Beauty Product Reviews

Great in conjunction with other moisturizers

I had dry spots around my nose and chin. I used 100% squalane on its own for roughly 2 weeks, morning and night. It feels slick on the skin (a little goes a long way) but will sink in eventually. I found that when I used this product, by the end of the day, my skin had lost the moisture that I had started out with in the morning. I decided to try layering this on top of a more creamy, deeper penetrating moisturizer, and I'm much happier with the results. This product locks in hydration, but can only moisturize your skin so much. If you hydrate your skin and then lock it in with this surface moisturizer you'll notice your skin look and feel more supple for longer. I apply this sparingly in the morning and more heavily at night, as the slickness takes awhile to absorb and can look a little oily if overdone (why I've rated 4 stars instead of 5). This product also works well under makeup, if paired with a suitable foundation. It gives a beautiful luminosity that shows through powders while not moving things around too much. I might purchase this again, but I'm also curious to try other oils from the brand.

Effective at minimizing pores, blackheads, & texture

I was struggling with dry, bumpy-feeling skin around my nose and chin. I would physically exfoliate my skin with scrubs once weekly, but it seemed like in as little as a day after I scrubbed, I could feel the texture again. I decided to try a chemical exfoliator, and went with the 2% salicylic acid, as I often experience hormone-driven spots in addition to the texture, blackheads, and noticable pores around my nose and chin. I've used this serum 2x daily for ~3 weeks and am pleased with the results. The texture is thin and gel-like with no scent. It spreads easily, "foams" when rubbed continuously (not major foaming, but it turns whitish and a little fluffy) but absorbs quickly. I do this step after cleansing and toning, but before moisturizing. I only have to wait a minute or two before my skin feels dry enough to apply moisturizers. I can't attest to this serum's ability to prevent acne, but it does seem to speed up the healing process of spots that appear (especially when used as a spot treatment). The texture on my previously dry spots is no longer a problem. The blackheads and pores around my nose and chin are noticably reduced in size. I'm almost 1/2 through my first bottle and will be buying again.