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Unless you’ve been hiding in burrow, you’ll know that skincare ranges to lighten and brighten skin are big news right now. Coming at us from Asia, Aphrodite let us in on her discoveries when she was away over in that part of the world, and if you’re a regular Strawberrynet-er, you’ll have clocked the extraordinary amount of brightening ranges that have always been available in from brands that trade in the Orient.
Now they’ve landed on our shores – we checked out one from Shiseido recently - but lets get one thing straight. For us pale caucasian types, this stuff isn’t about changing your skin colour. Rather, as we age, pigmentation spots and blemishes can appear, marking our complexions and making us appear older than we are – after all, what are liver spots but very visible markers of age? And while pigmentation can be easily zapped by an expert using laser, that can be painful and expensive. Creams have an another advantage in that they treat the whole skin, and not just one area.
So if the zapping option doesn’t appeal or your issues are mild, then brightening skincare is the way to go. One of the launches I’ve been most impressed with is the just-on-counter Even Better Skintone Correcting Moisturiser, €52, from Clinique. Not only does it help to banish pigmentation spots, but it’s also designed to be a one-pot-stop, so you get all your benefits in a single jar.
It joins the existing Even Better serum and foundation products in the brand’s line-up and was eight years in the making, according to Dr Tom Mammone, the brand’s executive director of research and development. We met in London during the summer, and I was taken step-by-step through the science.
Aiming to battle the problem of age spots in the first instance and reduce the appearance of any blotchy dark patches you may already have, crucially, the moisturiser contains an SPF of 20 – after all, with sun damage being the biggest contributor to hyper-pigmentation, prevention is always going to be better than cure.
But what else is in there to work its magic? Fungus. Oh, really? Ok, not creepy things that grow in dark corners, but enzymes contained in yeast are the secret weapon in the product. Dr Mammone explains: “we grow yeast cells in big vats in the lab and isolate the enzyme to make the extract that’s used in the moisturiser. Because we do it this way, we’re not limited by nature – we can ramp up the concentration and make it stronger.”
He’s discovered that Clinique’s advanced yeast blend can actually break up excess pigment. “It’s very clever,” reveals the good doctor. “It only works on melanin and nothing else, so it’s very selectively sophisticated. The enzyme literally chops the excess pigmentation into ‘dust’, and it’s then gently exfoliated off your skin thanks to the inclusion of some salicylic acid in the mix.”
And now for the million dollar question: how long does it take to work? “In four-to-eight weeks you should see a 50% reduction in pigmentation and a more even skintone,” advises Dr Mammone. But skin reaps other benefits too, thanks to ingredients like curcuma longa turmeric root extract: it’s a powerful antioxidant and anti-irritant which helps fend against environmental assaults that can off set excess melanin production. There’s also sucrose and trehalose to help attract and maintain moisture levels in the skin and a blend of lineolic acid, cholesterol, wheat and olive extract to help rebuild the skin’s moisture barrier.
You’ll find Clinique Even Better Skintone Correcting Moisturiser on counter now.
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Has anyone tried this? Or can any of you ladies reccommens something that actually works??? I’m currently trying the Nimue product for the past month, but I haven’t noticed any improvement.
My boyfriend has really bad pigmentation around his eye, and he is super-conscious of it as it looks like she has a black eye, and people keep asking him what happened!!
I really want to get him something that works, as I know he’s really self-conscious. Any recommendations?
I’d love a recommendation/some feedback on this too!
heya girls – it’s just new so it’ll take a while for feedback. Based on my chat with the good doctor and his explanations of the science, it sounds really promising. If pigmentation is really really seriously bad, get it lasered off – esp for things like old acne scarring. It’s a lot deeper into the skin and creams won’t shift it. For hyper pigmentation caused by over exposure to the sun, as long as it’s fairly mild, skincare is a good option.
as always, prevention is key, so lash the SPF on daily.
Hey Kirsie, I like the sound of this; when you say ‘banish’ do you mean get rid of whats already there, or prevent new pigmentation happening,or both(hopefully)??
Heya Charlie – yep, as it says above, it does both. SPF prevents; the fungus removes. But as I’ve emphasised, skincare can only do so much. If you’ve a face filled with brown marks then laser is the only way to remove; this is ideal for someone who’s starting to show mild signs of hyperpigmentation.
I’ll defo be trying this. I also used something called Even skintone serum by an Australian brand called Ultraceuticals…. I would recommend it for sure – but not sure if it can be bought this side of the world.
ps Can you buy Clinique more cheaply on-line?
I have the serum in this range but haven’t given it a proper go yet. Might not work for me as my problem is Post Inflammatory Hyperpigmentation – red marks left after years of acne breakouts. I’ll report back if it is any good!
shellbelle – that sort of issue tends to be deep in the epidermis and is harder to treat topically. I’d say give a course of laser a go.
i get really bad red blemishes not scarring but take ages to go away would be keen to try
Any recommendations for laser in Cork?
Also, does it take a good few sessions or will a couple suffice?
im confused about pigmentation!! would freckles be considered pigmentation?
Fiona – yep! pigmentation is colour in your skin. Hyperpigmentation happens when excess melanin deposits onto the skin following sun damage, hormonal infleunce (like melasma) or stress.
maudy – I have no cork recs, sorry. It depends on how bad the issue is but at least two, I’d say.
thanks kirstie!
Pookie – i’ve used Ultraceuticals and really rate some of their stuff – particularly the Vitamin C cream:)
I’ve been using the serum for 4 weeks and am amazed to report that it has faded some sun spots under my eye and on my forehead. They are dark brown blotches which appeared in the last 12 months (I’m 34) and show up under make-up…anyway since I started using this (twice a day on the dark spots, not all over) they have faded noticeably and I am going to get the moisturiser too to fast track the process…I usually use the clinique superdefense 25 during the day and think I will continue this and just use the even better serum and moisturiser at night..I’m immpressed and happy with the results & delighted I don’t have to resort to laser..
I went skiing last winter and badly burnt my skin. My skin was never aS even as before after that, especially when after some sun exposure. So I am desperately searching for something to help and the Clinique even better is probably my first step. Fingers crossed it works!!