There are many good ingredients to use if you want to fight with first signs of aging. We have a huge choice of antioxidants and active ingredients, but lately, collagen has become a thing. You can see many collagen supplements or devices that are supposed to boost collagen synthesis, so it shouldn't be a surprise that Vichy decided to focus on peptides that stimulate collagen production in the skin. Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum is one of Vichy's latest additions to the Liftactiv series.
About Vichy
Vichy is a French dermo-cosmetics brand which I guess everyone knows about. Vichy was created in 1931 by Dr Prosper Haller. The name of the brand originates from the name of the city - Vichy in France. The main ingredient of Vichy products is water - Vichy volcano water. It's not your regular water, but thermal water enriched in minerals. Vichy is focusing on creating products based on research - Vichy tries its best to create hypoallergic products. Lately, Vichy has been trying to make formulas and products more environment-friendly.
Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum
Vichy Laboratoires Liftactiv Collagen 16 Bonding Serum is a newly released product, it was announced by Vichy on January 16th - the marketing team was clever on this one. The brand promotes this serum, saying that there's not one type of collagen in the skin, there are 16 different types. The main ingredients in this serum are peptides, rhamnose and maitake. By the way, did I mention that it's also supposed to target 16 signs of aging? It does, it targets wrinkles, fine lines, firmness, plumpness, sagginess, smoothness, skin texture, tonicity, density, skin strength, pores tightening, radiance, softness, suppleness, hydration, vitality, skin stretchiness, and evenness.
Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum - Packaging
I adore the bottle of Vichy Collagen 16 Serum, it has a red shade, and there's a bit of gradient, but you can still see how much product is left inside. The product comes in a paper box, but the bottle inside is made out of glass. The pipette/applicator is easy to use.
Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum - Texture & Scent
Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum has a gel-like texture that easily blends into the skin. The scent is more floral, but you can feel the hit of alcohol in Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum.
Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum - Ingredients
Aqua/Water/Eau, Glycerin, Rhamnose, Alcohol Denat, Niacinamide, Dimethicone, Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid, Hydrolyzed Rice Protein, Adenosine, Citric Acid, Grifola Frondosa Fruiting Body Extract, Hydroxyacetophenone, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, SH-Polypeptide-69, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Silica, Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Butylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Carbomer, Maltodextrin, PEG-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Pentylene Glycol, Polysorbate 20, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Lactate, Sodium Phosphate, Tocopherol, Xanthan Gum, Parfum/Fragrance
Water hides in cosmetic products under names such as Aqua or Eau. It's a solvent, but it's not your regular drinking water. Water in skin care needs to fit some standards. It should be clean and free from minerals, microorganisms, or other substances. Usually, water makes up the majority of the product's content. Glycerin or Glycerol is a humectant. Depending on the product, its origin can be natural or synthetic. It protects TEWL (transepidermal water loss), which naturally occurs in the skin. It's one of the NMFs and a natural moisturizing factor. It's practical in hair care. Glycerin won't clog your skin or irritate it—just the opposite—it protects your skin from irritation.
Rhamnose is a sweet humectant. It's a common ingredient in anti-aging products. It's derived from birch or bamboo. Rhamnose is a deoxy sugar with humectant properties. It's an antioxidant that fights with free radicals. Alcohol Denat is an immense topic in skincare. Alcohol can be good or bad for your skin, but sometimes the amount makes a poison. Alcohol, after all, is a prominent solvent. It makes active substances penetrate the skin deeper. This effect has its cost - the skin is getting a bit irritated. Some substances can be dissolved only in alcohol. This ingredient has antibacterial properties. It works as a preservative by preventing microorganisms from growing in the product. It has some awful sides too - it can dry your skin, mainly if we use it in large amounts. Sensitive skin is not a fan of this ingredient.
Niacinamide is a form of vitamin B3 - a vitamin soluble in water. It helps with problems like wrinkles, acne, skin texture, and enlarged pores and promotes collagen synthesis. Niacinamide makes the skin barrier stronger. It might be handy in cellulite treatments. Do you want to fight pigmentation or uneven skin? Try to mix niacinamide with Kojic Acid, Arbutin, Vitamin C, Tranexamic Acid or Retinol. Dimethicone is a silicone and polymer. Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid aka HEPES is a buffering agent.
Hydrolyzed Rice Protein is a humectant. This ingredient is useful in hair care since it can be antistatic. It improves hair condition. In skincare, this ingredient creates a delicate film to prevent skin from TEWL. It makes detergents in the product less harsh. Adenosine naturally occurs in the skin. One of the roles of adenosine in our bodies is that of neurotransmitter. In skin care, we use adenosine for its anti-wrinkle properties. Adenosine is an anti-inflammatory ingredient. It can boost collagen production. At the same time, it speeds up the healing process. Adenosine can have positive effects on reducing redness. In hair care, adenosine can help with hair loss.
Citric acid is an AHA (alpha hydroxy acid), a delicate exfoliant and buffering ingredient that adjusts the pH of the formula. Grifola Frondosa Fruiting Body Extract is a polysaccharide with antioxidant properties. It soothes the skin. Grifola Frondosa is often called maitake, it's an edible mushroom used in the kitchen. In skincare, it helps with inflammation and the first signs of aging. Hydroxyacetophenone is an antioxidant that is supposed to help preservatives in the formula.
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 boosts collagen, elastin and HA synthesis. Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 is a synthetic peptide and a part of the Matrixyl 300 complex. It contains three amino acids - glycine, histidine and lysine. It stimulates collagen production and has anti-ageing properties. It targets wrinkles and skin elasticity. SH-Polypeptide-69 is an anti-wrinkle peptide.
Sodium Hyaluronate or sodium salt of hyaluronic acid. It's a form of hyaluronic acid and naturally occurs in the skin. Sodium Hyaluronate has strong water-binding properties. Sodium hyaluronate combined with elastin and collagen is like a scaffolding for the skin. It has hydrating properties and leaves a hydrating film on the skin, but sodium hyaluronate prevents skincare products from drying. Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate neutralizes metal ions in the product. Silica is a mineral-natural ingredient. It's popular in makeup and skincare. It can absorb sebum or thicken the texture.
Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate is a synthetic polymer. It makes emulsions more stable. Butylene Glycol is a common ingredient in products. It's not only a solvent. We use butylene glycol because it helps penetrate active ingredients, protects products from drying, and moisturizes skin and hair. This ingredient can prevent hair loss and strengthen hair. Caprylyl Glycol is an oily emollient and humectant that leaves a moisturizing film on the skin's surface. Carbomer is a synthetic thickener. Maltodextrin is a stabilizing ingredient that can hydrate your skin and absorb sebum.
Pentylene Glycol is mostly a solvent and stabilizer, but it has great moisturizing properties. Polysorbate 20 is an emulsifier delicate for the skin. Sodium Chloride is nothing else than a well-known salt. In skincare, sodium chloride is a thickener. We also use it as an exfoliant. Sodium Lactate regulates the pH of the product, but it also helps with the moisture of the skin. Sodium Phosphate balances the pH level of the product.
Tocopherol is an antioxidant known as Vitamin E. It's an oil-soluble vitamin that fights free radicals and makes UVB protection and natural lipid barrier stronger. It's good to mix it with vitamin C for better effects. Oily skin might react with pore-clogging to vitamin E. It is not true that vitamin E works as a preservative or helps with scars. Xanthan Gum is a polysaccharide that works as a thickener. Fragrance (Parfum) is a scent composition. It can cause allergic reactions.
How does Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum work?
It's been a while since I used Vichy. From time to time Vichy releases products that are interesting to me. This brand has great sunscreens, but the last time I was surprised that Vichy gave us a product that I would expect from a brand with the same status as Vichy was Liftactiv Specialist Glyco-C Ampoules. Vichy is a brand focused on creating dermo-cosmetics. It's a brand that dermatologists and specialists are working on their products so they should be more advanced than regular skincare.
Read more about: Vichy Liftactiv Specialist Glyco-C Ampoules
It took Vichy some time to make me interested in a product a bit of a time. It's been almost 2 years since the last Vichy sunscreen I tried (last year Vichy released tinted sunscreen and with my skin that's matching white wall, it's not a product I was searching for), and now Vichy released Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum. What's so amazing about this serum?
I have mixed feelings when it comes to collagen in skincare, but the truth is that Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum is free from collagen. Yes, it's not a mistake, this serum has no collagen in the formula. So, is Vichy lying to us? No! The name has some sense. Vichy is strongly showing on social media that human skin has more than 1 type of collagen related to youthful and healthy skin (we have 16 types of collagen, that's why the name of this serum has the number 16), but using topical collagen won't boost and bond all collagen in the skin. Topical collagen is better if your skin is dehydrated and you need to work on the surface of the skin - usually, collagen molecules are too big to get through layers of the skin. There are some technologies to make the size of molecules smaller, but that's a longer story.
The key here is peptides! The most important solution in Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum is powered by revolutionary and breakthrough Co-bonding Technology™. It took Vichy 15 years of research to create Co-Bonding Technology, it's supposed to bond and boost 16 types of collagen in our skin. It contains Rhamnose, Collagen Peptides (more like peptides that boost collagen production) and Maitake.
I tested this serum for a while now. Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum is something. I'm in my early 20s so I experience the degradation of collagen - we all do, especially after 25. My skin isn't as hydrated as before, but also heating season aka winter is not our friend. If you ever wondered why your skin or eyes are getting dry during winter - it's mostly related to the use of heating. If you're over 40, 50, or more - I would check reviews of other creators too. I know a bunch of amazing ladies in different age groups that are sharing their experience and I believe their insight on this serum might be helpful if you want to decide whether this serum is for you or not.
My skin reacted well to this serum, it doesn't leave any oily residue, and you can use it on combo & oily skin types. The formula is lightweight and it works well under makeup. I feel like my skin is hydrated and this feeling is long-lasting. It might be visibly brighter as well. You can use it during morning and evening routines. I believe that using it with vitamin C or retinol in your routines shouldn't be a problem, but if you use tretinoin - I would be careful since my skin on tretinoin or trifarotene reacts badly to alcohol in the products.
From my perspective, this serum is a product that should work well on the first signs of aging. It's nothing too harsh for the skin and it's better to start with a serum like Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum than go for procedures which at the age of 25 or even 35 might not be necessary. Of course, I'm not demonizing beauty procedures because there are some treatments which I like to do too like microneedling or chemical peels, but Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum is a better option than more advanced procedures at an early age.
Where to buy Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum and how much does it cost?
Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum costs about €35-€50 for 30ml. If you're living in Germany, you can check Douglas. If you're living in the UK, then visit Boots, the serum in the UK costs around £43. Depending on your location - check Lookfantastic, they should have it as well.
If you're living in Poland - this review will be available in Polish on my new website with all the places where you can get it, right now I saw that Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum is available at Superpharm.
I'm positively surprised by Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum, it's a good serum that targets the first signs of aging.
Have you tried Vichy Liftactiv Collagen Specialist 16 Bonding Serum already?
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