Someone once told me that you have one face, so you had better take care of it. Amen, sista! But in all honesty, skincare wasn't something I paid too much attention to until I turned 40. I was fortunate that up until that point I had great skin. Not a blemish in sight, even tone and texture, and practically flawless. (Shameless brag.) Then, all hell broke loose. I was breaking out like a teenager. I had zits all over my face and it was happening almost every day. I’m not talking about little red pimples. I am talking about full-on large cystic acne - the kind that hurts like no one’s business. As a working adult, around dozens of colleagues everyday, having acne was embarrassing to say the least. I was willing to do anything in my power to pop those babies, which then unfortunately led to a lot scarring. But at that point I was willing to take scarring over those gigantic puss-filled cysts that were sitting on my nose, cheeks, or chin. But popping was a mistake, because acne is treatable but scars can last a lifetime.
To treat the acne, I explored lots of different options and did find a great solution. (I’ll cover that in a future post.) What I really needed to figure out was how to get rid of the scars and hyperpigmentation from the ill-advised popping of my adult on-set acne. After performing hours of online research, I determined that the holy grail was most likely adding Vitamin C to my skincare regimen. Article after article touted the miraculous benefits of this ingredient – the main benefits being that it helps reduce skin inflammation, irregular pigmentation, and promotes healthy collagen production. Knowing this was a noninvasive topical option to reduce or remove the scars I began exploring brands, potency, and packaging.
There are so many different applications for Vitamin C – serums, scrubs, eye creams, lotions. The choices were overwhelming but the more research I did there was one solution that kept rising to the top: Drunk Elephant Vitamin C Serum. I’m not going to lie. I wasn’t very keen to jump on the Drunk Elephant band wagon. Although the brand has a lot of hype and phenomenal reviews, it certainly is not cheap, and I expect amazing results for this kind of money. Also, I was somewhat biased as I had tried some Drunk Elephant products awhile back and I did not see the results I had hoped for, so I was hesitant to dive into another pricey purchase that could possibly yield the same fate. Yet it was hard to argue with the results people were posting all over social media and the gushing articles from numerous editors across several beauty publications. As a girl who is always looking for a deal, I waited for the 15% Beauty Insider Sale at Sephora and took the plunge by purchasing a bottle of this “so called” magical potion that not only contains Vitamin C but also has pumpkin ferment and pomegranate extract, enzymes that are supposed to help exfoliate dead skin cells. The first thing I noticed was the packaging- they had constructed an extremely clever design for the bottle. The bottle has a cool twist-open dispenser that locks without a cap, so it keeps the liquid from oxidizing, which Vitamin C is can quickly do, causing it to lose its potency. The serum is an orangey liquid and you only need a single drop every morning. My routine starts by washing my face, applying my toner, and after applying a moisturizer I mix a small drop of the Vitamin C serum with another small drop of Drunk Elephant’s B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum. I happened to receive a small sample of the B Hydration with my Vitamin C serum and I noticed that when you apply the Vitamin C serum on its own, it tends to be a little tacky and sticky when applied. However, using it in combination with the hydration lotion made it much more smooth and silky.
The very first time I used the DE Vitamin C serum I noticed my face had a glow that I never get by using my moisturizer alone. I was impressed, and I truly felt like my skin looked radiant. I even had people at work comment on how great my skin looked! However, the true test for me was going to be whether my scarring and hyperpigmentation would be reduced over time. I’ve been applying the serum now for a month and I can truly say my skin has had a dramatic improvement- hallelujah!!! The tone and texture of my skin is more even than it’s ever been and the worst part of my scarring has diminished significantly. If these are the results after one month I can’t wait to see what another few months of continued use will yield. As with all DE products this one is up there in terms of price - $80 for the regular sized 1 fluid ounce. But believe me, it’s completely worth it! If you are looking to invest in a Vitamin C product that puts your best, fresh-face forward Drunk Elephant has created the formula and I'm so glad I took a second chance on this brand! A fresh year deserves a fresh face, and DE's Vitamin C Serum is glow-inducing and results yielding!
- Pepper
** Guess what? We are giving away a fabulous Rise + Glo Duo of Drunk Elephant's Vitamin C Serum and B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum ($30 value). Check out our instagram post and follow the directions to win!