It’s a case of the best of both beauty worlds. A powerful tag team of brightening and hydrating agents are the new skin superheroes in the additions to Clarins’ beloved White Plus Total Luminescent series.
Here’s why whitening and moisturising go hand-in-hand. The good folks at the Clarins Laboratories say that moist skin reflects light better and appears fairer. This makes a great deal of sense when you think of it, really: The high-shine mineral particles in your highlighter pens and eye shadows work on the same principle to deliver a glimmering finish.
To that end, the French prestige skincare brand has concocted a careful blend of botanical extracts it’s dubbed the Trans-Luminescent Complex – and it’s a doozy of a broth that reads like an “Avatar” sci-fi manual with its marriage of high-tech science with ancient alchemical lore.
The pretty pink petals of the sandspurry shrub, a key ingredient in the new range
For starters, tossed into the mix are specially formulated forms of hyaluronic acid with high and low “molecular weights”. Much like pebbles and stones dropped into a vase of water, these moisture magnets are said to sink into different layers of the epidermis, for plump skin that’s primed for the brightening benefits of botanicals like gingko biloba and exotic sandspurry extracts.
We’re particularly intrigued by the latter ingredient. Clarins says that its intrepid squadron of skin scientists settled on sandspurry extract after discovering that the shrub is used as a traditional freckle remedy in North African communities. Subsequent in-vitro tests by the brand have also proven sandspurry’s spot-clearing properties.
Interest piqued? Kickstart your new skincare regime with the Brightening Hydrating Emulsion, which comes with a pretty impressive SPF 20/PA+++ rating and is oil-free and doesn’t clog pores to boot. Mattifying and softening at the same time, apply this comforting fluid as a protective makeup base in the day.
For night, turn to the Smoothing Brightening Night Cream, which is vanishingly velvety in texture and throws in Indian kino tree extract for good measure. This plant is a natural exfoliator and gently polishes your skin for a surpassingly supple, radiantly rosy complexion the morning after. Repeat the cycle with the day emulsion and you’ll be hydrating and brightening your skin round the clock!
Clarins White Plus Total Luminescent Brightening Hydrating Emulsion SPF20/ PA+++, $100 for 75 ml, and Smoothing Brightening Night Cream, $110 for 50 ml, are available at all Clarins counters. For more information, visit www.clarins.com.sg and follow Clarins Singapore on Facebook.