The Ordinary Skincare Review
Hi stunners
I’m super excited to share this review with you. I’ve had such a great response from so many of you after my “Skincare routine” post. So firstly, let me just say Thank you. Your support and interactions are what I thrive on.
I’ve been using these products for the past few weeks and all I can say is WOW! I’m completely amazed by the changes I’ve noticed thus far.
When I first came across this brand I was quite intrigued. The little bottle and just how simple the packaging is what got my attention. I recall going on samika_store’s website just to see what the prices were like and I was quite shocked that they were so affordable. That’s when I started doing some research. If there’s one thing you should know about me, is that I ALWAYS first do some research on a product before I purchase it.
After a few days of reading and watching youtube videos, I was sold. So many well-known youtube gurus and bloggers raved about these products. I honestly felt like I’ve been living under a rock.
About The Ordinary:
“The Ordinary is a brand from DECIEM. We are an umbrella of brands focused on advanced functional beauty. Our team is specialized in materials chemistry and biochemistry, and we have brought pioneering innovation in skincare through our core brands, Hylamide and NIOD. In the category of functional beauty, integrity is rare. Commonplace technologies are referred to as groundbreaking and insensible pricing strategies confuse the audience, disguising commodity technologies as advanced. The Ordinary exists to communicate with integrity and bring to market effective, more familiar technologies at honourable prices. The Ordinary takes pride in honesty, fights innovation stagnancy in the industry and indirectly celebrates the depth of innovation our brands, Hylamide and NIOD, continue to bring to the category.
Additional Information about DECIEM:
All DECIEM products, across all brands including The Ordinary, are free of parabens, sulphates, mineral oil, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, animal oils, benzalkonium chloride, coal tar dyes, formaldehyde, mercury, oxybenzone. If you have questions about any ingredient that we use, please reach out to us and our lab will provide a response.
DECIEM does not test on animals and does not pay others to do so. For this reason, none of our brands are sold in mainland China since such sales require animal testing for registration purposes.”
There were many serums I wanted to try after all my research but decided to test out one to see if it really works. I ordered the
Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
Niacinamide is vitamin B3 and is a proven ingredient to reduce the appearance of enlarged pores. It also helps with uneven skin tone, wrinkle prevention and balancing hydration. This product is described as a “blemish formula” and is actually one of my favourite serums for dealing with hyperpigmentation. Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) can protect the skin against the UV damage that stimulates freckles, brown spots, skin discoloration, and unevenness. It also tackles fine lines and wrinkles, elasticity and hyperpigmentation. The best part is that it’s an anti-inflammatory which can help with blemishes and rosacea. Zinc is amazing for healing the skin, reducing excess oil production and therefore great for clearing acne. The reason I chose this product to test out first is for its pore minimizing, brightening skin, anti-aging, skin hydrating properties. I’ve used this product for 5 weeks and I am super impressed by how radiant my skin looked. I have this natural glow and it has improved my skin tone and texture. I’ve read that niacinamide doesn’t work for everyone and a few people have experienced breakouts because they’re allergic to it but for me, it’s been excellent and I’m super impressed.
After such great results in just over a month, I knew I needed to try some of the other serums. I purchased, Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5, Buffet and Advanced Retinoid 2%.
Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5
Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 is great for dehydrated skin and visibly plumps the skin without drawing water out of the skin. Hyaluronic Acid, HA, can attract up to 1,000 times its weight in water. Doesn’t that already sound amazing? Hyaluronic Acid is found in the skin naturally but its natural function within the skin is not hydration. Many other well-known products on the market have used HA to claim hydration benefits, but HA is too large a molecule to penetrate the skin and instead stays on the surface. This can have a reverse effect and can actually draw moisture out of the skin making the surface feel soft and hydrated temporarily while making you feel like you need more HA. This formula uses three forms of HA with varying molecular weights to offer multi-depth hydration and visible plumping without drawing water. Vitamin B5 – Hydrates and heals dry and damaged skin by stabilizing skin’s barrier function and promoting the growth of stronger tissue. I always thought that because I have an extremely oily t-zone that I don’t need hydrating products because it would just make my skin more oily. After all the research, I found out that dehydrated skin lacks water content, but may still produce oil. In fact, it’s probably overproducing oil to compensate for the lack of moisture in the skin, which is why dehydrated skin can easily get mistaken for oily skin. After 4 weeks of incorporating this product into my routine, I’ve noticed added moisture to my skin without the greasy look and feel. My skin is plumper, feels revitalized and has a refreshed look. You know that look when you’ve just stepped out of the shower? But all day long…! lol.
Buffet
Buffet has a combination of amino acids (contains 11 amino acids) peptides and fermented probiotics. What really got my attention while reading through the ingredient profile was the Matrixyl 3000 peptide and Syn-Ake peptide. Matrixyl 3000 is said to be a patented peptide that prompts your skin to produce more collagen by mimicking broken collagen and Syn-Ake is believed to freeze lines like Botox. There are many other more complex ingredients that I have not gotten around to study but so far I’ve read nothing but good reviews on this baby. If you’re looking for a well all around, well priced anti-aging serum then this one is your baby.
Advanced Retinoid 2%
While I was going through all the products on their site, this one was one of those I knew I had to try. I must admit that I was a little scared. There were some people who have used this product and have had skin peeling during the 1st week or so, of use. I read that one should be really careful when incorporating retinol into your skincare routine. There are directions on how to use it and it’s quite simple; Start with a small amount and work your way up. That way you can see how your skin reacts to it. Retinols are so important when it comes to skin health and can do everything. It’s known to increase cell turnover, increase blood flow to the skin and is great for collagen production. It also reduces fine lines and wrinkles, corrects pigmentation irregularities and fights some forms of acne. What this means is that when it comes to anti-aging skincare, this is one of the very best ingredients you can use because it prevents and reverses the signs of aging like nothing else.
How I use these products:
AM :
- After cleaning and toning, I apply 2-3 drops of the Hylaronic acid 2%+B5, I wait till it has completely absorbed
- I then apply 2-3 drops of the Niacinamide 1% + Zinc
PM:
- After cleansing and toning, I apply 2-3 drops of the Buffet serum and then
- 2 drops of the Advanced Retinoid 2 %
Where I ordered from and my experience with the online store:
The Ordinary is not well known in South Africa and it’s not that easy to get your hands on these products. But thanks to samika_store,(no affiliation) who is the only stockist in South Africa and the official distributor, we now have access to these amazing products.
I contacted samika_stores and she immediately responded. I first ordered the Niacinamide 1% + Zinc and the service was amazing. I’m based in Jhb and my order arrived within 3 days. It was packaged securely and came in a cute little brown box with a samika sticker. I loved the personal touch.
After a few weeks, I contacted her again to enquire about the other products I was interested in. Luck must have been on my side because she had just received new stock and I was able to purchase all 3 products and my order arrived safely within a few days. Word is going around and more people have come to know about this range so they sell out within 10 minutes.
The other products on my wish list are:
There is a Regimen guide on the ordinary website. In general terms, water formulations should be applied before oil formulations and it is recommended to a maximum of three serum formulations in a single regimen. They have a table that has a summary on how the formulations can be combined with a regimen.
Final thoughts:
What makes The Ordinary’s serums unique is their simplicity-each bottle contains only one or two active ingredients. What this range perhaps lacks in luxury and elegance, it delivers in transparency, realism, and affordability.
I am honestly completely satisfied with this range and I know that with continuous use that my skin will improve tremendously. Some of the serum textures, especially the niacinamide can become a little tacky. I spread it all over my face and avoid rubbing it, I then pat it and leave it to soak in.
I hope this post was insightful and that it’ll help you decide which products to purchase. It’ll be great if you could share your experience if you have used any of these products.
Please don’t forget to subscribe to my blog! Thanks for reading and stay tuned for my next post!
Toodles Stunners! xx
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