For some of you who don't know about Neogence, it is a reputable pharmaceutical brand in Taiwan where all of its products are formulated by practicing doctors. The brand itself was founded in September 2005 and entered Malaysia around August 2009. As of 2015, it has made its presence in major Asian and Western countries including Singapore, Hong Kong, China, UK, Thailand and Canada.
Neogence carries a wide range of products divided into several skincare concerns:
- hyaluronic acid series for hydrating
- vitamin C series for brightening
- DNA series for anti-aging and wrinkles care
- pores solution series for pores care
- perfect Y-line series for firmer contours
A lot of their products are also editorial awards-winning items:
Unlike Dr. Wu which I find to be overpriced in Sasa Malaysia, I think Neogence is rather reasonably priced for an imported brand. It scores high in term of cost-performance ratio. For that reason, I'm quite interested in a few of its products such as the C+ jelly mask, pore clay mask and their perfect V-line series. Definitely will try out some of them soon (actually not so soon since I have bought a lot of things to try).
The Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating & Revitalizing Gel Mask is one of my favourite item from Neogence. I would even say that this product opens up my interest towards this brand. This brand has very unattractive design, like so plain and boring, unlike many other Taiwanese brands with super cute packaging. You can easily miss the goods inside if you are a packaging-person like myself.
The Hyaluronic Acid mask is similar to another favourite mask of mine - the Laneige Water Sleeping Mask in terms of texture and function. I'm sure many of you know about the Laneige Water Sleeping Mask so I'm not rushing into a review of that one yet, but I just want to include it here just to compare.
So, the Neogence one has... compared to Laneige:
- more gel-like texture (whereas Laneige one is more watery and lighter)
- no scent (whereas Laneige one smells awesome)
- more products (priced at RM 99.00, Neogence has 150ml, which is more than 70g for Laneige that costs RM 110.00)
- more cooling, soothing and hydrating (much to my surprise)
- boring packaging (whereas Laneige one looks so gorgeous and refreshing)
- less botanical extracts (but the ingredients used here are better researched)
- less Sodium Hyaluronate (if the ingredients listing regulations is the same for both countries, then yes, Neogence has lesser HA compared to the Laneige one)
CLAIMS
The Neogence Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating & Revitalizing Gel Mask is claimed to be made of concentrated hyaluronic acid and trehalose (海藻醣) to instill moisture. It's also formulated with natural centella asiatica (積雪草) as well as aloe vera extract (蘆薈) to revitalize as well as improving elasticity and texture of the skin.
#contains concentrated HA O
#moisturizing ✓
#revitalizing ✘
#soothing ✓
#improving skin elasticity and texture ✓
HOW TO USE
# as a sleeping mask - apply at the last step of your skincare routine before you go to bed
# as a soothing care - apply a layer of it over burn or irritated areas
# as a lighter moisturizer before and after beauty surgery and facial therapies
TEXTURE AND APPLICATION
The Neogence Gel Mask has jelly-like texture and will bounce like pudding when you shake the container. It's semi-transparent, with a pearly white appearance unlike the Laneige or Belif ones which are blue in colour. I'm sure no colouring agent is being added here. My skin immediately feels very moist and hydrated upon applying, and this feeling can last the whole night until I wake up the next morning. I like to scoop a handful of products (like 1 tablespoon) and enjoy of process of making my skin feeling plump and supply by slowly rubbing it in. It doesn't leave any greasy finish even though I put on a thick layer. Of course, absorption rate is a highly individual thing so I don't advise you to do it my way. Just find your own comfortable amount.
INGREDIENTS
(click here for Cosdna analysis)
Aqua, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Glycosyl Trehalose, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Triethanolamine, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Butylene Glycol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Propylene Glycol, Jojoba Wax PEG-120 Esters, Allantoin, Chlorphenesin, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Hyaluronate, o-Cymen-5-OL, Centella Asiatica Extract
INGREDIENTS ANALYSIS
It's important to note that this product contains a lot of dimethicone, a type of silicone that might be comedogenic (acne-triggering) for some people. Although there is a lot of controversies about the use of silicone in skincare products, dimethicone is generally regarded as safe to be used in cosmetics. It's a great skin protectant, emollient, and conditioner through preventing water loss by forming a hydrating barrier on the skin without being too heavy. It's present in almost every skincare products, and has been approved for use in skincare products by US FDA and CIR Expert Panel. Read here to find out more about dimethicone.
As you can see, this product contains a lot of humectants and moisturizers. Only 1 ingredient is flagged hazardous (4/5 on the scale). Glycosyl trehalose, one of the main moisturizers in this mask has great water-binding properties which allow skin to retain moisture when applied topically. Dicaprylyl carbonate is a plant-derived emollient which works by providing a protective film and enhancing the skin's lipid layer. It has excellent spreadability and will leave a dry and velvety feel to the skin. What's disappointed me the sodium hyaluronate which is marketized as one of the main ingredients here is present at the bottom of the list. As we know, ingredients list is a descending order of the portions of ingredients in this product. I feel cheated by the big HA attached to the packaging of the product.
Update 08/12/2015:
My recent research reveals that you can't have high concentration of Sodium Hyaluronate in your products otherwise it would be too sticky to apply or even crystallized.
Even Hadalabo Moisturizing Lotion which was famous of its HA content has HA listed near the bottom. As such, I conclude that it's perfectly acceptable for a gel mask as light as this to have minimal HA concentration.
Other ingredients except for moisturizers and humectants such as aloe vera extract, allantoin and centella asiatica extract are for cooling, soothing, and anti-bacterial purposes. Centella asiatica also has wrinkles-care, pores refining and skin regeneration functions.
Packaging ★★
Texture ★★★★☆
Ingredients ★★★★
Scent ★★★
Performance ★★★★☆
Texture ★★★★☆
Ingredients ★★★★
Scent ★★★
Performance ★★★★☆
CONCLUSION
In short, I really love the texture and the overall performance of this gel mask. This should be a A+ (90%++) product but I have to take out some points for its really less-than-impressive packaging, slightly decisive marketing vows and below-expectation ingredients list. However, with that ingredients, I would still say that this is a very nicely formulated product.
It sinks well into my skin without any greasy residues; soothes, cools and hydrates at the same time. Also, looking at the amount of moisturizers present here, you won't doubt the hydrating power of this gel mask. What's surprises me is how non-greasy and light it is. Something so light yet so hydrating really comes at a surprise for me! However, I don't quite agree with the revitalizing claim. In fact, centella asiatica extract, the only botanical extract with revitalizing function is almost non-existent here! Like, even less than the amount of preservative. Can you imagine that?
Another thing I want to point out is that, you can easily finish this tub really fast if you use it generously every other nights. I realize that I'm already 70% down the bottom one month after opening it so I've to slow it down to 1-2 times a week to have more time enjoying the product.
Any skin types can use this. This is a moisture-powerhouse for those with normal to combination skin; and is not heavy for oily skin either. I'm not exactly sure about dry to very dry skin types especially those living in cold and dry climates. I think this can supply but not retain moisture for those skin types. Since it contains allantoin, aloe vera extract and centella asiatica extract, this will work great to sooth and calm sensitive skin if you are not sensitive to dimethicone.
The bottom line is, I still enjoy using this gel mask very much despite some minor flaws. I'm not sure why the Neogence one isn't as popular as the Laneige one although I feel that the Neogence one fares better in terms of hydrating and soothing. Of course, Laneige one is more appealing and has better scent. It's also better marketized too. But, if you are bored of using Laneige and want to find something similar, do check out on this!
You can get this from: SASA Malaysia
[Disclaimer] This is NOT a sponsored review. Products are purchased with my own money. All copy right of contents and images in this article is strictly mine.
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