Skin Care

Your Best Face Skincare Restore Review

~ Michele Raiyne ~ Leave a comment

Restore, by Your Best Face Skincare, is a nighttime cream serum for face, hands and neck. This product claims to increase elasticity and thus reduce saggy and crepey skin, brighten and even complexion, reduce dull-looking skin, soften fine lines and hydrate dry and damaged skin. Directions say to apply a small amount to clean, damp skin and massage in.

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Ingredients: reverse osmosis water, Leucidal® (leuconostoc/radish root ferment filtrate), SYN®-TC (glycerin, aqua, tetradecyl aminobutyroylvalylaminobutyric urea trifluoroacetate, palmitoyl tripeptide-5, palmitoyl dipeptide-5 diaminobutyroyl hydroxythreonine), ethylhexyl palmitate, Uplevity™ (water, acetyl tetrapeptide-2, caprylyl glycol), TEGO® Pep 4-Even (tetrapeptide-30 (and) glycerin (and) water), Elhibin® (glycine soja (soybean) protein), cetearyl olivate (and) sorbitan olivate, sorbitan olivate, ceteareth-6 olivate, meadowfoam seed oil, vitamin E succinate, cupuacu butter, hydroxyethylcellulose 

SYN-TC uses tri and tetrapeptide technology focusing on collagen for smooth, plump skin with improved elasticity. Uplevity is a combination of peptides and actives that apparently enhances the expression of genes involved in the organization of elastic fibers and dermal cohesion to combat sagging skin. TEGO Pep 4-Even diminishes pigmentation spots and brightens the skin. Elhibin comes from soybean protein and is a proteinase inhibitor. Proteinase plays a role in irritation and accelerated skin aging.

Hands are one of the first areas to show signs of aging; they are always exposed to the environment and I rarely remember to put sunscreen on my hands.  I decided to try Restore on my hands; the skin is thinning (I didn’t really realize how thin until my daughter compared her hands to mine and said “oh my god, your skin is so thin” after pinching my skin), I have increased fine lines and my hands go through cycles of dryness every couple months (if you are looking for relief of dry skin, I love this product). I have no hyperpigmentation on my hands.incollage_20180628_0947416065175794106863496094.jpg

YBF Skincare products work well together and layer beautifully with no pilling. Restore can be mixed with the Private Reserve oils, the Antioxidants Concentrate or the Advanced CE Concentrate for customized benefit. I used Restore on its own.

I used this in the evening about 5 times a week for 4-1/2 months on clean, damp skin. The product has better spreadability and faster, easier absorption when the skin is damp.  Restore is a lightweight, white, thick serum/thin cream that is unscented, but has its own somewhat medicinal smell that only lasts for seconds. On application this has an amazing silky feeling on the skin that immediately has a softening, slightly plumping effect. This is such a different feeling than any other product I’ve used. This feeling lasts for about 30 minutes.

In touching and looking at my hands after 4-1/4 months of use and looking at close up views of the photos above, while this product gave immediate very short term results, I don’t think I really see the longer term results I would need to continue purchasing. My hands feel a bit softer and some dryness on my knuckles has improved (but this could also be achieved by using an oil on the hands; vitamin C also works for brightening ). The finer lines around my knuckles and those due to the thinning skin look the same, so I can’t imagine this product helping deeper wrinkles on the neck or fine lines on my forehead (though to be fair, the skin is thinner on the neck and face than it is on the hands). I don’t have pigmentation issues on my hands, but I know these spots are very hard to get rid of as I have hyperpigmentation due to sun damage, and consistent use of a product for months, if not upwards of a year, especially products without containing something like hydroquinone or kojic acid.

I tried Restore a few times on my face just to get a sense for texture and this would make a nice lightweight moisturizer for the face (I don’t like using heavier moisturizers as I have oily skin). It absorbs after about 20 seconds and there is the immediate softening plump on the face, but it didn’t seem as silky as when used on the hands. This would make a nice treatment for the lips.

I will not be repurchasing Restore.

Thanks for reading.

Abnomaly Petrowhat Review

~ Michele Raiyne ~ 1 Comment

Abnomaly Petrowhat is Deciem’s recently launched lip and skin ointment that can be applied to lips and dry areas of the skin and claims to hydrate, protect and repair dry skin from the first use. This is not a lip gloss.

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Ingredients: Squalane, Aqua (Water), Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Sucrose Laurate, Sucrose Stearate, Sodium PCA, Sodium Lactate, Arginine, Adansonia Digitata Seed Oil, PCA, Glycine, Alanine, Serine, Valine, Isoleucine, Proline, Threonine, Histidine, Phenylalanine, Aspartic Acid, Isochrysis Galbana Extract, Tocopherol, Aroma (Natural Flavour).

The first ingredient is squalane, an emollient oil that hydrates and prevents hydration loss. Sucrose laurate and sucrose stearate are also emollients. This lip treatment contains amino acids which can hydrate, repair and act as antioxidants. Adansonia digitata seed oil is another name for baobab oil, containing fatty acids and vitamins which moisturizes and has a silky feeling.

I bought the coconut milk flavor that reminds me of the beach. It has a mild coconut scent and flavor and is not sweet tasting. The scent is stronger than the taste. The ointment comes in a metal tube, which is problematic; once the seal is pierced, a lot of product rushes out of the tube.

I’ve used this balm for a couple weeks now, about three times a day. On initial application to the lips it has an initial wet silky feeling, not particularly oily, and somewhat shiny. This silky feeling and shine lasted a few minutes as it absorbed into the skin. Once absorbed, about 15 or 20 minutes later, the lips had quite a dry feeling with almost peeling skin.  This product actually made my lips dry. A lip treatment I like much more is Quench.

I get dry patches of skin on my hands every couple months, almost eczema-like with peeling. I tried Petrowhat on these dry patches as well. On initial application I had immediate relief of the soreness that comes with very dry skin. The ointment absorbed rather quickly, as my hands were quite dry and then left a kind of dry protective layer on my skin that lasted quite a while. So, while this protective layer was nice for my hands, it made my lips really dry. I’m not sure that these dry patches healed faster than with a good hand lotion or something like jojoba oil, but Petrowhat did offer a protective layer on my hands and would likely work well over a lotion or other oil.

Before
5 minutes after application
30 minutes after application

I won’t use this on my lips anymore, but will continue to use my tube when I have dry spots on my skin. I will not repurchase.

Akita Roll On Deodorant Review

~ Michele Raiyne ~ Leave a comment

Akita is a skincare company founded in Turkey specializing in rose water and rose oil skincare. They have four different product lines; rose, lavender, cacao and unscented and use natural plant-based ingredients. I bought a number of Akita’s rosewater products, one of them being the roll on deodorant. Only available in the rose scent, this deodorant is the first all natural deodorant I tried after making the move from conventional deodorant/antiperspirant.
Ingredients : Water, Rosa Damascena Flower Water, Potassium Alum, Olive Leaf Extract, Xanthan Gum, Grapefruit Seed Extract, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil.

According to the Akita website, this is an all natural, alcohol-free, preservative-free and aluminum-free roll on. Standing out in the ingredients is potassium alum, another name for potassium aluminum sulfate. This is a natural mineral salt with molecules too large to be absorbed by the body. So all natural, yes, but I’m not sure I’d call this aluminum-free (though of note, when a deodorant is described as aluminum-free, they are usually talking about the synthetic forms of aluminum used in antiperspirant).

This is a liquid roll on deodorant that smells like a rose garden. The scent isn’t too over-powering once under the arms. It dries fast and has no residue. I found the scent lasted for about 3 or 4 hours when working at the office, and didn’t last over a workout or walking outside in hot weather and didn’t help the odor of stress sweat. When reapplying I found it kind of covered up the sweat smell under a layer of rose, but didn’t take the body odor away.

I wouldn’t repurchase the Akita Roll On Deodorant, and have since found a great all natural deodorant, Routine Cream.

*image courtesy http://www.akitacanada.ca

Routine De-Odor-Cream Review

~ Michele Raiyne ~ 3 Comments

Routine is a small Canadian company specializing in all natural deodorant with a number of formulas (baking soda, reduced baking soda, baking soda free, vegan) and many different scents, so there is a routine for everyone.

After using conventional antiperspirant and making the switch to an all natural deodorant, the Akita roll-on, I was looking for something where the scent would last longer. I’ve never had skin sensitivity, so ordered from Routine’s baking soda line, Like a Boss and Sweet Jane. These also contain clay and beeswax.

Like a Boss ingredients: cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), zea mays (corn, non-gmo) starch, kaolinite (kaolin clay), cera alba (canadian ethical beeswax), theobroma cacao (cocoa) seed butter, butyrospermum parkii (shea butter), calendula officinalis (marigold) infused olea europaea (olive) oil, tocopherol (vitamin e), citrus aurantium bergamia (bergamot) fruit oil, lavandula officinalis (lavender) oil, pelargonium roseum asperum (rose geranium) oil, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf oil, citrus reticulata (mandarin) oil, citrus sinensis (sweet orange) oil, mentha viridian (spearmint) leaf oil.

Sweet Jane

Sweet Jane ingredients: cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), zea mays (corn, non-gmo) starch, kaolinite (kaolin clay), cera alba (canadian ethical beeswax), butyrospermum parkii (shea butter), calendula officinalis (marigold) infused olea europaea (olive) oil, tocopherol (vitamin e), theobroma cacao (cocoa) seed butter, flavor (organic vanilla, pear), vanilla planifolia oil, citrus medica limonum (lemon) peel oil, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract.

Like a Boss is a unisex, stronger smelling deodorant that I bought for use at the gym. I was worried it might smell too masculine, but I found it just fine for me, smelling like geraniums with an undercurrent of rosemary. Sweet Jane smells like brown sugar and vanilla cupcakes. Both of these contain kaolin clay that helps absorb a bit of sweat, and beeswax. They are both quite solid, with a bit of powdery grittiness from the baking soda.

After about a month of using the baking soda formula, my underarms turned very dark with what looked like thickened skin. I was surprised, as I had no redness or itchiness; symptoms that might be linked to sensitivity. I emailed the company asking if this might be due to the baking soda, which they confirmed it might be, and kindly sent me a sample of the reduced baking soda line, Superstar, and the baking soda free, The Curator.

Superstar is made with charcoal, prebiotics and reduced baking soda. The scent comes from the tonka bean, and smells like vanilla and a bit spicy, kind of like cinnamon. This is my favorite scent of the deodorants I’ve tried thus far. Superstar has a creamy, smooth texture that is dark grey in color, but doesn’t turn the underarms grey.

Superstar ingredients: cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, magnesium hydroxide (dietary magnesium), kaolinite (kaolin clay), zea mays (corn, non-gmo) starch, maranta arundinacea (arrowroot powder), cera alba (canadian ethical beeswax), sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), theobroma cacao (cocoa) seed butter, butyrospermum parkii (shea butter), calendula officinalis (marigold) infused olea europaea (olive) oil, tocopherol (vitamin e), activated charcoal, inulin alpha-glucan oligosaccharide (prebiotic), cetearyl olivate (and) sorbitan olivate (natural olive based stabilizer), brassica glycerides (natural cruciferous vegetable emulsifier), pogostemon cablin (patchouli) oil, vanilla planifolia, elettaria cardamomum (cardamom), vetiveria zizanioides (vetiver) root oil, dipteryx odorata (tonka bean), roseum asperum (rose geranium) oil, salvia sclarea (clary sage) oil, melaleuca ericifolia rosalina) oil, piper nigrum (black pepper) oil, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract.

I just want to point out that topical activated charcoal doesn’t detoxify skin.

The Curator is baking soda free (the baking soda is replaced with magnesium) and smells like marigolds and eucalyptus. This is a good deodorant to use while at the gym. It feels more smooth going on than the bit of grittiness in the baking soda formulas.

the curator
The Curator

The Curator ingredients: cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, magnesium hydroxide (dietary magnesium), kaolinite (kaolin clay), zea mays (corn, non-gmo) starch, maranta arundinacea (arrowroot powder), cera alba (canadian ethical beeswax), theobroma cacao (cocoa) seed butter, butyrospermum parkii (shea butter), calendula officinalis (marigold) infused olea europaea (olive) oil, tocopherol (vitamin e), cetearyl olivate (and) sorbitan olivate (natural olive based stabilizer), brassica glycerides (natural cruciferous vegetable emulsifier), eucalyptus globulus leaf (eucalyptus) oil, aurantium bergamia (bergamot) fruit oil, pogostemon cablin (patchouli) oil, pelargonium roseum asperum (rose geranium) oil, tsuga canadensis leaf (black spruce) oil, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract.

I also ordered a couple samples to try, A Girl Named Sue (reduced baking soda) and Blackberry Betty (baking soda free). A Girl Named Sue smells like raspberries and sage and Blackberry Betty smells like blackberries.

I use a pea-sized amount rubbed onto the underarms. As for residue, I find that this de-odor-cream will leave white marks on clothes unless it is left on for a minute to be warmed up by the underarms and rubbed in a bit more.

For each deodorant I tried, I used one application in a number of different scenarios; at the office, at the gym, out hiking in 30ºC full sun weather, to get a sense of how well each deodorant worked. The scent of the deodorants lasted 10 to 12 hours in an office setting. I applied before the gym and a hike and the scent lasted through those, with fade of the lighter scented ones, A Girl Named Sue, Superstar and Blackberry Betty. Even though these scents faded, my underarms didn’t smell like sweat at the end of the day. While the clay in the deodorants absorbed a bit of wetness, this isn’t an antiperspirant, so I still felt some moisture. I found as well that if, for example, I woke up sweaty and stinky, once I put the Routine deodorant on, the sweat smell was gone; not just covered up (as I’ve found to be the case with conventional antiperspirants). I applied before going to bed, hoping it would mitigate the sweaty smell when I woke up; it did not.

My favorite combination I’m using now is a half pea size of The Curator and a half pea size of a Girl Named Sue. It’s a great combination that provides a more feminine scent without the fade of a lighter scented deodorant for days when I need a bit more sweat smell protection, like at the gym.

I’ve already made a repurchase of Routine cream and will continue to do so.

Thank you for reading.

Colorescience Sunforgettable Sunscreen Review

~ Michele Raiyne ~ 3 Comments

Before getting a skin consultation in my early 30s and really starting to look at what my skin needed, I never wore sunscreen. I don’t burn easily, so figured I didn’t need it. Clearly, I was very wrong; everyone needs to wear sunscreen and I have hyperpigmentation and aging caused by the sun (I just thought they were normal freckles). So of course I needed to buy sunscreen, but didn’t want just makeup or powder with SPF and I didn’t want a cream or lotion as they feel heavy on my skin and are difficult to reapply especially with makeup on. The Sunforgettable SPF 50 loose mineral sunscreen from Colorescience with the brush is the first facial sunscreen I bought (they updated their packaging in February 2017 so looks different from my photo, but still uses the same ingredients). I use the SPF 50 brush-on in the medium shade.

Ingredients for Medium shade (SPF 50)
Active Ingredients:
Titanium Dioxide 23.9%; Zinc Oxide 24.1%

Inactive Ingredients:
Mica, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract, Mannitol, Methicone, Dimethicone, Calcium Silicate, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Sodium Sulfate, Laureth-4, Diatomaceous Earth, Zinc Sulfate, Chromium Oxide Greens (CI 77288), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499)

This is a lightweight powder mineral sunscreen using titanium dioxide and zinc oxide that sits on top the skin to reflect/deflect the sun’s rays to offer UVA and UVB protection. These are called physical sunscreens or physical blockers. Mica is a fine powder used for coloring in cosmetics. Dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, methicone and dimethicone are silicones. Methicone creates a barrier that prevents sweat and oil from shining through. Dimethicone forms a hydrating barrier on the skin. I’m only assuming these work similarly in powder form as with this sunscreen. Calcium silicate is used as an absorbent or a bulking ingredient and is opacifying. Triethoxycaprylylsilane can work as a binder and emulsifier and has silicone components that allow pigments to disperse well. Sodium sulfate is an inorganic salt. It’s used to increase the thickness of the water portion of a product, so not too sure how this translates to a powder product. Laureth-4 is used as a cleansing agent and/or enhances texture. Diatomaceous earth is fossilized remains of tiny water organisms called diatoms. Their skeletons are made of silica that collect in the sediment of rivers and lakes. Zinc sulfate helps inhibit growth of bacteria. Chromium oxide greens and iron oxides are used as pigments.

To apply, I tap the brush on my hand to get the product in the brush, and then apply to the face and neck in small circles. As with any sunscreen, directions say to reapply every 2 hours. It didn’t look like makeup when it was applied; I couldn’t really even tell it was on unless I looked at a mirror up close. It was easy to reapply through the day and over makeup (the makeup look wasn’t affected by the sunscreen). When I first used this product a few years ago it was summer and I was using Retin-A at night, so it was very important to apply sunscreen as Retin-A makes skin more sensitive to the sun. The Sunforgettable brush-on mineral sunscreen worked well. My skin didn’t burn or get more hyperpigmentation.

I’ve been using this sunscreen for a few years now and at my last purchase had asked for a refill, only to be told that the company discontinued the refills as customers found that over time the brush would become clogged with product and the minerals wouldn’t dispense easily. That was my complaint as well. Despite cleaning the brush as instructed (spraying cleaner on a paper towel and swiping the outside of the brush on it) it seemed inevitable that product would get stuck in the brush and the inner brush bristles would become tangled in each other with the bristles feeling scratchy on the skin. I’ve used about half my current jar and the brush is already becoming clogged as there is product that is not removed from the middle of the brush. The brush itself is soft on the skin (when new) and doesn’t lose any fibers. I’ve always been reluctant to wash this brush like I might a makeup brush, as I am worried that water will seep up the brush and get the product wet.

I was hoping to buy this sunscreen with a different delivery system such as a pressed powder (which would be just as convenient and I could have a bit more control over how much is used). I thought they used to have a pressed powder sunscreen on their website, but haven’t been able to find it again. I find it a bit difficult to tell how much product I’m applying with the brush-on, so probably use too much or too little at times. Colorescience says a jar should last 3 months when used as instructed, but I still find this a bit expensive. However, it seems to works and is probably the most convenient sunscreen.

Update (June 16, 2019) – I recently saw a photo of different sunscreen types under UV light showing that sunscreen powder applies rather patchy and it is hard to build up, so decided to try lotion sunscreen again. I still like to use mineral powder sunscreen for touch-ups throughout the day over makeup.

Thank you for reading.