It is so easy to love just about everything Shiseido offers in skin care and color cosmetics. However, sometimes it really is love at first sight. Case in point is the new, Shiseido Urban Environment Oil-Free UV Protector SPF 42 PA++ ($30.00 1 fl. oz.) a water resistant sunscreen that is packed with powerful protection, and gives your skin a matte finish, as well.
The product may be lightweight in feel, but it’s no “lightweight” when it comes to nourishing and protecting your skin. There are a lot of high tech and mineral powders and herbal extracts in this little rounded bottle of skincare. For starters, it has actives of 8.6% zinc oxide, 3% octocrylene and 7.4% octinoxate. It also has Shiseido’s multi-defense sun protection system and advanced skincare ingredients, to prevent sun/skin damage and provide free radical production. Peony root extract keep sebum production down, sebum-absorbing powder helps the product stay matte and smooth on your skin. Rose Apple Leaf Extract and Thiotaurine may not be words you see often, but these antioxidant ingredients help deal with UV damage and also with environmental saboteurs such as air pollutants. Scutellaria Baicalensis extract helps with the production of collagen, elastin and hylauronic acids. And, of course the SPF 42 is a decent protection from the sun’s damaging rays.
But the true test of a new product is whether or not the formula will feel good on your skin. The formula of the product really feels weightless, and I did notice that my skin had none of the shiny breakthrough that some skincare (and especially sun protection products), can create after they’ve been on your skin for a while. It’s good for all skin types, but it is a must, for oily skin. TIP: There are shaker beads in the bottle and the product is rather liquid-y, so do remember to shake the bottle well before applying. This multi-tasking product is one to tuck into your carry on bag or suitcase, because at just 1 fl. oz. you can have great sun protection for your face on a daily basis, and leave the extra bottle or compact of mattifier, at home. It’s a fabulous product. Major love!
a must for more vibrant-looking eyes!
Not everyone has, or cares to deal with dark spots on their skin, but if you have them, you know that they’re virtually impossible to get rid of. And those dark spots are signs of aging. Who wants to wear a neon sign saying “Look! My skin is mature!” But there is high tech help from Shiseido: White Lucent Brightening Serum ($125.00 1 fl. oz/30 ml.) and $ 170.00 50 ml. This serum claims to diminish stubborn dark spots in 10 days and prevent future pigmentation from appearing. That’s a pretty impressive claim. The product is a lightly scented liquid in a very pretty gracefully sculpted silver/pearly pump bottle. The pump dispenses a liquid formulated with smoothing and re-texturizing ingredients to enhance clarity and help create even toned skin. It was developed with an advanced Shiseido Multi-Action Brightening System+, targeting all types of hyper- pigmentation and their causes: dark spots, age spots, acne scars and uneven skin tones.
There is a lot packed into this little pump bottle, and most of the ingredients are high tech and exclusive to Shiseido. For example, there’s a MelanoCrush Energizer (ME Complex) of Yomogi Extract and Angelica Root Extract, that help to accelerate cell turnover, and diminish and eliminate melanin pigment (the stuff that makes the dark spots). Multi-Target Vitamin C helps block the last step of melanin formation and helps fade existing dark spots. 4MSK is an exclusive, patented that also aids in the re-texturizing of skin. There is also another Shiseido exclusive, m-Transexamic Acid brightening ingredient, that also helps to suppress the skin’s production of melanin. These create a powerful cocktail of ingredients that don’t mess around!
Dark spots don’t fade on their own, and not at all, without a lot of encouragement. The 1 fl. oz. 30n ml. bottle will last about a month (if you use the recommended two pumps, morning and evening). The 50 ml should last about 2 months. You can certainly use it just on the dark spots instead of all over your face, but if you have a lot of dark spots, you will need to use a bit more.
This serum is just one part of a four-part recommended regime: Cleansing Foam ($35.00) Softener, Serum, and Moisturizer (and I would add one more: an SPF product- to keep the sun’s rays from causing further damage and dark spots). One to use would certainly be the Shiseido Urban Environment Oil-Free UV Protection SPF 42 PA+++that doubles as your moisturizer and sun screen (reviewed above).
TIP: There is also a White Lucent Anti-Dark Circles Eye Cream ($55.00 .53 oz.) in a very petite, tactile jar of mauve-ish perle, with a contoured lid. Although you get a spatula with the jar, I still hate to stick my fingers or anything else into a jar of cream, because of contamination and oxidation of a product. I don’t normally gush about my personal preference, but although I wish Shiseido had put this product into a different delivery system, I absolutely love this product (it really works, and fast). Smooth on just a bit of this rich cream, and you‘ll feel a bit of a tingle. It has the power to diminish dark circles dealing with their two major causes: pigmentation, and poor microcirculation. The cream has Shiseido’s cutting-edge brightening technology (see ingredients above), and a new, high tech, Dark Circle Diminisher that combats the look and creation of dark circles with a Super Hydro-Synergy Complex N for intense hydration and re-texturization of the delicate eye area, plus and a Hydra Luminizing Powder that delivers instant brightening, wrinkle filling and moisture retention. After all the tech speak in this paragraph, the bottom line is that you’ll get an instantly moisturizing (but not greasy or oily), wrinkle filling and brightening product that gives new hope to people whose dark circles refuse to die!
There are also a large variety of other White Lucent products. Here’s the lowdown on the line: Intensive Spot Targeting Serum+ from $125.00; Anti-Dark Circles Eye Cream $55.00, Brightening Cleansing Foam W $35.00, Balancing Softener W $48.00, Brightening Balancing Softener Enriched W $48.00, Brightening Protective Emulsion W $54.50, Protective Cream W $54.50, Brightening Moisturizing Gel W $59.50, Brightening Moisturizing Emulsion W $59.50, Brightening Moisturizing Cream W $59.50, Brightening Serum for Neck and Décolletage $76.00, Intensive Brightening Mask $68.00, Brightening Massage Cream N $52.00, Brightening Toning Lotion $48.00, and a Brightening 1-2-3 Kit $49.50.
Before this feature is finished, I’d like to add just one more quick mention of another Shiseido product for you to consider. Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Intensive Eye Contour Cream ($55.00 0.51 oz.) arrives in a similar, mini-sized jar as the White Lucent Eye Cream, but they’re quite different. This is a very rich, emollient, soothing cream that helps to visibly improves the appearance of all types of eye area issues (e.g. wrinkles) including: inner corner creases, undereye wrinkles, crow’s feet, lid creases, and undereye vertical lines. It contains burnet extract to revitalize cells and counteract loss of firmness, and Shiseido’s high-tech ingredients including Super Bio Hyaluronic Acid N and hydroxyproline for intense moisturization and collagen production. The product will not only make your eye area look immediately more plump and hydrated, it can help prevent future wrinkles. This product is really a powerhouse of protection and hydration, but if you aren’t used to very emollient products, use it at night first to see how well it works.
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