Review: REN Skincare Overall Feel – Brilliant, Good and So-so

If there’s one thing I can say about REN Skincare – the products are wordy. Just looking at their names makes my head spin. I guess they wanted to make sure product plus benefit is mentioned. As I previously mentioned, I’d been testing the trial sized facial line for about 2 weeks now. The trial set states that it will last a week. It can actually be stretched out to 2 weeks + used day and night except the eye gel – that one lasts exactly 1 week.

Here’s a brand overview of the products I have based on these 2 weeks of testing REN Skincare. Some were brilliant and most were good while one is meh.

Rosa Centifolia Facial Cleansing Gel – Normal skin (link)

The cleansing gel is a clear gel with a strong rose scent. It does not lather up very much and you do not need much product. If you are used to sulfate free products you’d be used to this. However, unlike other sulfate free products I’ve tried, this cleansing gel left my face feeling clean but not dried out. I tested this by leaving off my moisturizer for a while and I did not get the tight skin feeling you sometimes get after cleansing. The full size of 150ml retails for RM123 and despite the rather hefty price tag, I could look towards this as a purchase… and I never purchase expensive cleansers!

Vita-Mineral Radiant Day Cream – Normal skin (link)

This is the day moisturizer.There is a strong smell of roses but because its a natural sort of fragrance and not artificial it does not bug me and it does not linger. It is rather thick so you don’t need much in our hot humid weather. This is a point to note because if you slather it on, you might find it too heavy.

I applied a thin layer under my regular sunscreen and although it initially felt a little heavy, it soon sank into my skin. My skin did not feel any oilier than normal throughout the day and it stayed hydrated. The full size of 50ml retails for RM174.

My fave product below!

Omega 3 Overnight Lipid Renewal Serum – All skin types (link)

I rarely love skincare products on first try, but I love the Omega 3 Overnight Lipid Renewal Serum! What it is is a oil serum containing Vegetal Plankton Extract and Gold Of Pleasure Oil both rich in Omega 3 and Rosehip Seed Oil and Wheat Germ Oil, that leaves my skin looking and feeling radiant and smooth on first use! You can visibly see pores getting smaller and your face looking and feeling smooth upon application.

As it is quite liquid and viscous like a light oil, I squirt the product into the palm of my hand, warm it up between my hands then slowly apply it on my face, massaging gently until absorbed. This was one of the gems I tested.

I only used this at night as recommended with the night cream over it. Its lovely on the skin. The next morning, my skin felt amazing and looked so refreshed and radiant. However alls not well in paradise.

The sample bottle I have leaks like the Leaky Cauldron. One squirt on my hands and lipids get everywhere. At RM238 for a full size 50ml bottle, its not cheap so bad packaging can seriously ruin everything because I want the serum on my face not on my hands or on the bottle or on my dresser! I sincerely hope that the full sized bottle works better because a good product should not be downed by its packaging. I will check it out in person because I might consider purchasing this at some point in time but only if I’m wow-ed by the full size packaging. Product-wise, I’d say this is a must try because my skin loved it!

Frankincense & Boswellia Serrata Revitalising Repair Cream (link)

This is a rich night cream that had no oily feel and goes on the skin very smoothly. Despite the richness of the cream (frankincense is an expensive oil!) it absorbs nicely into the skin and feels nice on top of the Omega 3 Lipid Serum. It does not feel heavy nor oily and is generally quite nice. Scent wise its not all that strong. I can’t quite say if it was great for my skin as a night cream because I was more enamoured with the Omega 3 Lipid Serum!

A full size 50ml bottle retails for RM223. You only use very little and it spreads quite easily so I expect a full size bottle can last you months!

Active 7 Radiant Eye Maintenance Gel (link)

The eye gel is a clear gel as the name indicates. So you only need very little which I spread between the ring fingers of both hands and pat on my eye area. There is a cooling feel which is quite refreshing but it takes a while to be absorbed.

However, I did not quite notice any lightening of dark circles not did it seem to leave my eye area looking any smoother than it was. Perhaps it needs more than 1 week for any effect to be noticed since my sample lasted just a week. I was quite meh about this one and it made my eye smart when some product got into it. The full size of 15ml retails for RM133.

Glycolactic Skin Renewal Peel Mask (link)

This mask is another of REN’s bestsellers so I had to see how the hype measured up to the product. I applied a generous layer of the mask on my skin. Its a thick yellowish looking cream that you apply thickly on your face. There is a slight tingling and warm feel on the skin which is highlighted on the box.

According to the site, this mask is “particularly recommended for congested and mature skin, and works well on post acne scarring, blemishes and blackheads plus sun damaged skin.”

I did not quite feel the wonderful benefits of the mask the few times I tried it. My skin did feel smooth to the touch after cleaning the mask off, but it did not feel wonderfully so. The scent too isn’t great – not whiffy but smells “natural”. Interestingly, I was actually less enamoured of this product that won the InStyle Beauty Awards than I was of the Lipid Overnight serum! A 50ml full size bottle retails for RM209.

Overall Perception of REN Skincare

I had quite a good experience with REN Skincare. My skin looked nice in the 2 weeks I was using it and I did not get any crazy breakouts. It felt pretty gentle in fact except for the Glycolactic Peel mask which tingled as they warned.

However, if I do get one item from this line it will be the Omega 3 Overnight Lipid Renewal Serum … subject to packaging. My skin seems to love it and we know I’m prepared to splurge if my skin loves something!

The packaging of my items came in a tube form as it was part of a trial set. The full size products come in a double walled cylinder and I expect would be better packaged.

Stay beautiful,

Paris B