Review: Pixi Vitamin-C Serum

I’ve been a fan of using vitamin C serums in my morning routine for several years now.

I especially enjoy those that contain vitamin C L-Ascorbic! It’s indeed an ultra-effective anti-oxidant ingredient for the complexion’s radiance, and I also use it for its longer-term anti-aging effect (it helps to boost collagen production).

I talked about it in my Focus article about vitamin C L-Ascorbic and my many reviews on products using this ingredient, it’s not easy to find a good serum with vitamin C at an affordable price, especially in the type of formulas I like the most.

In general, I prefer fairly liquid (or gel-based) water-based formulas, which I find more pleasant to use than water-free vitamin C products, usually too oily for my combo skin.

But these liquid water-based formulas are quite complicated to stabilize because vitamin C L-Ascorbic is very unstable in the presence of water.

In this product category, the “grail” is still the Skinceuticals C E Ferulic (which I reviewed). A great product but definitely too expensive for me, especially considering it only lasts me a maximum of 3-4 months!

When it was released, the Pixi serum seemed to be a more reasonable alternative in terms of price and it has a big advantage compared to the ones I found so far (especially the Maelove serum I love), it’s much easier to find in many different countries. In Dubai, it’s available at Sephora for example.

So I tried it and unfortunately, as you’ll see below, it didn’t really convince me.

Product presentation: Pixi Vitamin-C Serum

Pixi Beauty is a British cosmetics brand created about twenty years ago by a make-up artist, Petra Strand.

The brand is best known for its makeup, but some of its skincare products are cult favorites. Ever heard about Pixi Glow Tonic ? 😉

At the beginning of 2019, Pixi considerably widen its range of skincare products with no less than 5 different and completely new ranges! There are products with retinol, others with glycolic acid, rose and also vitamin C.

I’ll be honest, I found it a little disturbing for consumers to launch so many new products all at once. And I myself didn’t have time to study everything up close yet, but a lot of their products seem promising!

The one that caught my eye first was the Vitamin-C Serum that I hoped would be a correct alternative to the other, often too expensive, vitamin C serums available on the market (and not always easy to find when you live in Europe).

Before reviewing this Pixi product, a little reminder of what I expect in a water-based vitamin C serum:

• a formula with a pH of 3.5 or less,
• a good concentration of L-ascorbic acid (minimum 10%, maximum 30%),
• ideally other antioxidant ingredients in its formula (vitamin E, Ferulic acid…) for more stability,
• a bottle that protects the formula from air and light (I avoid transparent glass).

Of course, it’s better to use it quickly (maximum 6 months after opening). And don’t bother stocking up on this product in advance, you buy it when you need it to avoid using a product that isn’t “fresh” .

On paper, the Pixi serum met many of my expectations, particularly because it contains 15% L-ascorbic acid, and there is Ferulic acid and vitamin E in the formula.

But the least I can say is that it was complicated to get information from the brand. After I basically harassed them (lol), I managed to learn the concentration of L-ascorbic acid but for the rest (especially pH), no way to know… I understand that the brand doesn’t want to reveal all its formulation secrets but the percentage of L-ascorbic acid is usually a piece of information given by brands nowadays, it’s even a selling point!

But what can I say, it’s their choice after all…

My experience:

To be honest, I kinda blame myself for not looking more closely at the composition of this serum because several things are quite problematic in this formula.

Of course, the concentration of ascorbic acid and the presence of antioxidants are good points. But it’s important to look at the rest of the formula as well. And here, there’s one thing I have a hard time explaining.

The product is full of essential oils. It’s very fragrant, which is not unpleasant but can cause some issues.

First, people with sensitive skin can react to these types of ingredients, but most importantly, some of the essential oils chosen by Pixi can be photo-sensitizing. In particular, the lemon essential oil (in the INCI list, Citrus Limon Peel Extract) that is here in a prominent place in the ingredients list. Not great for a product recommended for daytime application!

I always apply a sunscreen product on top of it so I limit the risks, but it’s still a curious choice from the brand IMO…

Also, I had the opportunity to test this product twice (once at the beginning of the year and the second time this autumn because I wanted to give it a second chance) and each time, the formula changed color/oxidized in 6 weeks.

It has gone from light yellow to very dark yellow and I must admit that I didn’t expect the product to oxidize before 3 months of use (that’s usually how it works with a more stable formula). So I have serious doubts about the stability of this formula and, consequently, about its effectiveness.

It’s complicated to give you a detailed review of a product I’ve only used for 6 weeks… In general, especially with a vitamin C serum, I can tell it’s fine (or not) after 2 or 3 months of use.

It’s such a shame because this product is not super expensive for its size and it’s also quite easy to find for me, without having to go through an online order.

But honestly, I don’t recommend it and personally, I’m going to stop using it (my bottle is still half full).

In conclusion:

It’s such a shame and it’s definitely a great missed opportunity for Pixi Beauty!

I know that many other products from the brand are also very perfumed with citrus essential oils (after this disappointment, I looked into other formulas from the brand) so I really advise caution if you use these products during the day and if you expose your skin to the sun. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend it…

The Pixi Vitamin-C Serum retails from $25 to $30 for 30ml depending on the retailers.