Summary
What I Liked about it:
It has vitamin C and tranexamic acid, both of them are scientifically proven to lighten dark spots and brightens hyperpigmentation. So if you just look at the ingredients, this serum should work on your dark spots and scars. To know my results please read this post
This serum has super hydrators for your skin, like watermelon, Glycerin & Hyaluronic acid.
What I didn’t like:
As with all other glow recipe serums, pump is useless when you reach at the end, you have to open it from neck if you wanna use last remaining drops (I’m sure no one wish to waste even a tiny drop when you are spending $42 for this tiny bottle)
Texture is incredibly lightweight, making it ideal for oily skin, but not good enough for dry skin.
Now let me share detail about this serum.
So first start with why you must include serums in your routine, they have higher concentration of actives to give you results faster. If you choose right kind of serum as per your skin concern, over the time you can see the difference yourself, but yes time duration depends on your skin condition and percentage of actives present in serum that you’re using
When we talk about, Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Serum, it has 2 actives, Vitamin C & Tranexamic Acid.
Both actives are proven to brighten hyperpigmentation , lighten acne scars. So I was pretty excited, when I bought my first bottle.
Before purchase I checked other reviews, they were great, mostly positive and when I checked the price it was in middle range, liitle bit on higher side when you compare to other vitamin C serums available in market.
This serum comes in a very cute guava shaped bottle, feels too good to hold in your hand.
So now lets start with application ….
This serum has creamy consistency, that quickly absorbs into your skin, it has nice pink colour and very pleasant smell of guava.
When I first started to use this serum, in just first two to three weeks I could see some results, my scars were getting lighter but they didn’t vanish, so as obvious I gave this product one more try, now I have finished 3 bottles of this serum but result is same, they are lighter but still on my face.
Ingredients
When you look at the ingredients list, it has many derivatives of Vitamin C and Tranexamic Acid, I did some research on the concentration of these actives and my findings are as below
Tranexamic Acid. 2.4% An amino acid that is effective in reducing hyperpigmentation and evening out the skin tone. It can also help in skin barrier recovery. Present in right amount, will not cause any irritation.
Tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate 3%, lipid soluble form of vitamin C, it is more stable than ascorbic acid. It is claimed to penetrate skin better than pure vitamin C and have the the similar benefits
3-O Ethyl Ascorbic Acid 1.6%, A vitamin C derivative that is more stable but less potent than pure form of vitamin C
Ascorbyl Glucoside 1.7%, A vitamin C derivative that is more stable but less potent than pure form of vitamin C. Has a potential to boost collagen production, nutralise free radicals and reduce hyperpigmentation
Magnesium Ascorbyl phosphate 1.3%, A derivative of vitamin C that is more stable, but less bioavailable than the pure form of vitamin C. It does not penetrate the skin well, but has been shown to convert to pure vitamin C once in skin.
Sodium Ascorbyl phosphate 1.2%, A stable derivative of vitamin C. It is oil-soluble which means it is more likely to penetrate the skin compared to the pure form of vitamin C (which is water-soluble), but it is less bio-available and is way less effective in stimulating collagen and reducing wrinkles compared to the pure form of vitamin C
At the same time, this vitamin C derivative has been shown in studies to be effective in reducing acne, blemishes and clogged pores. It is less irritating then the pure form of vitamin C.
