Vichy Lift Activ Serum 10 Youth Enhancing Serum Review and Photos

Apologies for the weird-looking, bad photo.
The box is highly reflective, so it was very difficult to photograph using a flash.

According to Vichy: 

"Liftactiv Serum 10 is the only serum that has it all: efficacy + tolerance + pleasure. It contains 10% Rhamnose, which is so concentrated that you will feel the first results almost immediately.  In just 10 min, your skin becomes velvety smooth and lifted. In 1 month, the full power of Rhamnose blossoms in your skin and transforms the skin. It impacts wrinkles, firmness, pores and even boosts overall skin radiance."

Apparently it took the Vichy labs 2 years and 180 formulation trials to achieve this anti-aging power concentrated in such an incredible texture while maintaining 100% tolerance; so even the most sensitive of skins can use this product.

The LiftActive Serum 10 is sold in a 30 mL size and retails for $55 CDN. It is available in most drugstores across the country.

This product was sent by PR to Beauty Squared for consideration of review.

Jill

Upon application of this serum I immediately noticed a tightening effect on my skin. After application my skin felt better hydrated, smooth and firmer. I likes how light weight this serum felt - even when worn under a rich moisturizer, my combination skin did not feel oily or suffocated.

Admittedly I don't have a lot of experience with anti aging/firming serums, but I will say that the extent of the firming and lifting sensation I experienced with Liftactiv 10 was surprising to me. I am in my 30's, and so I am developing some fine lines and slackness in my skin. This serum did help improve those symptoms while I was wearing it - but because my symptoms are not more pronounced, and I'm not using it long term, I can't definitively say this serum is capable of correcting those skin conditions.

One small drawback of this product for me is the packaging. I personally dislike any medicine dropper systems because I find them messy and wasteful. First, there's always the chance that you will drop the dropper on the floor thus contaminating it. Second, I always find that I end up dropping spare drops of serum on the counter, the floor or my clothes...but Catherine likes this system, so maybe I'm just a germophobic klutz? Anyways, while I found the packaging annoying it didn't really detract from the product itself.

Grade: A

Catherine

I loved Vichy's LiftActiv Serum 10 Youth Enhancing Serum on my first application. Like other serums it goes on smoothly and feels velvety but what made this one stand out was how my skin felt after applying it. Not only was it smooth and velvety to the touch but it felt plumper and healthier from the inside as well. 

Packaging-wise I really liked the medicine dropper applicator which gives you the the perfect amount of serum for one application with the push of a button. It was also helpful to get to the last little bit out of the bottle. The glass bottle was impressive as well, helping to keep the serum on the cool side for an added soothing effect on the skin. It also made the product feel expensive.

How did it work, compared to my usual serum? Well, I can't say that my skin looked very different, but there was a slightly silkier feel with the Vichy serum and my skin did look more radiant. My skin felt richer, plumper, tighter, and healthier overall, but only moderately so. I don't know if it's worth paying $15 more for the Vichy serum. 

If you're looking for a serum, this definitely is one I'd recommend. I used every last drop of the bottle I was sent. Well done, Vichy!

Grade: A

 

Vichy ProEVEN BB Creme Review and Photos

The bad news…

If the inevitable onset of wrinkles wasn’t daunting enough, now women are faced with another age imperfection to wrought off: dark spots. For many women, these dark spots are considered a more significant indicator of age than wrinkles!

The good news…

Vichy has a solution, with the introduction of the ProEVEN collection  - a collection specifically designed to target those nasty dark spots. 

And now, Vichy introduces the ProEVEN BB Cream, to help conceal unwanted spots. After just one month of using Vichy ProEVEN BB Cream, skin is transformed with a refined skin texture, a reduction of redness and unevenness and a more healthy radiant complexion.

The new ProEVEN BB Cream immediately works to:

·         Even skin tone

·         Boost radiance

·         Conceal redness, flaws and imperfections

·         Reduce the look of pores and fine lines

Vichy BB Cream gives fast, noticeable results all while concealing current imperfections, especially when used in combination with Vichy ProEVEN Daily Dark Spot Corrector.

Beauty Squared was sent a tubes of the new Vichy ProEVEN BB Cream to review. Here's what we thought of it.

Vichy ProEVEN BB Creme Swatches on NW15ish skintone L-R: Light/Medium and Medium/Dark

Jill:

I was really interested to try Vichy's new Pro Even BB as it would be one of the first BB creams I have tried to date. I don't usually wear foundation or tinted moisturizer, so the BB cream hype seemed a bit lost on me. Usually I find multipurpose products to be rather so-so, like 2-in-1 shampoos, where the product only manages to fulfill it's multitude of promises in rather mediocre way, so I was skeptical about the numerous claims BB creams made.

Catherine got the product before me and gave me the heads up on the lightness of the product, so I only tested the "medium to dark complexions" cream (I am NC 30/35). I was fairly shocked to see the cream come out of the tube, as it is very, very, very light and ashy looking. The texture is thick and a tiny bit tacky. When I smoothed it on I was sure I was going to be walking around most of the day looking rather odd, with a ghostly cast over my face. Vichy claims this product "adapts" to individual skin tones and after working the product in vigorously it did lose most of it's ashiness.

On me this product turns mostly invisible, although for my yellow toned skin it does give it a slight whitish cast, like one you would get from a sunscreen with titanium dioxide (which this product contains). The way it felt on my combination/oily skin was moist and slightly dewy, and I felt I needed to powder it down after applying.

The things I like about this product are the decent SPF factor and the inclusion of some of the same ingredients found in the Pro Even serum, which I have used and liked in the past. What I don't like about this product is the colour and the texture. I definitely have a "medium" skin tone and although this product does adapt to your skin, I don't think it does an adequate enough job of "adapting" to provide natural looking coverage  Maybe this would work better on a pink based skin tone, but it just doesn't do it for me. I would rather wear a moisturizer with all of the above mentioned treatment ingredients then use a shade appropriate tinted moisturizer or sheer foundation on top.

To summarize I don't see this being a good choice for anyone with a skin tone as dark or darker than mine, or for anyone with oily skin. It's a shame that this spin off product from the Pro Even line didn't better match my skin tone. Because of the fact I can't really wear this product I won't be able to evaluate it's skin improvement claims which are based on using it over time. My rating is then based upon my initial impressions.

Grade: C

Catherine:

I have been using Garnier's BB cream since it was released, and Vichy's is only the second type that I've tried. I received both of the shades the BB cream comes in and after swatching opted to try the lighter of the two, the Light/Medium shade. I tend to wear if not the lightest foundation in a line, then pretty close to the lightest foundation, so I was very surprised when the Light/Medium shade made me look so pale and chalky. After a little while, the paleness dissipated slightly, but I found that with the heavier the application, the less it altered its colour and texture. The coverage of this is heavier than the Garnier BB cream, but I still found I wanted to layer it in some areas rather than adding a foundation on top. I was constantly frustrated with the application as it was fair too pale for my skintone no matter how I applied it. For a BB cream that claims to fit Light/Medium skintones and for a BB cream that only comes in two shades, this was disappointing. I tried mixing some of the Medium/Dark (which isn't very dark at all) into the Light/Medium and that's when it started looking more like my skintone match.

In the below photo I'm wearing the Light/Medium on the right half of my face, leaving the left half bare. 

In terms of the consistency, it does certainly look chalky or ashy (as Jill found) and while some of this eases after wearing it a little while, you have to wear a light layer to avoid it. I found the texture less moist than the Garnier BB cream I'm used to wearing but still in need of powder to set it.

I did wear it for a week or so to get a proper gauge of how it worked on my skin. Apart from the appearance of it, it did work as I think a BB cream should. It kept my skin feeling moisturized, it acted as a primer for my makeup and gave me some coverage.

I found the Vichy BB cream more frustrating than satisfying. I managed to make it work alright for me, but I wouldn't buy it. 

Grade: D

Vichy Lift Activ Eyes Review and Photos

Vichy has recently launched a new series of products in their LiftActiv line. Beauty Squared was sent LiftActiv Eyes by PR for consideration.

Vichy's Lift Activ Eyes

LiftActiv is an anti-aging eye treatment which is designed to reduce the look of wrinkles, crows feet and bags. According to Vichy it contains a the unique key ingredient "rhamnose" which is:

"a natural sugar extracted from Silver Birch known for its anti-inflammatory properties at low concentrations, is a key part of all LiftActiv products and it is at the heart of LiftActiv Eyes. It is the only ingredient known to target the Derm Source (papillary dermis) and reactivate it, regenerating cells in the epidermis, dermo-epidermal junction and dermis. It boosts the activity and the longevity of the fibroblasts, which as a result leaves skin younger and more protected."

In short, Vichy states this product targets and treats the four signs of aging in the eye area, claiming that after one month users will see smoothed wrinkles, lifted eyelids, decreased dark circles, diminished under eye bags and smoother, tighter skin. 

This product retails for approximately $40.00 CA and is available in most drug stores.

Scientific jargon aside, here is what we thought.

Jill:

I have combination skin, with very slight signs of aging around my eyes. My main eye concerns are dark circles, puffiness, occasional dryness (particularly in the winter) and age prevention.

My first impressions of the product were very positive. This product has a thick, velvety texture which spreads smoothly over the skin. According to Vichy this product has a "long lasting lifting feel", and certainly after application there is a very strong lifting and tightening sensation. In fact, I have not used another eye product where this sensation has been so noticeable!

I found this product did an excellent job reducing puffiness and smoothing the skin round my eyes. It did not change the appearance of my dark circles, but since I believe my dark circles are in large part genetic and constant, this did not surprise me. As for it's long term anti-aging properties and it's ability to reduce wrinkles, I cannot fairly evaluate this product as I suffer from only the most minuscule lines. However due to it's very strong tightening and smoothing effect, I would expect people with deeper wrinkles would notice at least temporary improvement.

The velvety texture (which I believe is due to the inclusion of dimethicone (silicone), the second listed ingredient) makes this cream a very nice base for concealer or foundation. I also approve of the attractive and practical packing - because it is a squeeze tube it is both hygenic and precise, allowing you to control the amount you dispense. I would recommend this product to anyone who wants a reasonably priced eye cream which smooths and tightens the eye area. The only  people I would not recommend this product to is those with silicone sensitivities.

Grade: A-

Catherine:

The skin around my eyes is starting to show some signs of aging with slight creasing and fine lines at the outer corners. I have dark circles that do not go away no matter how much I sleep or how much water I drink, etc. I am occasionally prone to puffiness in the mornings. 

I really liked the feeling of Lift Activ the first time I used it. While it is not a thick, heavy cream, it has a luxurious texture to it, thick enough to feel effective and thin enough to absorb fairly easily without a lot of effort. While I prefer to use eye cream at night and a gel or liquid in the morning, Lift Activ absorbed well enough to apply concealer and other eye makeup on top of it without diluting the colour or changing the texture. 

Like Jill, Lift Activ did nothing to alter my dark circles, but I did notice a slight smoothing of the very fine lines I have at the corners of my eyes. 

The packaging is impressive with its squeezable tube and fine tip applicator allowing you to apply it to a finger for application or directly to the eye area. 

I would definitely purchase this eye cream and recommend it to anyone looking for a moderately rich eye cream that provides soothing, firming and smoothing under the eye area.

Grade: A

Vichy Laboratories Lift Activ Derm Source Review

I was sent a preview bottle of Vichy's latest anti-aging moisturizer to try out. Here's what Vichy Laboratories has to say about Lift Activ: 

Vichy Laboratories has pushed the limits of anti-aging with 2 major scientific advances: First after 10 years of research and 6 scientific publications with the discovery of the power of the Derm Source, known as papillary dermis, the skin’s true and integral source of youth. Second, Vichy Laboratories’ newest anti aging technology, LIFTACTIV DERM SOURCE, boasts the anti-aging power of Rhamnose, a plant extract that helps to stimulate the activity of the Derm Source to irradiate youth throughout all skin layers. (7 patents + 6 clinical studies)

And to answer some of the questions we might have:

What is the Derm Source?

Science calls it: Papillary dermis, an upper compartment of the dermis located just below the dermo-

epidermal-junction. It has the unique ability of regenerating the skin in all its layers creating the key

source of youthfulness.

How does it work?

It works very much like a command centre of the skin. It contains very active fibroblasts that diffuse

youth molecules to all skin layers – epidermis, dermo-epidermal junction and deeper dermis. These

molecules target the cells in each skin layer and command them to regenerate. The action of Derm

Source is integral and it alone is responsible for the regeneration of the entire skin from the deep dermis

to the epidermis.

What is Rhamnose?

Rhamnose is a sugar extract found in some Brazilian plants like Uncaria and some trees like the Silver

Birch. Vichy extracts it in its ultra-pure form; using a hydilysis process that preserves its natural origin

and only takes the most active fraction of the molecule to deliver its full power. This active ingredient is

also used in pharmacology for its anti-inflammatory properties.

According to Vichy, Lift Activ Derm Source gives: 

• Unprecedented anti-wrinkle and firmness efficacy and long lasting lifting effect

• Skin radiates with youth; beyond anti aging signs, skin is fully transformed as never before:

replumped, velvety smooth and luminous

Despite the fact that I'm not yet at the stage of my life where I need high potency anti-aging cream, I've been using Lift Activ nightly. The sample I was sent is Vichy Lift Activ Derm Source for Oily to Combination skin and retails for approximately $45. 

Lift Activ is lightly scented and isn't offensive at all. It's a fairly thick cream that you might anticipate being heavy on the skin, but it's not. It absorbs quickly and does not sit on the skin.

Although I can't vouch for the anti-aging effects of Life Activ, I can tell you that it does leave my skin feeling smooth, soft and plump. With so many moisturizers, I wash my face in the morning and the feeling of smooth and soft washes away. Not so with Lift Activ. 

I would imagine that this moisturizer will do as it claims and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It does seem to plump up my skin so skin that's drier and showing aging more than mine does should also be plumper. Plumper skin means fewer wrinkles!

I would recommend Lift Activ to someone who was experiencing wrinkles and fine lines and wanted to try a reasonably priced anti-aging cream.

C.