By Wishtrend Pure Vitamin C 15% with Ferulic Acid is the first K-Beauty Vitamin C serum with L-Ascorbic that I’ve tried! So you can imagine how high my expectations were… Unfortunately, this product didn’t really live up to them, as I’ll explain in this review.
I’ve been a fan of vitamin C L-ascorbic serums for many years now! They have become part of my daily morning routine and they’re my secret weapon to give radiance to my complexion and to prevent aging!
I explain it in each of my reviews, I’ m quite demanding when it comes to this category of products. I even have a detailed list of these ( many ) requirements 😅
In general, the vitamin C serums I am interested in have:
– a formula that contains pure vitamin C, meaning L-Ascorbic vitamin C (I prefer this ingredient to its derivatives, less effective on me),
– a concentration of L-ascorbic acid high enough to be effective (between 10 and 20%),
– other antioxidant ingredients in its formula (vitamin E, ferulic acid …) to make it more stable over time,
– a formula with a pH of 3.5 or less, to guarantee a better stability of the formula,
– a water-based, non-greasy, liquid texture for a better absorption and efficiency on my combination skin,
-a bottle that protects the formula from air and light (no transparent glass and a bottle that closes well),
– a fair price (ideally less than $40), and a decent quantity of product (ideally 30ml, more I’m afraid the formula will oxidize).
The reason I have all these criteria is because I know that a water-based L-Ascorbic Vitamin C serum formula (my favorite type of formula) is by definition unstable. Vitamin C L-Ascorbic doesn’t like water very much, and it must be stabilized for the serum to remain effective throughout the entire treatment.
If the formula oxidizes, it loses all its effectiveness. And it’s a bit of a shame to spend money on a product that becomes ineffective too quickly!
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened to me with this By Wishtrend Pure Vitamin C Serum 15% with Ferulic Acid… Let me tell you what happened!
By Wishtrend Pure Vitamin C 15% with Ferulic Acid, product presentation:
I have previously mentioned the brand By Wishtrend in my review of their Polyphenols In Propolis 15% Ampoule Serum, which I really liked.
By Wishtrend is a Korean skincare brand, designed by the company behind the Wishtrend online store. It was developed as a response to recurrent requests from customers of the e-store, who wanted products that could meet very specific skin needs. The brand actually describes itself as a “cosmeceutical” brand (= between cosmetics and pharmaceuticals).
So here, we’re dealing with quite specific products, which are also aimed at a rather well informed clientele.
With its Pure Vitamin C 15% with Ferulic Acid serum, which is an antioxidant serum based on pure vitamin C, the brand offers a classic anti-aging product. And when they launched it a few months ago, I was clearly super interested!
Personally, I consider vitamin C serum to be an indispensable part of my anti-aging routine. I use one every morning, to give my complexion radiance and especially to help my skin protect itself from the environmental aggressors during the day.
With its 15% concentration of L-Ascorbic Vitamin C, it’s also supposed to reduce pigmentation spots (but I don’t really have any, so it’s difficult for me to give you my thoughts). It’s also supposed to boost the production of collagen for a younger looking skin but since the results are visible on the very long term, we’ll talk about it again in about ten years, OK? 😉
Regarding the ingredients, if I use the criteria listed above, the formula is very promising!
- it contains 15% L-ascorbic acid,
- it also contains vitamin E and ferulic acid, with other vitamin C derivatives and niacinamide, a true cocktail of antioxidants which here will help to stabilize the formula and also benefits the skin,
- its pH is between 2 and 3.5,
- its water-based texture is liquid and non-greasy,
- its bottle isn’t transparent (it’s tinted glass),
- it has a 30ml content and it retails for $28.
But then, why didn’t this product work for me?
By Wishtrend Pure Vitamin C 15% with Ferulic Acid, my experience:
For the first few weeks of use, I was pretty happy with it.
I use it at the very beginning of my morning routine, after I cleansed my skin and before the rest of my products. It’s very liquid and absorbs quickly into the skin, leaving it comfortable.
The brand talks about a formulation designed for sensitive skin and I must say that even on my skin sensitized by the use of tretinoin, it didn’t irritate me at all, despite its low pH.
I also had good results on the radiance of my complexion, which is always a plus 🙂
But soon enough, something in the packaging bothered me. Every morning, when I picked up my bottle, I noticed that the cap was almost completely loose. I tried to close it by screwing it tighter, but it didn’t work. It just doesn’t close well.
And with this kind of very air-sensitive formulas, it’s unfortunately quite fatal…
Note:
Usually, water-based vitamin C L-ascorbic serum formulas are transparent when you start using them. With time, and exposure to air and light, they gradually turn yellow, then orange, then brown. This indicates that they’re oxidizing. Typically, a stable formula begins to turn yellow after 2-3 months of use. And a 30ml bottle lasts about 3 months, which means that you should have time to use up your product without it oxidizing, if the formula is well stabilized. If your formula has changed from transparent to orange, it means that it’s oxidized and therefore no longer effective.
Unsurprisingly, I saw the formula of the By Wishtrend Pure Vitamin C 15% with Ferulic Acid turning yellow faster and faster. I’m about halfway through my bottle, I started it a little over 6 weeks ago and I see it’s already oxidized. In 2 weeks, it’ll probably be orange at this rate…
I will probably be able to use it until the end of the month of September but I already know that its effectiveness is very diminished and that I won’t be able to finish it.
The brand sent me the product, so I didn’t pay for it but I intended to try it and I can tell you that I would have been really disappointed if I had paid $28 for a product that oxidizes halfway through its use…
In conclusion:
This product is really a missed opportunity! And according to the reviews I’ve read here and there, I’m not the only one it happened to.
I really hope that the brand is going to fix it and change the packaging because the formula is really nice and it looks effective, but the packaging is a total fail!
And with L-Ascorbic Vitamin C, this is not gonna fly, unfortunately…
I refrigerate this and it’s about five months and still have not oxidized. That said, I definitely use it and then tighten the bottle each time. Maybe your bottle is especially loose with the dropper. I hope they improve the packaging because it’s a great formula and I really enjoy it.
Same! I really hope they fix this issue!
I didn’t keep mine in a fridge because it’s just not convenient for me, but I probably should have… 🙁
Have you tried Geek + Gorgeous?
Not yet, but I plan to! 😉
The same thing happened to me because of the packaging even though I kept it in the fridge 😔 disappointed
I feel you!
I really hope they’ll do something about it soon!
Hello Bonnie,
Have you tried the 21.5 % vitamin C by Wishtrend and how does it compare ?
thank you 🙂
Hi Mae!
I haven’t, sorry! I prefer to stick to vitamin C serums with 10 to 15% of ascorbic acid at the moment 😉
Hi Bonnie,
As you’ve recommend via a different post, I’ve been using the VICHY Vitamin C Ampoules. I must say, that even with these, when I dispense the serum onto my palm it is never clear, but a little yellow and carries a slightly sweet/kind of caramelized scent. Which Vitamin C serum are you using these days, and have the VICHY ampoules held up for you? I feel like they’ve been working for me, but I have been wondering why it’s coming out yellow on my palm and consistently has kind of toasted/caramelized scent….
Hi Linda!
Yes, they have a weird smell, it’s true! And they’re slightly tinted as well, but as long as they’re not orange/ brown, I personally don’t mind!
I use several boxes of these Vichy ampoules this year, they’re just very convenient! I can find them in my local pharmacie, which is great!
But at the moment, I’m trying a new serum from the brand Geek & Gorgeous. I don’t know what to think of it just yet, but I’ll probably do a review here later 😉
Um…Where on the ingredient list says Vitamin E? I don’t believe this product contain Vitamins E.
Oops, nvm. It’s at the very bottom. Sorry
No worries 😉👍