Tag: Glycolic acid

Nip Fab Glycolic Fix Extreme Night Pads Review

NipFab is a mega drugstore brand with a range of amazing products at affordable prices. I love NipFab and I have tried a lot of their products. I particularly love the Glycolic Fix range because I love acids so much, the Glycolic Fix Extreme range has 5% Glycolic acid in addition to salicylic and lactic acids plus hyaluronic acid.

Experience

I got these pads a while back, last year or probably the year before when they did their £5 offer. I’m almost done with this tub, having used 2 previously. These pads are the same size as the Daily Fix pads with the same texture. It contains 60 pads.

The extreme line has 5% AHA content although I really wouldn’t call 5% AHA extreme. I do really like these pads because it’s also a blend of other acids plus hyaluronic acid for hydration. I use them as toners after cleansing in my PM routine. They leave my skin smoother and pores reduced. My only conn is that the pads are a little too thin and small.

Verdict

The Glycolic range is one of the best in the drugstore. In recent years acids have become very popular so they are a few options to pick from. I like this range because it has a blend of acids plus hyaluronic acid for hydration. I didn’t experience any tingling or irritation from this product but my skin is very used to acids. You can begin with the Daily Fix pads which have 2% AHA or they have pads sensitive skin as well.

I wouldn’t brand 5% AHA as extreme, a lot of other acid toners in the drugstore also start at 5% without the extreme label but I still recommend them.

Always use SPF in the AM after acid use.

NipFab Extreme pads are available in NipFab

They usually have £5 offers on many of their products, it’s worth holding out for the discounts.

Nip Fab Glycolic Fix Radiance Shot Review

Nip Fab’s Glycolic Fix range is one of the best acid collections in the drugstore. I personally love the Glycolic Fix collection and I have tried many items from it. I have a quick review of the Nip Fab Glycolic Fix Radiance Shot I have had for a while now.

This promises luminosity, smoother skin and reduced pigmentation.

Experience

So I have had this serum for a very long time but I have been using it on and off. I wasn’t frequently using it because I could not see any benefits plus I did not like the fact that it was iridescent. I do not like gimmicky skincare and this serum has a blue tint which turns golden when massaged into the skin (if you don’t mind this then of course go for it). This is a smooth lightweight texture with a strong chemical scent. It sinks into the skin very quickly but I feel like it leaves a very faint shimmer on the skin.

It wasn’t the gimmicks that made me dislike this, I just felt like I didn’t see any benefits using this. They do not state the glycolic content of this serum however after checking the ingredient list, glycolic acid is the 2nd ingredient. I haven’t seen any difference in my pigmentation and my skin is smooth because I use a 7% AHA toner. The serum adds no hydration to my skin but doesn’t pil with other products.

Verdict

I couldn’t finish the bottle because I disliked the serum so I have thrown it away. In all fairness, I used more than half of the bottle but I couldn’t bring myself to finish it! I have had this for a while, I actually got it when they were doing a £5 sale ages ago. I love glycolic acids but this serum did not benefit my skin. I also don’t appreciate gimmicky skincare but I will use a product if I felt like it was working, this serum didn’t do anything for me so I stopped using it to move unto something else!

check out my Nip Fab brand review which summaries everything I have used from the brand.

Nip Fab Glycolic Fix Radiance Shot is £19.95 on LookFantastic*

*affiliate link used. If you decide to make a purchase through my link, I will earn a small commission which goes towards the upkeep of the blog (and allows me to keep bringing you excellent content) but the price remains the same

Glossier Solution Review

Have you tried Glossier or even heard of the brand? Die-hard skincare fanatics love the pink branded products and sing praises of their products all over social media but for me, I haven’t been interested in their products until now. I have been quietly having a look at their stuff and wanting to try & review them for the sake of it but nothing really stood out to me until they released the Glossier Solution toner. Why did it stand out? Because it’s an acid toner and also because it was very hyped up and caused a bit of a stir when it was launched. Anyway let’s get into the review

Glossier Solution is a (multi) acid toner with a blend of 10% AHA, PHA and BHA. In 4 weeks they promise smoother skin, cleared acne and blackheads, smaller pores and reduced redness. Glowing skin and healthy skin is also promised.

Experience

Background – when it was first released Glossier compared it to a lot of the current well-known acid toners e.g. Pixi Glow Tonic and PC 2% BHA and why Solution was so much better. The problem a lot of people had with that is, Solution is formulated to be a multi-acid toner whilst those two are single acids at a lower %, Glossier also commented on the low % of each them. I didn’t really get why they did that because they are clearly two different products in my opinion. It’s like comparing a 2 in 1 product to a product with 1 use. The best example I can think of is comparing washing powder with fabric softener combined to washing powder alone or fabric softener alone. Obviously, the washing powder alone won’t have the added benefits of the fabric softener. Glossier should have compared Solution with other multi-acid toners.

The second issue I have is the % of each acid in Solution is a ‘secret’ according to Glossier. They state it has 10% AHA, BHA and PHA and I actually emailed them to find out the exact % of each acid but this is the response I had back:

Hi Team!

I am wondering if you can give me the breakdown of conc of each acid in solution please? I know Salicylic acid is 0.5% and AHA is 10%, what are the concentrations for lactic ( is this included in the AHA or is the 10% for glycolic acid alone?)  and PHA acids please?

Thanks!


Hi Sarah!

Thanks for reaching out! As you know, Solution contains 0.5% Salicylic Acid. The total amount of BHA, AHA, and PHA is 10%. Because we worked so hard to find the perfect balance of acids (our chemist and product developers spent 15 months working on it), the exact breakdown of the acids is a secret. But rest assured that Solution is formulated to give you the best results while remaining gentle on skin.

Is it that all 3 acids make 10% or AHA is 10% PHA 10% and BHA 0.5%?

So my actual experience of it

I didn’t experience any stinging with Solution, it would be the highest acid formula I have used at 10% but I suspect because of the PHA (which is very gentle) I had no issues with stinging or irritation. I actually thought my skin felt quite hydrated and softer.  A lot of users said it broke them out so I would be cautious if you have sensitive skin. Solution would be the first multi-acid toner I have used and I do really like it. It left my skin very smooth and kept my pores in check. I did have a few breakouts (maybe 1 or 2) but it was not due to Solution but it didn’t prevent them from forming too. In terms of leaving my skin glowing, I would definitely say it did. My skin looked smooth and healthier.

Verdict

I think it’s a ver good multi-acid toner. This is also the first time I would have used PHA and I actually like it (since then I have used another PHA formulated product and I am now looking to add more of this add to my routine. It’s so good at leaving my skin soft, smooth and hydrated).

I think Glossier was wrong for comparing it to single acids on the market because they are clearly not the same product. Does this have a HUGE advantage over single acids?  I think Pixi Glow Tonic at 5% and The Ordinary Glycolic Toning Solution at 7% can give you similar results (esp. TO at 7% at only £6!) But you will get the added benefits of the PHA and BHA in Solution. I would also say Solution was definately more hydrating on my skin and it was much gentler than TO Glycolic Toning Solution.

In terms of price, its £19 for 130ml so I think it’s expensive for the amount you get. I was able to find a discount code for mine. It lasted a a bit longer than expected but I wish it was at least 150ml.

Solution is a really good multi-acid toner that leaves my skin very smooth and healthy. I would like to repurchase this again but only if there was an offer on, I am not happy with the amount you get for £19, for now, I am happy with my 5% AHAs.

If you want to try a multi acid toner, you can try Solution , I’m not sure if there are other multi acid toners on the market.

What do you think?

Solution is £19 and available on Glossier

Reviews on single acid toners

Pixi Glow Tonic

Naturally Radiant pads

The Ordinary Glycolic Acid Toning Solution

Nip Fab Daily Fix Glycolic pads