I consider myself fortunate to be in the skincare industry because I’m obsessed with my passion, and I get access to a myriad of products from drugstore to dang expensive. My philosophy is to spend on the products that are really going to make a difference in your skin, and buy good, basic products that are budget friendly (unless you happen to love your $100 face wash, and then by all means) for the rest. So when I had to chance to try a few options from Skinbetter Science’s line, the relatively lower price tag for medical grade skincare, results from clinical trials plus a newer-to-the-game player with all those awards stamped on their packaging made me giddy.
About Skinbetter Science
Photo credit: Skinbetterscience.com
As the name suggests, Skinbetter Science is founded upon research, clinical trials and proven ingredients that pack a medical-grade punch. Their brand is pretty straight forward with familiar words like innovation, technology and results. At the core of their brand (as it seems from their site ) is that Skinbetter Science is an approachable investment for the discernible aging consumer, or in their words “real results for real people.” Something about it seems more friendly and less clinical than its competitor SkinMedica but you won’t find luxury like a LaMer. I didn’t get a ton of information off of their site which also felt like a focus more on their products and market-penetration. You can only get Skinbetter Science products from an authorized dealer, like a plastic surgeon, dermatologist or medical aesthetics practice like Juvly.
What I Tried
The products I tried were: Interfuse Face, Interfuse Lines, Interfuse Eye and Alpharet Intensive.
I first purchased the Smoothing Experience kit which contained the Interfuse line of Face, Lines and Eye. I thought this would be a good way to get acclimated with the brand, and try out a few things at a lower price point. Here’s my initial thoughts.
Interfuse Face: touts that it can be used on the face and neck to moisturize, firm and contour the skin. It helps to build collagen and relaxes facial wrinkles with a patented neuro-peptide. This came out in a slightly taupe color but spread transparently on my face. It was light but nourishing and my skin seemed to drink it up. My skin wasn’t shiny or matte, just a nice, hydrated look. To save from having a really long post you can read the ingredients at the above link.
I used this for about three weeks AM and PM. I liked the product, but I didn’t notice anything earth shattering about it and due to NYC winters that zap the moisture from your soul, it wasn’t heavy enough on its own for what I needed. Don’t get me wrong, it was really nice but if you didn’t have $100+ to shell out for a moisturizer, I don’t think you’re missing anything here. It might not be heavy enough for extra dry or compromised skin, but normal skin types or those that lean slightly dehydrated or oily (but close to the mid line) will really enjoy the balancing moisture this provides.
Rating: 3/5
Interfuse Lines: uses patented neuro-calming peptides to relax wrinkled areas, antioxidants to support collagen creation and hyaluronic acid to plump the skin to lessen the look of deep lines. This one was super interesting to me because who doesn’t love something that will fill in lines? I used this in areas like my forehead, crow’s feet, nasolabial folds and around the outer rim of my lips (vs. everywhere on my face) and my neck. I really liked this product and while I don’t have very deep lines on my face, my neck does have those bands due to aging and a mishap with a retinol that burned me a few years back. One of my esthetician friends told me my neck looked more hydrated and lines were less. I have been getting microneedling in that area, but the hydrating was every more noticeable with this product. I’m really liking this one and will add it to my arsenal for both corrective and preventative measures!
Rating: 4.5/5
Interfuse Eye: uses the same neuro-calming peptide from the Interfuse line, along with vitamin C for brightness. It also both somehow depuffs with caffeine, yet plumps and moisturizes with hyaluronic acid.
Eye creams are tough for me because I need antiaging properties, but I have somewhat sensitive skin and am prone to milia which prevents me from using ultra-rich moisturizers. I was previously using Dr. Dennis Gross’ Triple Correction Eye which I do happen to love for depuffing and resurfacing the delicate eye area plus keeping me out of the milia danger zone, but it didn’t do much for me regarding hydrating to help ward off extra wrinkles.
I loved using this product. It came out white, silky smooth and nourishing. I needed just about a pea-sized amount for both eyes, and applied it by tapping it around my undereye and orbital area (including my 11s between my brows). My eyes looked fantastic; they were awake, hydrated, plumped but not puffy. Exactly what it said they would do. I snatched up another full-sized bottle of this one!
Rating: 5/5
*Certified ReadHead Best
Alpharet Intensive: is an Allure award-winning, PM-only serum that contains both retinol and lactic acid, among antioxidants and moisturizers. The “intensive” label is because it has a higher percentage of acid than the other option. You should only use this at night due to the fact that both retinol and lactic acid are resurfacing ingredients that make you photosensitive to the sun. If you aren’t diligent with your SPF I do not suggest you dabble with this one.
I can understand why the Alpharet has won so many awards. This is one is one of my favorite exfoliators I’ve used to date. I went straight to the intensive and I will tell you, it has some major kick. Immediately upon application it tingles, and continues to tingle for quite some time. The next morning I wake up with glowing, clear skin. This, mixed with the eye serum gives me a hydrated and awake look with a nice plump bounce to my face and neck. I’ve been getting compliments left and right about the texture of my skin and this would be the culprit. NICE.
I am pretty acclimated to acids and I have yet to use this on consecutive days. The day after I use it I can tell my skin barrier needs a break. If you’re new to acids I’d go with the non-intensive option. Things like waiting 30 minutes after washing, or buffering with a moisturizer first can help cut down some of the tingle, but you’re paying for it to give your skin a rejuvenating whammy. Just go slow and you’ll love the glow!
Rating: 5/5
*Certified ReadHead Best
Final Assessment
Overall I’m extremely happy with Skinbetter Science and I’m glad I tried the line! It is exactly my philosophy – really well-formulated products at an appropriate price and backed by scientific research with proven results. The Alpharet and Eye earned a ReadHead Best which I reserve for products I truly think go above and beyond.
I found some new favorites, and have my eye on some really interesting options like the Alto antioxidant defense serum which is a must in the uber congested NYC environment, the Tone Correcting serum for my sun-damaged redheaded skin, and their new Trio Rebalancing Moisture Treatment which sounds like something my dehydrated skin would love.
The price points are also really favorable and can compete with their non-medical grade friends found at the beauty counter or Sephora. If you’re looking to upgrade some of your existing stash, take a look at Skinbetter Science and enjoy beautiful, rejuvenated skin with some cha-ching left over to treat yourself to an accompanying anti-aging facial.
Have you tried Skinbetter Science? Drop us a line in the comments!
ReadHead by Roux Atelier 