Clarins Double Serum, and introducing Mom the Reviewer!

A while back, I was invited by Clarins to try out their newest skin product: the Double Serum: Complete Age Control Concentrate.

My skin is extremely sensitive to products. The wrong foundation or primer, and my skin can have a full-on break out. I have acne-prone skin, and have a tendency to have a couple of active breakouts at a time. Sometimes my skin is happy, and I barely have any problems. Lately though, my skin hasn't been so easy to tame. I'm still dealing with scarring from the last breakout which I am trying to help by using Hydraluron (more on this little miracle later). I did not want to risk aggravating my breakouts by testing this on my skin.

Why didn't I test a product that claims to be suitable for every skin type? Well, honestly, because it is full of mineral oil.  I'm not really one to scan my skin products and read every single ingredient - I'm not familiar enough with skin care ingredients to understand them and their function. But I knew mineral oil wasn't good (I trust Caroline Hirons and her rant) and can result in clogged pores. And my skin just wasn't in a state to be messed with.

However, because I did not want to pass on the opportunity of reviewing something for this blog, I asked my mother to test this product out and give me her views on it!

My mother has combination skin. She's not very sensitive to products and her main concern is wrinkles at this point. Disclaimer: she absolutely loves this product. At the time I'm writing this, she has tested it over a couple months, and is 3/4th of the way through the bottle. She uses it once in the morning and at night, dispensing two pumps for each application - one pump for the face, and the other for her neck. Any excess left on her hands is massaged in, and she claims it has helped her hands stay softer. I actually ran into a Clarins rep who gave me that helpful tip, which I then passed on to my mom.

Like I said, my mother has been very impressed with this product. She claims it has made her skin softer, and plumper. She says that her pores have tightened up. Looking at her skin, I agree with this claim - I find my mom's skin to have more of a soft focus finish. She likes the light scent of the product, and doesn't find it irritating or harsh. And she also loves that the pump system is easy to work with - it dispenses the exact right amount for her to use.

My mother did notice her skin to be a bit oilier by the end of the day, but didn't mind correcting this by using a bit of powder after her foundation. At 4 pumps a day rate, the product also used up quite quickly. It's not cheap ($85) and can be expensive to replace every few months.

All and all, my mother loved this product. The mineral oil didn't bother her skin one bit, and I wouldn't be surprised if she purchased it herself after she's done with the bottle.

Bottom line: know your skin. If you're skin isn't sensitive, perhaps this is a product you should try - it definitely had positive effect on my mother's skin with long term usage. However, if you're picky about ingredients in your skin care regime, I'd check the label of the Clarins Double Serum to make sure you're okay with it.

Hope this was helpful for you! And thanks to my dear Mama for testing and reviewing this product for me!

* I have received this product for consideration but my opinions are always my own. I am not being compensated for this review and I always strive to review products with honesty.