Mandy in Oz

Welcome back to my blog!  It's been a while since I began trialling a range of products from The Ordinary; since my last post I've collected and trialled quite a lot from this brand, which I'll continue to review.  I thought I might go back now to my initial purchases and finish up my first impressions on these.  Today, I'm going to talk about the Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate 10% - one of the Vitamin C offerings from the brand. This product is the most gentle from the stable of Vitamin C products that The Ordinary offers; it's rated at a 'moderate' potency on the Deciem website, with the other formulations that they offer rated 'high' or 'very high'.  It uses a water-soluble Vitamin C derivative (MAP)  rather than L-ascorbic acid and as such, it's both less irritating and less potent.  It's also purported to have specific skin brightening benefits, more so than the L-ascorbic acid based products.   This is a cream formu...

Welcome back to my review series!  Today, I'm going to give my initial thoughts on the Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% from The Ordinary. To start with, I'd like to talk about the purpose of this particular offering from The Ordinary and why you might like to try this kind of product.  This formula is aimed specifically at those with blemish prone and oily skin (that's me!), it's claims are that it reduces the appearance of blemishes and congestion. The zinc content is also purported to reduce visible sebum activity, which should result in a less oily appearance, for all of the oily girls and guys out there.  Sounds awesome, right?  Well...yes and no.  If you'd like to know why, please read on. I'd like to note, as with previous reviews, that I have an acne prone, oily but also maturing complexion. I also have somewhat sensitive skin, though which ingredients will 'set me off' can be a little unpredictable.  With that in mind, here's my first i...

So, as promised, here is numero uno in a series of first impressions of products from The Ordinary.  I've chosen to start with this particular product, as from what I've seen in other reviews, it's one of those items that has had some incredibly varied opinions. I must admit, I can completely understand why!  I've definitely had to rework my skincare routines somewhat, to make the most of this product. Read on, to find out why, and how. I'd like to start with the purpose of this particular kind of skincare product.  There are many Vitamin C products available, and as an ingredient it packs quite a punch.  Vitamin C has been proven to provide substantial anti-ageing and brightening effects when applied topically....sounds great, right? The difficulty has always been producing an effective and stable product, as Vitamin C oxidises with exposure to oxygen, and the higher the concentration, the less stable it is.   The Ordinary have overcome that diffic...