Review: Biotherm Skin.Ergetic Concentrate

Hello! Today I'm back with a review on Biotherm's Skin.Ergetic Concentrate. Yes I know that this product was out last year and I've been trying it since January this year. I prefer to give a suitable amount of time before reviewing products as the effects may take time to come through or on the flipside, see negative impacts after some time too.

When I was shopping for a serum, my final 2 choices were between this product and Lancome's Genifique. Due to the latter's high alcohol content, Biotherm's gimmick of the broccoli extract won me over! Since none of my friends around me have tried this product, I read several reviews and decided that I should just go for it... afterall I was looking really tired and this serum as meant to "to fight the most visible sign of fatigue". Yes marketing sells sometimes...

The other selling point of this product was the target group - for a younger crowd - who notices their first sign of aging! It claims to reverse the aging signs to boost radiance and smoother features. This selling point was backed with the product's 99% of Natural Origin ingredients, paraben-free, mineral-oil free, synthetic colorant-free and most importantly, suitable for sensitive skin. It has ingredients such as Broccoli (sulforaphane), Apple (botanical cell), Soy (protein), lemon (AHA), Sugar Cane (AHA) etc.

The packaging was gimmicky with a "mix your own serum" which makes you feel that the product is truly amazing or 'fresh'. It claims to have a lifespan of approximately 3 good months before the miracle of the powder which you inject into the bottle runs out.

In essence, they give you a sachet of powder which Biotherm claims to contact broccoli extract and you are meant to use the other they gave to inject the powder into bottle, shake it well, before you start using with the dropper. A 1.5cm diameter amount is sufficient for each use. This website gives a clear step-by-step process of injecting the powder.

In terms of the serum, it is white, smooth and has a slight tinge of veggie-fruity-like fragrance which is calming to some but not for anti-veggimites. It applies well with a slightly thicker consistent texture (some say a little slimy) and is quickly absorbed into my skin but the smell stays on the skin for some time. The serum does not leave a sticky or oily layer which works well if you are applying your moisturizer after that.

Unfortunately for me, this product did not work for my sensitive skin. I wanted so much to believe in it but my face kept breaking out with red irritation and lumps of acne that doesn't seem to be extractable after using this serum. I'm still stuck with some of this bumps. I gave it a couple of tries, stopping in between each breakout but this product simply did not work for me. Besides the irritation, my face did not improve in radiance nor was sufficiently providing moisturizer (to my horror, many commented on my dry facial skin only after I started on this product. This made me wonder about the real ingredients of this product.)

So all in all, this is no go for me and I certainly would not be recommending it to anyone at all. Harsh but no I won't want to risk it again especially every time I see the unextractable bumps... sobs. Do note that I have nothing against Biotherm, in fact i've been using their Aquasource moisturizer for a long long time, amidst all the product changes that it has gone through. Still, as mentioned that much as I wanted this product to work, it failed me. No bias-ness.

Anna Sui Super Black Volume Up Mascara

In my search for a water-resistant, non-smudge mascara, I came across a very compelling review of this Anna Sui mascara which a blog reviewer said she swore by for the last 2 years. The review stated that the effect was so spectacular that the curled lashes would hold up for the day and your lashes became dolly and pronounced. Well, I must say the review did state the effects accurately. What it did not state was the hassle of using this mascara - make sure you read point 5!

1) Packaging - ♥♥♥♥♥/♥♥♥♥♥
Lets start from the aesthetics. The mascara packaging is typical of Anna Sui, with the top of the mascara featuring the rose emblem which one associates with the brand. I must say the packaging is awesome and the curves of the mascara makes it easy to hold the brush when applying.

The pretty packaging!

2) Smell - ♥♥♥/♥♥♥♥♥
One wouldn't normally associate smell and mascara together. Afterall I've never really put my nose to smell any mascara! This mascara has a distinct rose fragrance every time you take out the applicator. I attribute that to one of the ingredients - "fragrance (parfum)". While this may be pleasant to some, I believe it does not bode well with people allergic to such products, especially near their eyes! So while I'm not allergic, I am slightly uncomfortable to get perfume so near my eyes! The smell does get to me sometimes too...

3) Smudge-proof/water-proof - ♥♥♥♥/♥♥♥♥♥
I've not tested this underwater as I typically do not wear make-up when I go swimming or go under the water. However I've got really teary and watery eyes and I require very strong smudge-proof mascara. At this point, I've to emphasize that this mascara has no disclaimer of either smudge or water-proof capabilities! Without the claimants declared, I do think this mascara has got rather good water/smudge proof abilities! I don't really end my days looking like a panda as compared to using some other brands!

4) Holding up the lash curls -  ♥♥♥♥/♥♥♥♥♥
Yes don't we all sigh when we curl our lashes and only to fit them flat and lifeless after 1 hour? We often question if our curlers are at fault or was it the mascara? I believe that most of the time, its the mascara. This mascara works wonders for holding up curls, well in a very pronounced style in fact! I do have curled lashes, which are emphasized in bold black by this mascara, even after work! (that's more than 12 hours already!) This is amazing. However I'm not a fan of drama make-up. I prefer subtle make-up and natural looking stuff. Hence, I wouldn't normally go for this mascara unless I'm attending a dressy function. However if you use fake lashes, this might go on well with them!

5) Applicator/ Application/ Mascara formula -  ♥/♥♥♥♥♥
Ah... yes this is my most hated part of this mascara. Personally, I feel that it overwrites all of the above goodness. The applicator is horrible. The brush bristles are not only extremely short but they are also quite dense. This does not work for a mascara formula which is thick and sticky! An absolute no-no. My formula clumps up all the time, causing my brush to be fully covered with the formula and what do I get? Clumped lashes!! Initially I wondered if it was a one-off problem i.e. only my mascara, but having complained to one of my girlies who also bought this mascara, her's the same too! This is the most disappointing bit of this mascara. Since I didn't want to dump the whole mascara away, I would clean the bristles with wet wipes before each eye application to remove the excessive formula which was stuck to the bristles. Yes, imagine the wastage! It was the only way to use this mascara to get the effects I wanted - the curled long and dolly like lashes. This is a horrible applicator which doesn't match the formula at all.

After some cleaning, the short bristles is revealed!

The uncleaned applicator clumped with the formula. Look at the tip,  of the applicator onwards, a lump of formula is stuck there, as usual. 

I should also mention here that it takes a good 5-10mins before the mascara is fully dried and so never look down even after application. You'll have pretty lash marks on your undereye area... I am quite impatient and this doesn't bode well with me either.

My Summarized Review:
So here you have it. I'm not recommending this product unless you have the patience to clean bristles before each eye's application each time you're using. Even if you do have the patience, I wouldn't recommend this terrible applicator unless you have got other applicators which you like and can stick them into this formula. There are plenty of other mascaras out there, don't torture yourself with this one. By far, this is the worst mascara I've ever tried.

I give this 1 out of 5 smooches due to the terrible applicator and formula mismatch
Score: ♥/♥♥♥♥♥