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I have been intrigued by this brand ever since it launched in-store at Liberty London in 2017. I still remember the products from this brand taking up one of the wall cupboards as you walked into the beauty hall. I would always keep walking past them and not paying much attention until I received this Vitamin C Paste from the last Liberty gift with purchase sales event, and that’s when I started looking into the brand more in-depth.
Lixirskin ethos is based around ‘Less is more’ with products that are designed to be streamlined and multi-tasking. It is founded by Colette Haydon, a doctor in dermo-pharmacy and the mastermind formulator behind many of our favourite ‘cult’ products from brands such as Ren, Eve Lom, Jo Malone and many more. The brand currently has eight products with Vitamin C paste being one of the earlier releases.
What is it?
A Vitamin C mask/treatment with Ascorbic Acid 10% that’s designed to be rinsed off, partly to ‘activate’ the vitamin C and partly because acid should not remain on your face all day. It is marketed as a skin brightening mask to be used each morning to set your skin up for the day.
What it does
Lixirskin writes that this vitamin C paste neutralises dulling oxidised sebum on the skin’s surface to uncover the radiance beneath. It also acts as a shield against UVA and UVB rays, regulates melanin production and fights free radicals, diminishing pigmentation and promoting a brighter, more even-toned appearance.
Who’s it for
Anyone who is looking for an active ingredient that is an antioxidant to help reduce the appearance of pigmentation, brighten the complexion and boost collagen production.
Everything else
Packaging
This came with a millennial blush pink cardboard box, nice but it’s just a box. Onto the actual product itself, it’s a squeeze tube, a bit more squidgy than a normal toothpaste which I quite like, it’s convenient and practical. I’m already thinking I’d cut it open when it’s about time. Overall, the design and branding lean more minimalistic and very sophisticated.
Colour, Texture & Scent
This Vitamin C paste is white almost translucent, now I don’t know if I would necessarily call this a paste as I associate the word ‘paste’ to be quite a thick immovable consistency which this isn’t at all. In fact, this is even more emollient than a medical ointment. The texture reminds me of Beauty Pie Japanfusion cleanser, it’s that balm-to-oil kind of experience. It’s not gritty or powdery as you think the ‘activation’ of vitamin C might do. This goes on very easily onto the skin, a pea-sized is truly what you need for the entire face. Once it’s onto the skin, it absorbs pretty quickly. To be honest, if you leave it a bit longer, say 10 mins, there’s barely anything left to remove, nevertheless, I still do a quick once-over with a wet washcloth.
The scent for this product is a little odd. I don’t know how to describe this. If you take a look at the ingredients list, you can spot mandarin orange and jasmine there, so you would expect something citrus and floral. But that’s not the case at all, to my nose, none of that exists… if I have to stretch on this one, then I’d say ok, a very mild hint of citrus and floral but leaning on the bitter side of things. Honestly, the smell is very strange but I’m also glad that it’s not stinky that it’ll make you gag nor it’s too citrus/floral either. If you are sensitive to fragrance (whether it’s on the skin or to your nose), please do try to find a sample. My sensitive skin hasn’t reacted to the fragrance in here and my nose got used to the smell after about 3 uses.
How to use it
Warm a pea size of paste in the palm of clean hands and apply to your face, eye contour, lips, neck and décolleté, massage with damp fingers, leave for a few minutes and rinse with a clean towel mitt.
Lixirskin instruction
Typically, I cleanse in the morning with a very gentle cleanser then apply the vitamin C paste to still-damp skin. I don’t warm the product in my palm first, instead, I massage it for a few seconds directly on my skin. Leave it on as long as it takes to brush my teeth or make a coffee, then remove with a damp washcloth. My skin looks and feels softer, clearer and brighter.
Final thoughts
Overall, I really like this product. I have been using this product twice a week for over two months. Typically Vitamin C products can be tricky for sensitive skins, most have irritated me and caused redness or little congestion bumps. This hasn’t irritated my sensitive skin (even with the fragrance components) at all. There’s no sensitising feeling, maybe a mild tingling sensation for the initial couple of times use but soon disappeared, no stinging, no burning whatsoever. I also don’t notice any signs of oxidisation which is a norm for most Vitamin C products.
I like the fact that this Vitamin C doesn’t stay on the skin long enough to cause irritations and yet once the mask is removed, there’s an immediate brightening effect. As far as pigmentation goes (post-acne marks), I could also see them slowly fading.
As always I wanted to point out that I’m using other products such as AHAs and Retinol at the same time, so I can’t say with certainty that it was the Vitamin C Paste that gave me a more even complexion. Yet, I’m pretty it’s helped.
This Vitamin C Paste is pretty unique in the market, there isn’t anything similar to this, not unless you mix your own with L-ascorbic powder (and please don’t play the chemist!). The experience I’ve had so far with the one product I’ve tried is that, it is effective yet feels very gentle with no irritations. This has given me a lot of confidence in trying out their other products.
Available: Standard size £32/50ml – UK (Lookfantastic)*
Lixirskin Vitamin C Paste Ingredients
Ingredient Listing: Glycerin, Aqua (Water), Ascorbic Acid, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Oryzanol, Citrus Nobilis (Mandarin Orange) Peel Oil, Sodium Hyaluronate, Xanthan Gum, Jasminum Officinale (Jasmine) Flower Extract, Lavandula Hybrida Flower Oil, Benzyl Benzoate, Limonene, Linalool.