For many a blogger out there La Roche-Posay is a well known entity. For me however, until very recently, it was a brand that I saw everytime that I went to the chemist’s but that I was never drawn too. Maybe it was the wide range of products that they offer, but my eyes simply skipped the shelves with their products.

However, when I recently vowed to take better care of my skin and decided that I simply had to jump onto the cosmetic acids bandwagon, I found a fantastic glycolic acid on those often overlooked shelves.

The Pigment Control serum is a serum that contains glycolic acid and kojic acid and promises to treat dark spots and uneven skin tone.

The benefits of glycolic acid as a AHA are well known so I was sure to get an improvement in how my skin looked like. On the other hand I had not heard of kojic acid before, but it seems that while it has a lightening effect as well it is very unstable.

The serum comes in a sun protected glass bottle and with a dropper, which I thought was a very nice touch to avoid contaminating the serum.

I have been using once every week or so as I am a bit worried about stripping my skin more that it should be.

Have I seen an improvement on my skin? Yes I have! Not only does it look more even toned but it also looks and feels smoother.

What are the cons? Well for starters the glass bottle might not be a very good idea if you are prone to dropping things on the floor. Also, the second ingredient in the composition is alcohol denat, which really annoys me in a skincare product. Also, while the inclusion of a second lightening product is nice, the fact that it is very unstable means that I am paying for something that will be rendered uneffective. And finally, the dropper has stopped working. Kid you not! The rubber has broken or something so it does not pick up product so I am tilting the bottle onto my fingers.

Will I repurchase? No. It has greatly improved my skin but I can find nicer products out there.

Hydraphase Intense Serum was a rehydratating gel that I could not resist when I picked up the Pigment Control serum. I was looking for a nice serum and this one is said to be good for sensitive but dehydrated skin.

The serum has a wonderful gel like consistency and feels really nice and refreshing on the skin. As I have oily skin, I am always on the look out for more gel textures and this one was nice though a bit tacky. It has hyaluronic acid, so it promises to be good at preventing moisture loss.

The tall bottle comes with a pump which is always a great way of preventing air damage to the formula and contamination by bacteria.

For the reasons listed below I have only been using it occasionally.

Have I seen and improvement on my skin? Yes, the skin looks plumper if one could call it that.

What are the cons? This one too comes in a glass bottle which is not travel or klutz-friendly. Another puzzling thing is that while this one is intended for dehydrated sensitive skin, its third ingredient is once more Alcohol denat.! As soon as I spotted it I stopped using it daily and applied it only every now and then.

Will I repurchase? No. What is the point of having a moisturising ingredient in a formula if you are including tons of alcohol in it?

So as far as my first acquaintance with the brand goes, it was a bit of a let down. I was expecting better ingredients in the formulas to be honest, but this is what happens with impulse buys!