Hello, friends! I hope you had a nice Halloween. Now that it's starting to get cold in Boston (we went from having a prolonged summer to living in 46 degree weather), it's time that I start changing up my skincare routine. Usually, in the colder months, I like to be armed with a heavier moisturizer that can restore some hydration to my dry skin. After testing this product out daily for two weeks, here are my thoughts on it:
(Psst: I did a review of one of Adovia's eye creams back in July, so check that out if you're interested.)
(Psst: I did a review of one of Adovia's eye creams back in July, so check that out if you're interested.)
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ADOVIA MINERAL SKIN CARE is made in Israel. Their products rely on dead sea minerals as their main ingredient. Ingredients they use most often are shea butter, aloe vera, vitamin C, vitamin A, seaweed, dead salt, and other minerals.
The ADOVIA Intensive Anti-Wrinkle Cream claims to firm and tone your skin, reduce the appearance of wrinkles, and help prevent the formation of future wrinkles.
It also says on their website, "This cream is a must have for any woman over 25, because it not only fights existing wrinkles - it helps prevent formation of new wrinkles and fine lines." I just found that funny, like on the day you turn 26 you have to completely revamp your skincare routine to battle wrinkles or something.
This product claims to:
- Smooth out/reduce/prevent/delay appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
- Firm and tone aging skin.
- Balance the skin's natural pH levels and moisture balance.
* Just a note, I can't comment on the wrinkle-fighting aspect, since I (fortunately) do not have wrinkles, but I will be talking about all other aspects of this moisturizer.
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Ingredients of ADOVIA Intensive Anti-Wrinkle Cream:
Demineralised Water & Dead Sea Water, Stearic Acid, Cetearyl Alcohol, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol & Chamomile (Anthemis Noblis) Extract & Algae Extract & Papaya (Carica Papaya) Extract & Aloe Vera Barbadensis Gel, Sweet Almond (Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis) Oil, Caprilyc/Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, Collagen, Dimethicone, Carbomer, Benzoic Acid, Chlorphenesin, Dehydroacetic Acid, Benzalkoinium Chloride, Urea, Vetiver, Myrrh (Commiphora Myrrha) Extract, Rose Absolute, Lactic Acid, Dead Sea Salt, Retinyl Palmitate.Okay, let's talk about what all this means.
This has a similar ingredients list to their eye cream, though it is much thicker in texture. I'm not going to go into every single ingredient on this list, or we'll be here all day, though I will point out the ones that I think are the most important components to talk about.
Demineralized Water - Sounds fancy, but it's just filtered water.
Stearic Acid - Fatty acid used as a thickening agent to keep all the ingredients together. Good stuff.
Cetearyl Alcohol - This is a fatty alcohol, aka a good alcohol that wont dry out your skin. It acts an emulsifier, thickener, carrying agent--it's pretty much an essential part of making the moisturizer do what it does. Good stuff.
Propylene Glycol - Helps keep the product together and the ingredients stable: another emulsifier. It absorbs quickly into the skin and is often used as a vehicle to help get other ingredients into the skin. Good stuff.
Chamomile Extract - This has antixodants and anti-inflammatory qualities to it. Just like chamomile tea can be on a bad day, this is also very soothing.
Algae Extract - A plant extract that also acts as a thickening agent. Many skincare companies claim that it helps to stop or eliminate wrinkles, but there's no real concrete evidence to that. It's often made out to be a miracle ingredient (Creme de la Mer [review] touts their sea kelp extract like it's gold) but it's not really proven. It still provides beneficial antioxidants to the skin, though! Good stuff.
Papaya Extract - Can help exfoliate, but may irritate the skin. Just because it comes from fruit doesn't mean it's good. Bad stuff (potentially)
Sweet Almond Oil - Has a good deal of fatty acids and skin-repairing qualities (as long as you're not allergic to nuts). It also doesn't have a fragrance, which means it won't irritate your skin. Good stuff.
glycerin - I'm not surprised to see this here--it's common to see in moisturizers for its ability to, well, moisturize--but I am surprised to see this so low on this list. There are other emulsifiers/thickening agents/glycerin-like products at the very top though, so this being farther down isn't necessarily a bad thing. Great for moisturizing dry skin. Good stuff.
dimenthicone - Silicones create a moisture barrier over your skin, keeping the hydration in and the stuff we don't want out. It's not like putting a blanket over your skin and suffocating it, but rather protecting it like a little skin warrior. Silicones are in pretty much everything, so I'm not surprised to see it here. Good stuff.
urea - Okay, so I was reading through the ingredients list, and I thought "Oh, urea sounds like urine!" but I laughed it off and then did some research. AND MY HUNCH WAS RIGHT. IT'S A COMPONENT OF URINE. Surprisingly, in small amounts like this, it's actually a good product to have. It's good at binding water molecules together and lightly exfoliating. It can inflame the skin in larger quantities, but in small amounts like this it's actually good. I'll never look at pee the same way again. Good stuff (Just don't think about it, forget it's there).
vetiver - Can have some antibacterial properties. but it is known to irritate sensitive skin. Bad stuff (potentially).
myrrh ecyract - Possibly antibacterial, but the fragrance can possibly irritate the skin. Bad stuff (potentially).
lactic acid - This is your AHA, or your alpha hydroxy acid. This will help exfoliate the top layer of skin to reveal the beautiful new skin underneath. We love this. Good stuff.
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Price and Availability:
1.7 fl oz / 50 ml - Amazon [$24.37] | Cleopatra's Choice [$29]
My Experience:
I have been using this as my moisturizer every night for two weeks, and here are my thoughts on it:
The Packaging:
- It comes in an expensive-feeling glass jar.
- Jar packaging allows the antioxidants in the product inside to be exposed to air at once, making them expire faster and become not as effective over time. This does not claim to give your skin a lot of antioxidants (nor are there a bunch of them in the ingredients list), so it's not a huge issue. It also comes with a little plastic white cover inside the jar, which could potentially be helping keep the ingredients more stable, but ultimately you are still having to remove it to get some of the cream out. But I do appreciate that Adovia is trying to combat this, as it would be shameful to let any of it go to waste. Also, this is a very thick cream, so I don't know if other packaging (ex. putting it in a tube) would be possible.
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The Stuff Inside:
When I first saw how thick this cream was, I thought I might hate it. I have combination skin, and I was just so sure that it would cause my pores and give me blackheads and make me cry. However, I was so wrong! It's a very thick cream, but it surprisingly doesn't take long to absorb at all. What I do is every night, I scoop out about a dime sized amount with a (clean) finger, and then dot it onto my skin much like the old school way of applying foundation. Then, after I get it evenly distributed on my face, I massage it in, as it dictates in the instructions. It absorbs into my skin and makes it soft and smooth, with help of the AHA (lactic acid). For me, personally, this is too thick to use during the daytime (there's also no SPF in it), but I think it's a great night cream.
I stopped using a serum for the majority of the time I was using this, just to get the full effect of what it was doing for my skin, but I added one in for the last couple of days. I have really dry cheeks, and using a serum not only helped add more moisture to them, but also replenished some more antioxidants in my skin. The lactic acid in this will also, by exfoliating the dead skin, help your skin absorb those antioxidants. Adovia recommends using a serum with this moisturizer (specifically their serum, but any good one will do).
Going back to the potentially-irritating ingredients, I have sensitive skin and I didn't experience any irritation with this product. It really depends what ingredients your skin personally reacts with. The only irritation I did get is when I exfoliated too much, as I am not used to using an AHA in my routine. If you're using a BHA product (ex. salicylic acid, another defoliator), you don't have to stop using it, but personally it would be too much for me. I have realized that using my Clarisonic and this night cream is enough for me. Just make sure to keep in mind that you are getting some topical exfoliation from this face cream and you'll be fine. If you wash your face with a washcloth, and then use this night cream, you should be okay. It's all about observing your skin and seeing how it looks and feels.
Just a note - for those of you who like to double up your nighttime moisturizer as an eye cream, I think I would skip that method with this one. It's so thick that it might make them look a little puffy in the morning.
I stopped using a serum for the majority of the time I was using this, just to get the full effect of what it was doing for my skin, but I added one in for the last couple of days. I have really dry cheeks, and using a serum not only helped add more moisture to them, but also replenished some more antioxidants in my skin. The lactic acid in this will also, by exfoliating the dead skin, help your skin absorb those antioxidants. Adovia recommends using a serum with this moisturizer (specifically their serum, but any good one will do).
Going back to the potentially-irritating ingredients, I have sensitive skin and I didn't experience any irritation with this product. It really depends what ingredients your skin personally reacts with. The only irritation I did get is when I exfoliated too much, as I am not used to using an AHA in my routine. If you're using a BHA product (ex. salicylic acid, another defoliator), you don't have to stop using it, but personally it would be too much for me. I have realized that using my Clarisonic and this night cream is enough for me. Just make sure to keep in mind that you are getting some topical exfoliation from this face cream and you'll be fine. If you wash your face with a washcloth, and then use this night cream, you should be okay. It's all about observing your skin and seeing how it looks and feels.
Just a note - for those of you who like to double up your nighttime moisturizer as an eye cream, I think I would skip that method with this one. It's so thick that it might make them look a little puffy in the morning.
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The Verdict:
Pros:
- Luxurious glass packaging
- Affordable
- Little fragrance
- Few potentially-irritating ingredients
- Hydrating
- Non-greasy
- Lactic acid great for exfoliating dead skin
Cons:
- Jar packaging
All in all, I really am enjoying this moisturizer! My skin has looked amazing over the past two weeks and I haven't had one breakout. I wouldn't use this in the daytime, just because of how thick it is (oily-skinned girls may agree with me here), but if you feel like you need it for the daytime as well just make sure to use a sunscreen. This cream is quite hydrating, but I think everyone will benefit from adding a serum into their skincare routine, for both the benefit of antioxidants and also an extra added punch of hydration. Overall, I think this is a great price for the amount of product you get, and I would recommend it for someone looking for a thicker nighttime moisturizer going into the colder months.
What's your favorite night cream right now ?
P.S.: I've reviewed the eye cream from this line as well! See it here!
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Disclaimer: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. This post was not sponsored. College Beauty Buff does not accept monetary compensation for reviews. Beautypedia was used as a resource on ingredients.
