Hands up everyone who remembers their mothers or grandmothers using Oil of Ulan with the distinctive pink lotion and powdery smell? 🙂 I do. And I took a while to adjust to it being called Oil of Olay and then just Olay.
I used the Total Effects cream the first time it was introduced here in Malaysia. I was one of the testers for the mystery cream based on an ad on tv at the time. I knew what it was because I was monitoring its arrival after reading many good things about the Olay Total Effects cream online. When I tried it, I knew I liked it and Olay Total Effects was my staple moisturiser for a couple of years.
And then, I got bored and ventured out into various brands of skin moisturisers, mostly of the department store or higher end variety.
Recently, with prices soaring on nearly every consumer good, and with my night moisturiser on its last legs, I decided to once again return to an old favourite, to see how it re-measures up. I have noticed that Olay has been rather aggressive in their TV advertising lately but it wasn’t the reason why I returned to Olay. The main reason for my return to Olay was because Olay came out with a new sample size 20g bottle! Yep, you can get the sample size bottle of Olay Total Effects for about RM21.90. Terribly expensive considering the full size 50g bottle usually goes on sale for about RM30 but its good if you aren’t sure whether your skin can handle the product.
This is what Olay Total Effects 7-in-1 promises:-
1. Line Minimization: Reduces the appearance of fine wrinkles
2. Nourishing Moisturization: For a radiant, healthy glow
3. Tone Enhancement: Balances color & reduces appearance of age spots
4. Gentle Exfoliation: Smoothes and evens skin texture
5. Pore Refinement: Minimizes the appearance of pores
6. Free Radical Defense: Helps prevent damage to skin’s surface
7. Subtle Lifting: Hydrates for firmer skin appearance
Does it deliver? Well, I’ve been using the Olay Total Effects 7 in 1 daily moisturizer for above 2 weeks now purely as a night cream over my Vitamin C Skin Boost. I find that it provides sufficient moisture to my skin and absorbs quickly. I don’t have an oily layer on the skin after that and my skin isn’t feeling taut and dry so that must mean its working well in the moisture department.
As for tone refinement and pore minimization, I have found that my skin is more even toned recently and have also received comments that it is looking clearer. Might it be the Olay Total Effects, Vitamin C Skin Boost or Eucerin White Solution? I cannot tell. Perhaps its a combination of all 3!
I too can’t tell if my skin is looking any firmer. It certainly isn’t looking any more saggy (not that it usually is) so I can’t tell either.
But what I can say is that the Olay Total Effects moisturizer isn’t wreaking havoc on my skin and is in fact, keeping it nicely moisturized at night in an air-conditioned room. Is my skin looking better? I’d like to think so. But as I said, my recent combination of skincare products seem to be doing the trick so it might just be a combination effect.
I purchased the Normal formula. There are gentle formulas for Sensitive skin and also those with SPF 15 for day use. Personally, I feel that SPF15 isn’t enough for our tropical climate so I’d recommend a higher SPF sunscreen over the moisturizer. It doesn’t say if the Normal formula has SPF (one of the ingredients is zinc oxide and titanium dioxide which is the sunscreen factor, but I don’t know if its present in the whole range or only in the SPF15 range) but since there’s a range called “Normal with SPF15” I’ll take it that the one marked “Normal” has no SPF.
Will I repurchase? At this moment, yes I will and the next time I do, I’ll get the 50g bottle. I still dislike the packaging – the body is opaque so you can’t see the inside and when its finished, and you can’t get at the rest of the cream once the pump stops working. I wonder if Olay could put it in a tube instead? A tube is easier to tote around and easier to use plus being hygienic as well.
The cream has a fragrance which isn’t as strong as I remembered it and which dissipates quickly. I believe there’s a fragrance free formula in the 50g range but we don’t get it here. There also seems to be a Total Effects Night Cream by Olay which is available for RM42.90. I might give that a whirl next time because it felt nice going on the skin. The Olay Total Effect Daily Moisturizer retails for about RM42.90 but goes on sale often. It is available at most pharmacies and even supermarkets.
Pros: Absorbs quickly, moisturises skin well, affordable
Cons: Packaging could be improved
[rating:4/5]
Here’s the ingredient list for the Olay Total Effects Daily Moisturiser for anyone familiar with ingredients:-
Water, Glycerin, Isohexadecane, Niacinamide, Dimethicone, Isopropyl Isosteartate, Polyacrylamide, Zinc Oxide, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Camellia Oleifera Leaf Extract, Sorbitan Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Sucrose Polycottonseedate, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Panthenol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Stearyl Alcohol, Titanium Dioxide, Dimethiconol, Benzyl Alcohol, Ethyplparaben, Laureth-7, Fragrance, Propylparaben, Disodium EDTA, PEG-100 Stearate, Stearic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Methylparaben, Oleth 3-Phosphate, Ammonium Polyacrylate, Yellow No. 5, Red No. 40, Vitamin B3, Pro-Vitamin B5, Vitamin E.
i bought this cream, the one marked as Normal and without the SPF sign. like you said, no oily film! finally a cream i can use without having the excess shine.
i think i din need a SPF15 since i am using Biore which offers SPF50 😛 But yeah, it’s a lovely product! Now it’s on sales, RM34.80 in Watsons 🙂
I had used this cream before but that time nothin happend to my skin n so i bought it again n this time when i used this cream my skin started to become so dry. I have seen the expired date but it hasnt been expired ,So can u please suggest as to what made my skin dry.I really want my wrinkels to fade so please help me.
did the olay product of Total Effects cream suitable for under age of 25 years old user?
im 19, this product( olay total effect…7 in 1) it suitable to me or not?? i start used these product at 30.8.2009.im also used the olay whitening cleanser
haha i think it’s fine since me myself also use it and i m only 18^^ it does moisturised my skin well and my face looks more hydrated and firm. very good product!
hi
I bought the olay 7 in one total effects tube,but i am not supposed to open it
please tell me how to open it in detail.
thank u.
I’m not quite sure what you mean by open it? Just pull off the clear cap and pump.
Hi. I just bought it too but same as lema, i can’t open it too. I had pull off the cap & tried to pump but still the cream failed to be pumped out. May i know how to open it too?
Thanks
yea i too cant open the bottle.can anybody help me with that?
My aunt suggested me to use olay total affect 7-anti aging cream as i have pimples and dark spots on my face, accordingly I bought the product. after using it i feel some heat in the skin, i used it jsut for 2 days, then a beautician told me that if i continue using oaly, pigmentations are surely to come on my face. I want to use the product. has anyone experienced pigmintation after using the product?
I’ve never heard of that. However, the best way to prevent pigmentation from forming is to use a good sunscreen even on top of this Olay moisturizer.
hi
this is my first comment on your blog. i have been using olay total effects 7 in 1 anti aging cream and it’s working fine for me. i would really like to know if my husband can use it too ?
Hi I don’t see why not – skincare is skincare and if it works for him all the better coz you save money and hassle shopping for men’s skincare 😉
Same to me also. I kept on pumping but still the cream is not coming
i am 25yrs. can i use dis product.if one use this product on younger skin. is it cause some kind of side effect ?? kindly help
Yes you can and the only side effect might be that if its too rich for your skin, you might break out. Its nothing to do with age but to do with skin condition.
i like so much this cream
how to apply olay 7-1 aging cream in morning or night pl reply me
i want to know that i m 28 with combination type skin and i have some fine lines on my forehead. i want to know which OLAY total effect product suits me as i m very confused??????
hello! im planning to buy Olay total effects to give my skin a soft and moisture look.I love watching the face ofmy friend in mercury drug. she recommends me to use the product anyway. I would try this one now.
how to open olay 7? please explain in detail
I have no idea what you mean. If you mean to open it to pump it out, remove the clear cap and pull out the stopper and pump. If you mean to remobve the whole pump, I believe its not possible unless you cut through the bottle.
Thank u madam, but any how i am trying what u said since i bought, i opened the clear cap and pumped, to my surprise the cream is not coming out, its past 10 days over since i bought the product and yet to open it 🙁
Best to take it back to the store you purchased it from. You might have gotten a faulty bottle.
honestly, ever since we bot the 1st bottle for our mum to try…..
this cream is stuck on us….lol!
my mum used to have dry patchy skin, but after about 2mths of Olay TE,
we really noticed improvements on her skin…..and yeah, I’m on my 3rd bottle now…
just purchased another 2 bottles of the Olay TE (touch of foundation) yesterday coz it was on sale!
fyi, my mum, at age 52, is a lady who never goes for facial, works very hard, but she gets complimented for looking younger than her age always! more n more these days, no kidding…..so i guess the trusty Oil Of Ulan will be staying in the famil
i am 21 n i bought the new release of olay…7 in 1 anti ageing..is it ok for me to use it at this age…i bought the cleanse….serum n also the cream with spf..pls help me…merci
i m 28 year old. i want to reduce my dark spot ,lines so on from my face.i want to buy olay total effects .i want to use on night time. these have diffrent variety. which one is good for me? plz, tell me.my skin is oily in summer and dry in winter.
Hi i am 18 years old and have a combination to oily skin and few years back had a very bad acne breakout (my mistake i used to scratch them) as a result i have very bad acne scars. Is olay total effects anti ageing cream good for me or is it very early to use it and if i do is it harmful at such an early age? Please help and if olay is not suitable please recommend another good product to combat acne scars…
i have a lot of pimples…i dont know what the best cream that i should apply to my face… Now its my first time to use olay facial cleanser and olay total effects anti-aging cream…