Tag: paulaschoice

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR HG PRODUCT STOPS WORKING?

ALTERNATE, people.

Is it just me? Or lots of you experienced the same thing as me? My skin easily got immune, usually after finishing two of the same skincare product. Weird but true.

That’s why I found a way to alternate between products, just to make sure their effectiveness on my fungal-acne prone skin. So, after finishing one product, I usually move to another brand with similar ingredients and purposes. Then, I’d move back to the old one.

EXFOLIATING TONER

HADA LABO MILD PEELING LOTION & SOME BY MI AHA BHA PHA 30 DAYS MIRACLE TONER

The similarities: both are fungal acne safe and contain water plus butylene glycol.

The difference: Hada Labo only has 7 ingredients, while Somebymi has 22.

Thoughts: they are both mild enough to use everyday as exfoliating toner, but I try to use it every other day to avoid over exfoliating. And usually I just use exfoliating toner at night time.

BOOSTER

PAULA’S CHOICE 10% NIACINAMIDE BOOSTER & 2SOL FACIAL RECOVERY BOOSTER

The similarities: both are fungal acne safe and contain niacinamide, panthenol, sodium hyaluronate and allantoin.

The difference: 2Sol only has 19 ingredients, while Paula’s Choice has 24.

Thoughts: They both will be better if mixed with ampoule or moisturizer, as they might be sticky if stand alone. Both have same clear watery texture.

ESSENCE

COSRX ADVANCED SNAIL 96 MUCIN POWER ESSENCE & BENTON SNAIL BEE HIGH CONTENT ESSENCE

The similarities: both contain snail secretion filtrate, panthenol, betaine, arginine, butylene glycol and allantoin

The differences: Cosrx only has 12 ingredients, while Benton has 25. Corsx is safe for fungal acne, while Benton (unfortunately) has polysorbate 20 (known as one of fungal acne trigger) in their ingredients list.

Thoughts: Cosrx is more gloopy (literally like snail mucin), while Benton is less gloopy. Unfortunately Benton reformulated this and added Polysorbate 20 in their new formula, so it might not be safe for fungal acne.

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA

COMPARISON REVIEW: GLOSSIER SUPER PURE SERUM & PAULA’S CHOICE 10% NIACINAMIDE BOOSTER

There’s the one sure thing that I can tell you before I go in details: Both are Fungal-Acne safe.

First, let me start with Glossier. This is my third bottle, so I guess you can tell that I like it that much. This serum goes after essence step on my AM routine. Why AM (you might ask)? Because it is rare to find a serum that works well beneath everything. And this works like a charm beneath everything, skincare and makeup included. Yes this is one of my absolute skin-vestment.

Priced at IDR490K (at trustable online shop here in Indonesia) for 15ml, it is expensive but the hero ingredients: niacinamide and zinc really helped my problematic skin. It helped my skin clear and reduce breakouts significantly. Unfortunately, the company didn’t state how many percentage of Niacinamide used in this HG serum. But no worries, if your skin is familiar with this form of vitamin B3, you won’t have any problem at all.

OK, let’s move on to Paula’s Choice. To tell you the truth, this is my first product from this brand. I read some good reviews about it, so I decided to purchase it from a reputable market place in Indonesia. They named this booster, but I used it with my essence in the evening as PM routine. Why so? Unlike Glossier, this is way tackier if use alone. It is sticky (almost like glue), but not oily or filmy. You can certainly feel the stickiness, even after tapping for a while. Yup, it is less comfortable compared to Glossier. But then I learned along the way, they do recommend to mix this with other serum or moisturizer. So I did mix it with my essence and voila! It didn’t feel sticky anymore. Bonus: this is the right booster if you want to achieve that glass skin look.

Priced at IDR550K (at trustable online shop here in Indonesia) for 20ml, it is more expensive than Glossier, but contains 5ml more serum. Unlike Glossier, this has 10 percent concentration of niacinamide (quite an impressive dose).

THE DIFFERENCES:

Glossier recommended to use only once a day, meanwhile Paula’s Choice can be applied twice a day. For me, I apply Glossier in the morning, and Paula’s Choice in the evening.

Glossier is more viscous compared to Paula’s.

Packaging. I like Glossier more because it’s transparent bottle so I can prepare to purchase another one before it’s finish.

SIMILARITY:

Clear texture

Price (both are expensive, but IMHO worth every drop)

Odorless

Nice pipet bottle that looks pretty on the vanity (instagramable, too!)

Satisfying result, clearer and smoother skin (less acne popping up).

Manufactured in the US (see, not all of my skincare products are from Korea).

PHOTOS: SHINTA ROSVITA