Unboxing Beauty

I am here with some more Naruko AM/PM RX Pro Series serums ~ I totally loved their their AM/PM Copper Peptide & B5 Repairing Serum (review here) ~ the best hydrating serum I have ever used. Naruko is a Taiwanese skincare brand that is  very popular in its homeland, and we in North America are really fortunate that we have a Naruko Canada and Naruko USA online store. Naruko is one of my favorite skincare brands and I am REALLY trying to share my love of this brand with you through my many reviews, which you can check out here ~ reviews here.  You can use CouponCode0527  promo code to save 10% off your orders at either Naruko Canada  or Naruko USA.  I don’t make any commissions off the code, this is just a thank you for my readers. I received both of these  products complementary from Naruko in exchange for a review.

Skin Type/Concerns: Oily, blemish prone, dehydrated pores, aging skin with fine lines/wrinkles, hyper-pigmentation: sun damage & PIH

I received these products complementary to review and was not paid.  All reviews are my own honest opinion and  I never have been asked to write copy for a brand.  This blog post might contain promo codes, affiliate and referral links, which using my links will help generate a small commission that helps support my blog at no extra cost to you.

AM/PM RX Pro 10% B3 Glow Energy Serum is full of skin brightening and skin plumping ingredients to get that glow on!  Two skin brightening ingredients in here, to help quickly fade PIH (post-inflammatory hyper-pigmentation) caused by blemishes ~ 10% of niacinamide, a powerful antioxidant that acts as an anti-inflammatory, improves your skin elasticity, enhance the skin barrier function and also it helps to even out skin tone and reduce post-inflammatory hyper-pigmentation.   Taiwanese skincare has been using tranexamic acid (1%)for years and  this synthetic amino acid  is derived from lysine.  It is one of the more  powerful topical ingredients to reduce hyper-pigmentation.  It is also extra gentle, non-irritant, reduces melanin (dark spots), an anti-inflammatory and is safe for all skin types.   

image from naruko

Several lipids are in here, providing soothing and calming moisturization and antioxidant care ~ ceramides, squalane, phytosterols and vitamin E.  Pumpkin seed is a powerful antioxidant due to its vast array of vitamins, amino acids,  nutrients and enzymes. It softens and moisturizes the skin as it is a natural emollient. This also contains additional hydrating humectants of glycerin and sodium hyaluronate while sodium PCA and PCA provides deep moisturization and protects your skin as it mimics NMF (Natural Moisturizing Factor).  

Antioxidant amino acids in here as well: glycine, serine, glutamic acid, betaine, leucine, alanine, lysine HCl, arginine, proline, threonine.  Amino acids help with keeping your skin hydrated, your skin’s texture smooth and your skin’s elasticity as it helps support collagen production. 

Pullulan will instantly help tighten your skin and temporarily improve your skin’s texture. Sodium Lactate isan exfoliator and is a natural salt that comes from lactic acid.   

image from naruko

Palmitoyl tripeptide-8, aka Neutrazen, will help prevent and calm irritated skin.  It also helps sensitive skin recover more quickly from inflammation.  Tasmannia lanceolata leaf, aka Tasmanian pepper main active is one that contains anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial benefits ~ polygodial.  This ingredient can relieve itching and instantly  soothing skin quickly.   Antimicrobial o-Cymen-5-ol is a preservative which helps reduce inflammation and prevent acne-causing bacteria from forming.   

Ingredients: Water, Niacinamide, Butylene Glycol, Dipropylene Glycol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Triethylhexanoin, Tranexamic Acid, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/ Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/ VP Copolymer, Betaine, Dimethicone, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, C18-36 Acid Triglyceride, Chlorphenesin, Isostearyl Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Xanthan Gum, Jojoba Esters, Glycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium PCA, C12-18 Acid Triglyceride, Sea Water, Sclerotium Gum, Lecithin, Squalene, Sodium Lactate, o-Cymen-5-ol, PCA, Pullulan, Sorbitan Isostearate, Polysorbate 60, Serine, Alanine, Tasmannia Lanceolata Leaf Extract, Phytosteryl Macadamiate, Glycine, Fragrance, Ceramide 3, Glutamic Acid, Lysine HCl, Threonine, Silica, Arginine, Phytosterols, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-8, Dextran, Tocopherol, Citric Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Proline, Potassium Sorbate, Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Extract cosDNA

This serum comes in a yellow glass bottle that is opaque, unlike some of the other RX Pro serums ~ I believe it is to keep the actives safe from light.  The serum is a milky shade, and has a watery gel texture to it.  I did not notice any scent to. it, even though the ingredients list contained fragrance.

This serum quickly absorbs into my skin, leaving no greasy or tacky residue and my skin really looks very plumped up as it is quite the little hydrator!  Over time, I noticed that the soothing, brightening and exfoliating ingredients in here helped with pore care as well as give my skin an all over even tone ~ it didn’t really remove my old sun damaged hyperpigmentation, but it kept my pores clean and kept my skin looking fresh.   

Now, Naruko does recommend that you can mix your serums together, so the Glow Serum goes very well with this next serum ~ AM/PM RX Pro Bakuchiol + VA Wrinkle Care Serum.  This contains  A LOT of skin brightening, antioxidant, anti-aging ingredients and WOW, this is a little powerhouse of a serum.  

Bakuchiol has been compared to retinoid, and I feel that is an unfair comparison. Extracted from Babchi seeds and leaves, antioxidant bakuchiol is more on the anti-aging side of things, it helps increase elasticity and firmness, reduces wrinkles, hyper-pigmentation  and the appearance of pores, while hydrating. It is also great for sensitive skin as it is not irritating. ⁣  

Retinyl palmitate, which is one of my favorite ingredients and this is an ester/derivative of  vitamin A, retinol. It will convert to retinol and then to retinoic acid once it is applied and absorbed topically by the skin. Retinyl palmitate is less irritating than retinol, but its benefits are similar, but on a more gentle level, so effects will take longer. Retinol is an active and it helps promotes cellular turnover and I have used Retin-A, a prescription strength version, years ago and it really helped with my blemishes. Its other side effect that makes this ingredient so wonderful, is it will help lighten PIH, age/sun-damage hyper-pigmentation and reduce fine lines and wrinkles, while making your skin smooth.

This is a new ingredient for me!  Fresh water blue-green alga aphanizomenon flos-aquae (AFA)  contains phycocyanin, which  is a fresh water unicellular blue-green alga (cyanophyta) rich in phycocyanin.  Phycocyanin is reported as a skin-brightener, as it disrupts the activity of enzyme tyrosinase, which aids in melanin.  It also is an anti-inflammatory and heals skin.  

The orange shade of this serum comes from astaxanthin ~ an anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory carotenoid  whose undiluted color is a deep red-salmon.  Asataxnthin is the latest thing in antioxidants.   A clinical study performed at Creighton University displayed that asataxnthin destroys free radicals 6000 times better than Vitamin C, 800 times more than CoQ10, 550 times more than Vitamin E and green tea extracts, 75 times more than alpha lipoic acid and 20 times more than beta carotene (source)  Other studies have shown that it can reduce melanin, which causes hyper-pigmentation, by about 40% and over time, will fade hyper-pigmentation.  (source)

image from naurko

This contains a lot of hydrating ingredients, including the trusted and true humectants glycerin, hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, sodium PCA, glycogen and  sodium hyaluronate.  This also contains patented Aquaxyl, a hydrating compound made from ingredients derived from vegetable origin sugars ~ xylitylglucoside, anhydroxylitol, xylitol and glucose. Aquaxyl will also reinforce your skin barrier function, limiting water loss in your skin and preventing skin dehydration on a cellular level.  This product is not gluten free, as xylitylglucoside is derived from wheat sugars.

From the bixa orellana tree, annato is a powerful antioxidant due to its carotenoids, along with antioxidant vitamin E for skin elasticity. Beta-glucan is a compound that is naturally derived from mushrooms, oats, yeast and grains and it helps stimulate the production of collagen, speeds up wound healing, soothes and calms skin due to its anti-irritant and strong anti-inflammatory properties. Allantoin moisturizes, exfoliates and softens skin, making it look smooth and refined, while reducing and relieving irritation.

Ingredients: Water, PEG/ PPG/ Polybutylene Glycol-8/ 5/ 3 Glycerin, Caprylyl Methicone, Butylene Glycol, C12-15 Pareth-12, PEG-10 Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Xylitylglucoside, Beta-Glucan, Glycerin, Anhydroxylitol, Xylitol, Bakuchiol, Astaxanthin, Algae Extract, 1, 2-Hexanediol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Sodium PCA, Dipropylene Glycol, Bixa Orellana Seed Extract, Propanediol, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glycogen, Glucose, Sodium Hyaluronate, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopherol, Allantoin, Fragrance, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate cosDNA

The claims to this product are:  “improve skin brightness, enhance uneven skin tone, minimize enlarge pores, boost firmness, smoothes the skin texture as well as reduce fine lines and wrinkle in a short period of times”.  This is a water based serum, contained in an orange glass bottle and the serum itself is a pale orange in color, due to the astaxanthin in here. Like all of the RX Pro serums from Naruko, the bottle is capped initially and you need to remove the cap and then place the eye dropper applicator into the bottle.  

This product has no fragrance and unlike other astaxanthin serums I have used in the past, this doesn’t pill on my face, nor does it make my skin look like a greasy, shiny, sitting outside in the hot sun for hours glazed donut. 

My skin does look more plumped up with this and it is very moisturizing.  Don’t forget to wear sunscreen when you use any retinals, by the way.  Let’s take it a step further by mixing the 2 serums together. ~looks like an egg, doesn’t it?

Together, the 10% B3 Glow Energy and  Bakuchiol + VA Wrinkle Care Serums provide my skin with much needed soothing care, along with skin brightening benefits.   I actually use both of these as part of my morning routine as it is so gentle, doesn’t cause any peeling or redness of skin with the powerful cocktail quartet  of niacinamide, tranexamic acid, bakuchiol and retinyl palmitate ~ my larger pores look tighter and smaller, my skin looks more youthful and plump  ~ when I say plump, I mean with suppleness and hydration ~ no dehydrated skin.  My face is PLUMP with fat, but it can also be dehydrated.   I have a nice glow to my skin and even with the hot muggy weather, my face might be shiny, but it doesn’t bother me like it has in the past.  I do think it is because my skin looks really good!    

I was given a great complement the other day by a lady who is about 20 years younger than me and she looked at my face and said I really didn’t have any wrinkles on most of my face!  In fact, my forehead is pretty much line free when it is in resting mode  and only shows some light, shallow expression lines if I raise my eyebrows.  Trust me, this is a great complement for someone who has never had botox or surgical procedures done to her face.  

I will be testing out the last two Naruko AM/PM RX Pro products ~ RX 5% Gluconolatone Pore-Refining Serum and RX 2% α-Arbutin + 1% VC Dark Spot Correcting Serum.  Once again, I will be using them together for maximum effects and I will also produce a quick chart of all of the RX Pro serums   

Where to Purchase

You can purchase this and other AM/PM RX products at Naruko USA and Naruko Canada

• AM/PM RX Pro 10% B3 Glow Energy Serum 30mL  $28.00   USA  $24.75 Canada 
• AM/PM RX Pro Bakuchiol + VA Wrinkle Care Serum  30mL  $30.00   USA  $27.00  Canada 

Save  10% by using my promo code of  CouponCode0527  either Naruko Canada  or Naruko USA.  I don’t make any commissions off the code. 

Naruko USA offers flat rate shipping of $6.99 for orders under $74.99 and free shipping for orders over $75.00.   Naruko Canada is a bit more complicated so I did a screen shot here of their shipping rates.

Check out my other Naruko reviews too ~ you might find your next HG product! 

 

[ products received complementary ]