I may not suffer from severe pigmentation or terrible sun spots at a prime age of 25, but I do have freckles around the highest points of my cheekbones and an uneven skin tone due to sun damage. I don’t really mind the freckles; it’s just that they’re way more prominent than I’d like, and my awfully fair skin further accentuates the individual spots.
To treat the freckles and prevent any more of them from showing up, I recently started using Clinique’s Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer, which is a new and improved version of Clinique’s Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector that was launched in 2013.
Now, this enhanced serum is developed with an optimizer to effectively target skin discolouration caused by irritation and inflammation, on top of sun exposure, stress and diet. Formulated with other nourishing ingredients and Gyokuro, which is one of Japan’s most precious green tea, this serum is packed full with powerful antioxidants that intensely treat the skin.
In short, this product prevents the appearance of uneven, pigmented skin, protects the skin from free radical damage, exfoliates the skin for renewed clarity, reduces the appearance of dark spots and provides effective brightening results by breaking up large clusters of pigment at the skin’s surface to diminish its appearance.
What it claims to do, as written on the bottle:
Clinique’s Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer promises to deliver lasting brightness and even tones by reversing the appearance of dark spots and blemish marks starting in four weeks. This serum is also developed with a soothing optimizer that keeps the skin calm and helps it resist future darkening.
Directions for use:
Apply twice daily before moisturising. Dispense 1 pump and spread evenly on the skin.
My thoughts:
Firstly, let’s talk about the bottle. The glass bottle displays two separate canisters in white and green – one for the dark spot corrector and the other for the optimizer – that are sealed with a double-pronged pump. Once pressed, the pump dispenses product from both the canisters simultaneously.
Being slightly OCD, it bugs me as the pump doesn’t dispense an equal amount of product from both canisters, but I reckon that that’s done intentionally to deliver optimum results. Right off the bat, the serum doesn’t have a very strong scent and I appreciate that.
On the skin, the lightweight serum feels silky smooth and it doesn’t feel tacky. It also blends well and absorbs quickly into the skin. In terms of convenience, I like this dark spot corrector a lot because I can simply slap it on my entire face instead of only targeting the problem areas, which takes up more time. It’s really hassle free and it doesn’t irritate my skin.
I was pleasantly surprised with the results even from my first use. After applying a small pump onto my skin the night before, I woke up with radiant skin that looked bright and luminous. The difference was uncanny! Even though I tend to use this serum only at nighttime, I never fail to wake up to rejuvenated skin every day.
I’ve been using this serum daily for about three weeks now and it’s now a permanent addition to my skincare routine. My skin tone looks way more even and I realised that I no longer get random spots of redness around my face, which used to be a common problem for me. I’ve also started using less foundation as my skin needs less of it. Hurrah!
I cannot confirm its efficacy on my freckles as I haven’t been using the serum for long enough, but I sure am excited to witness the results after four weeks. If you suffer from dullness, discolouration and redness, you need to try Clinique’s Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer. Hopefully, it’ll start lightening my freckles soon.
Clinique’s Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer (50ml bottle) retails for RM375. This product will be available at all Clinique counters and retail stores in Malaysia beginning February 2016.
