I'm a skincare junkie. Fortunately I have dry/combo skin that isn't very sensitive so it's pretty easy for me to try and switch up products without much issue. I was really excited to try this to see if it was worth the hype. I've known Elemis as a great brand but haven't had much first hand experience with it myself. First on the price. I'm no stranger to probably paying more than I should on skincare products. I have some luxury lines but once things start going past the $150 mark, I start to become a bit skeptical. So yes, when this clocks in at $340, I have extremely high expectations, as everyone should. In short, I thought this was pretty disappointing for the price point. It's just not worth it, especially if you take a hard look at the ingredients. There are MANY that are highly irritating including a ridiculous amount of fragrance ingredients. I'll post the ingredients at the end of the review as they can be difficult to find- I dug them up so you don't have to! So, my personal experience with this, it is not something I'd be repurchasing. That's not to say it's all bad- not at all. I just don't see the value being there to spend over $300 on. The good: - The packaging is very luxe and special. - I also really appreciate that this is a pump and an opaque container to protect the product from air and light - Absorbs very quickly into skin and feels really nice. It is a bit thicker than a lot of serums but I have had no issues with layering this under moisturizer. No pilling or other issues. - Does not seem to irritate my skin (again, my skin isn't very sensitive so this may not be a good indicator if your skin *is* sensitive) - There are some nice ingredients in here including some good antioxidants The not so good: - The fragrance is overpowering and I really can't take it. It smells like old lady perfume to me. I don't tend to be very sensitive to fragrance (and it fortunately doesn't really irritate my skin) but this is just way too much. It does seem to go away quickly but I'd rather there was just a natural smell than whatever the heck this is. In looking at the ingredients, there are a TON of perfuming agents. AT LEAST eleven by my count which is just bonkers. Ick. If you have sensitive skin or aren't a fan of fragrance in skincare, steer clear. - The price point. I know this is probably a statement of the obvious but $340 is just insane for 30ml (slightly over 1oz) and that's coming from a gal that loves some good high end skincare (Tatcha, Perricone, etc.). But does it work? For me, it made my skin feel good but I honestly didn't notice any dramatic difference. I regularly use a different collagen product (and cycle with different retinol products, vitamin c products, etc.) and I didn't see this being markedly different. Maybe others will have more drastic effects but for me it wasn't anything to write home about. My skin isn't perfect as I'm in my mid-30s but the results themselves didn't blow me away. Ingredient list for reference: Aqua/Water/Eau, Coco-Caprylate, Glycerin, Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol Crosspolymer, Bulbine Frutescens Leaf Juice, Carbomer, Phenoxyethanol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Panthenol, Sodium Polyacrylate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Polyglyceryl-4 Laurate/Sebacate, Polyglyceryl-6 Caprylate/Caprate, Sodium Hydroxide, Fragrance (Parfum), Disodium EDTA, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Dunaliella Salina Extract*, Lithothamnion Calcareum Powder*, Chlorella Vulgaris Extract*, Chondrus Crispus Extract*, Mannitol, Rhizobian Gum, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Benzoate, Padina Pavonica Thallus Extract*, Potassium Sorbate, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Chlorphenesin, Diatomaceous Earth, Benzyl Salicylate, Limonene, Citric Acid, Pelargonium Graveolens Oil, Alaria Esculenta Extract*, Laminaria Digitata Extract*, Laminaria Ochroleuca Extract*, Xanthan Gum, Linalool, Caprylyl Glycol, Tocopherol, Plankton Extract*, Porphyridium Cruentum Extract*, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Phytosterols, Gelidium Cartilagineum Extract*, Zinc Sulfate, Acacia Decurrens (Mimosa) Flower Extract, Commiphora Myrrha Oil, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil, Jasminum Officinale (Jasmine) Flower Extract, Punica Granatum Seed Oil, Rosa Damascena Flower Extract, Glyceryl Caprylate, Sorbic Acid, Lactic Acid/Glycolic Acid Copolymer, Phenylpropanol, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-50, Polyvinyl Alcohol, Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate, Citrus Aurantium Amara (Bitter Orange) Flower Oil, Iris Pallida Root Extract *Algae Extract.
