Oh my! This is lovely! Before you start thinking of some weighty formula as anything ‘night’ tends to be, the Hydra Beauty Camelia Overnight Mask is so far from it that it’s almost a veil. But, a veil with a difference – as you apply it, watery beads appear and the whole feeling is one of freshness rather than heaviness. You might remember that Korean skin care brand, Dr Jart had something similar with their Water Drop mask. This is definitely a move by Chanel to take on board the Japanese/Korean/Chinese skin care trends, and in fact, both the products I’m talking about today were tested on Chinese women and I will assume that was in China! Pollution is a huge skin factor for these countries – they’re very focussed on anti-pollution products, and the Camelia mask contains blue ginger, Camellia alba, zinc, copper and magnesium to aid cell oxygenation, making it good for anyone with skin concerns around air pollution. You can even use it as a lip mask by leaving on for two minutes and massaging around before wiping off with a tissue.
The Hydra Beauty Micro Liquid Essence is in limited distribution in the UK because we are not such keen embracers of this extra skin care step as other countries. But, if you’ve never been tempted by essences before, this would be a good (if pricy) place to start. You actually can’t feel the micro-droplets on your skin – when you pat it over your complexion, the formula feels very cooling and refreshing but also immediately softening. Each bottle has around 3,000 micro-droplets, each one containing fresh camellia cell actives extracted from cold pressing petals and dispersed in camellia oil. Camellia oil contains vitamins, carbohydrates, amino acids and lipids. The ‘liquid’ isn’t quite a water – more of a thin gel and you’ll also find the Chanel signature Camellia Alba, blue ginger, hyaluronic acid and glycerin designed to hold onto moisture. Oh, there aren’t any micro-beads in this – and nor any alcohol.
I’m often suspicious of skin care ranges from predominantly make-up (and fashion) brands: they often don’t live up to expectations, but Chanel’s always has. It is expensive, but I’ve never known it not feel like a luxury and give a performance over and above. The mask is £64 HERE at John Lewis and the essence is £70 HERE.
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All products are sent to me as samples from brands and agencies unless otherwise stated. Affiliate links may be used. Posts are not affiliate driven.
2 comments
Oh Gosh now i want to try this!
(I’m glad I’ve kept the little sample of the masque I was given, need to try this ASAP).
I absolutely adore ‘essences’……I used to make my own before they became available (Trilogy’s was the first I tried and it remains my fave…so luscious!)
God I wish I could afford the odd bit of Chanel skincare, it’s a purely psychological yearning. I’d consider saving up for this, it sounds divine
Great, informative reviews as always : thank you