Framboos and Good Genes, so, why pay more?
Product review:
RESIST Intensive Wrinkle-Repair Retinol Serum (full size 30ml for $42)
I have the travel size variant of this product, which is amazing if you want to try out a new product. This serum has "pure retinol and potent antioxidants to help impart firmer-feeling skin, smooth and soften fine lines and wrinkles, and provide hydration so skin of any age can look radiant and revitalized". Interestingly, the brand says that the serum is silky-smooth. No, it's simply super oily. It feels like you are putting oil on your face, so if you don't like that feeling, you might want to avoid this product. I apply this product and then wait for about 20-30min for it to sink in, before putting moisturiser on. I have dry skin, so it works fine for me. Indeed, in the morning, the lines do feel more smoothed (I was born with this horizontal line on my forehead, so I base it on that). Overall, since I don't use it everyday day, the travel size version works just fine for me-- if I were to repurchase, I would buy that size again.
Product review:
Paula's Choice Resist Anti-aging Eye Cream (full size: 15ml for £32)
As you may remember, I have bought smaller size PC products, and I have now been using this eye cream for full two weeks. According to the brand, "this rich eye cream is formulated with proven age-fighting antioxidants, peptides, and skin-identical ingredients to combat wrinkles, sun damage, dryness, and other eye area concerns". It is indeed a rich eye cream but it doesn't make your under-eye area feel oily. It does provide very good hydration. It smoothes slightly the wrinkles but any long term effect is too early to see. I am actually surprised that this cream only scores 3.9/5 on PC's website-- I would give it a 4.4/5.