This post contains an item that was gifted to me for free in exchange for an honest review and a post on Instagram. This post was not created as part of my collaboration with the company and are truly my own unbiased opinion(s). Please read the Affiliate Disclaimer page for more information.

Remember when I posted a while ago about my paid collaboration with Aspire Cosmetics and talked about a skincare giveaway? I know that was like early or mid January when I did that and received my gifted item from them as well, but I figured it was time I write a proper review about the skincare item I got, THELAVICOS The Most Active Gel Serum!

If you didn’t know already, I have a combination of an oily and dry face. During the winter, my face peels and cracks and yet still remains quite oily. It’s really gross … I’m sure some of you know that struggle!

I currently use the Body Wash Seaweed cleanser as well as the Seaweed oil-balancing toner and think they work nicely. However, my current moisturizer (which is an in-shower moisturizer) just wasn’t doing it for me anymore. It still left my skin dry and feeling very dehydrated. In came Aspire Cosmetics, a Korean beauty product company based in Canada, who kindly gifted me an item of my choice. Their website is still “under construction” but I’m linking them anyway! They officially open in a few days so watch out for their site if you want to score a few deals there!

THELAVICOS

I had so many different skincare lines from their catalog to choose from! I had to narrow it down from the skincare line and then to what specific item I wanted and ended up choosing the gel serum from THELAVICOS Most Active Skincare line. This lineup contains:

• Toner
• Emulsion
• Gel Serum
• Gel Cream (or Active Cream)
• Hydra Mask

Why so many products?? My post from last week talked about the different Beauty Routines From Around the World and briefly covered South Korea’s extensive and long 10-step beauty / skincare regimen. This skincare line only contains a few of those that would be in that 10 step routine!

Anyway, I decided to go with this one because this line was developed to deeply hydrate rough and dry skin (aka my scaly reptile skin).

What are the ingredients?

THELAVICOS The Most Active Skin Care contains some interesting ingredients that I’ve never heard of nor used in beauty products before, such as:

• Ulleungdo deep sea water
• 6 types of algae extracts from the sea of Jeju
• Oligo-HA

The Island of Ulleungdo is serene, clean, and its ecosystem largely untouched, as is a natural refuge. It’s considered a “mystery” and “sacred” island where the energy of the land and sky meet. It’s thought to have formed after many volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. For most of its history, this island was uninhabited, thus explaining the well-preserved surroundings. Ulleungdo is regarded by South Koreans as the most spiritual destination, thus the water surrounding this mystical place is said to be rich in minerals and have healing energy.

The 6 types of algae extracts from the sea of Jeju contain hydrating and healing properties for the skin. Random fun fact: as I was researching about the algae extracts, it turns out that about 22 other algaes in the sea of Jeju were found to have ACE inhibitor properties, which helps to treat hypertension and heart failure.

Oligo-HA is Hyaluronic acid ULMW, which activates skin stem cells to reduce wrinkles and helps tighten skin.

The gel serum and emulsion kind of had similar descriptions of what they do, so I just picked the serum at random. It claimed to be non-greasy and highly absorbing, instantly hydrating the skin.

First Impressions

The packaging is very sleek and simple, in which a short set of instructions are written on the side of the box (the rest of the writing there are in Korean). There was a paper leaflet inside besides the gel serum, which talked about the whole product lineup, as well as other THELAVICOS products that are more focused on anti-aging or SPF protection, etc.

I don’t have any of the emulsion or what have you, but I just simply used it after using my cleanser and toner from the Body Shop. The gel serum is a white cream that is light and smooth on the skin. Not to mention that it has a lovely, light fragrance!

Soon after putting it on, my face actually started warming up – mostly on my cheeks. No, it’s not because I have an allergic reaction or that I was rubbing my face all over like a maniac. My skin fully absorbed the gel serum in a matter of a minute or so, leaving my face looking and feeling soft and hydrated. I loved that it was light, breathable, non-greasy, and not sticky! I use two pea sizes (or a pea and a half?) for my face, as my forehead and cheeks tend to get really dry.

Longer Term Use

I’ve been using the THELAVICOS gel serum for about two months now and I’m still loving it! In fact, I noticed that it keeps my face soft and hydrated for even longer periods of time. Sometimes after washing my face and applying toner, I forget to apply the serum (I know, tsk tsk). Before having used the gel serum, I would’ve realized I had forgotten to apply a moisturizer on my face because my face feels incredibly stiff and dry. However, my face still stays amazingly soft and supple without applying it. This is not to say you should skip out on your regular skincare routine, but rather to prove a point that this thing actually works!

The Final Verdict

All in all, would I recommend it? Totally! It accomplishes what it claims to do – keep my face hydrated! I was fortunate to have received this product in the middle of winter when my face was going through dry, rough times. Thanks Aspire Cosmetics!

Aspire Cosmetics Instagram Page

Pin It!

18