Shopping from March to April

Shopping from March to April, so two months. Everything cost me together about 90 €. Cult Beauty order was about 60 € so most of the spent money was a splurge. So far I have spent this year about 123 € during 4 months. It's not actually bad, since I allocated myself a budget of 50 € a month, 600 € a year for 2021. 

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Luminous Blush - Snapdragon

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter Mini - Vanilla Quartz

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter Mini - Moonstone

Here we go. I went and purchased the Becca products I had had my eye on from Cult Beauty, because Becca is going to close this year in September. I chose two mini highlighters instead of one full size because I'll never finish them anyway (probably) and now I got two shades to play with! I am still very tempted to buy more though, both blushes and highlighters! I really like their texture.

It took about a week (7 work days) for the Cult Beauty order to arrive from UK, I ordered after the Brexit obviously. They prepay the duties and I didn't have to pay any extra or deal with customs. Good stuff! I would highly recommend Cult Beauty to other European customers. Well packaged with paper stuffing in a sturdy box.

Dermatica Subscription Tretinoin 0.025 % + Niacinamide 4 %

My second Dermatica bottle. Was 50% off because I subscribed on Black Friday. I thought they would send a notice before charging my card (like: you have requested your next treatment to be dispatched on 1st of March and we are confirming this schedule and we will charge your card today/tomorrow, if you wish to cancel your subscription blah blah....). But nothing, my card was charged 3 days before the scheduled renewal date (1st of March), I wouldn't even have noticed otherwise but I have an app that notes me in real time when I am charged. I think all subscription based services can be risky because they are not always transparent and they require the customer to be always on top of the game. The email of dispatching my order came 2rd of March.

It took a million years to receive my treatment though, and I had to claim it through customs office as it came from UK EVEN THOUGH they claimed already that they ship from Ireland to avoid issues. It was approx 4-5 WEEKS until I had my bottle and it was already expiring that week. I don't know if this was very unlucky incident or if this will keep happening. Anyway I am not squeamish and I will use expired products but still, I will cancel the subscription for a while if there's no improvement. Too bad for my skin though! There's nothing wrong with their product formula, it works, it is pleasant.

Nizoral Ketoconazol 20mg/ml Shampoo

Nice treatment shampoo! If you are prone to oily scalp/oily dandruff with possibly fungal infections. I've read people use this as a mask on face for "fungal acne" as well and I do too (even though I don't know if I have "fungal acne", but I do have some scalp problems for sure so I wouldn't say it's impossible). 

Ketoconazol helps with malassezia. It helped with my forehead/hairline bumps just in a few days so I would recommend it! I keep using it whenever I have flareups, I feel it is the only thing that really helps my scalp problems and persistent small bumpy acne on my face.

Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Water Essence 50 ml Review

 Ingredients:

Water, Methylpropanediol, Polyglycerin-3, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, 1,2-Hexanediol, Niacinamide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Betaine, Sodium Pca, Xanthan-Gum, Trehalose, Panthenol, Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil, Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium-Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Ascorbyl Propyl Hyaluronate, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract, Pteris Multifida Extract, Cynara Scolymus (Artichoke) Leaf Extract, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Ethylhexylglycerin, Pentylene Glycol, Cyclohexasiloxane, Butylene Glycol, Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Beta-Glucan, Adenosine, Carbomer, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Disodium Edta, Polyquaternium-51, Tromethamine.

I try to mark the sunscreen ingredients in red and other possible irritants in lilac. Ingredients thought to be good and useful for skin I mark green.  Learning as I go, google is my friend etc...

Thoughts:

- The pipette doesn't work perfectly, sometimes it picks up the essence well, sometimes not at all, then the pipette always dispenses a different amount so you are forced to play with it

- The glass bottle is a little clunky and heavy to handle, not for travelling 

- Availability, not too keen on ordering from Korea or anywhere outside of EU due to pandemic, slow and expensive shipping, and new customs regulations

- No long term effects or long term hydration (but this is the usual with most topical products so don't expect too much)



+ No scent

+ Doesn't seem to break me out or clog my skin

+ Doesn't pill, so far has worked with all my other skincare and under makeup well

+ Easy to layer if you wish but usually unnecessary (thicker serum texture)

+ Hydrating, feels nice under or on top of tretinoin treatment, but hydration level feels moderate, doesn't really "plump" skin but leaves it soft, personally I don't notice much tackiness

+ Very pretty glass bottle

+ Essence is a bit thicker, and takes a bit time to absorb compared to watery essences, but it gives it a nice slip to spread even a small amount to whole face without tugging

+ Zero irritation for me, a safe essence with many nice hydrating and calming ingredients

* I think the best feature of Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Water Essence is the texture and formula that doesn't pill, compared to The Ordinary's Hyaluronic Acid Serum (60 ml/12,20 €) for example. So this one is very suitable for morning use or layering. But when it comes to effectiveness, I feel like TO's HA Serum works better for me, even if it is a bit annoying and reserved for evening time or I mix it with something else. I feel the hydration level is somehow deeper with The Ordinary even though Isntree Essence boasts 8 different types of hyaluronic acid? I probably should test by applying these products half and half on my face for a few days!

* I have been using the essence maybe for about 2 months and I still have 2/3 left! So overall I'm estimating that one bottle of 50 ml would last for half a year if you keep using it constantly.

* I feel like I should be more excited about this essence based on performance, feel, packaging and ingredients but I just am not? 

* I am interested in Isntree as a brand, their products look nice and ingredient focused and they share lots of information about their products. Seems like you could get a bunch of nice basics from them! Too bad availability is what it is.

Price: 

Anything between 15-30 € / 50 ml, I paid 15 usd

Bought from: 

Jolse

Buy again? 

Maybe. But it is not an urgent need.

Worth the money? 

While Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Water Essence is nice and works well, it hasn't been miraculous. For the USD15 (~13 €) that I paid for this essence back in the day, I would repurchase, but currently the price would come to 20-40 € for me and I am not that much in love. It hasn't changed my skin in any way and I don't seem to miss it when I use something else so far. But it is a safe crowd pleaser essence that is easy to use and I think pretty much anyone could use and like it good enough! Just look out for deals.