Shiseido is one of the oldest beauty companies in the world and existed in Japan since 1872. It is particularly successful because it has successfully infiltrated nearly every mainstream upper market retail store and has legions of diehard fans who swear by their beauty and their skincare products. The success of Shiseido has led them to create an even higher end line – Clea de Peau, and opened the doors for other asian brands, AmorePacific, Sulwahsoo, etc. This brand is kind of the opposite of what I like, the high-end avant niche, this is much more mainstream, and it isn’t known for being clean.
I received a bottle of their Super Correcting Serum at a beauty event our store held, and the first thing I noticed was how beautiful the bottle was. Shiny, futuristic, and streamlined are the words that pop into my head when describing it. The product itself is a “time fighting serum that delivers revolutionary solutions to counteract wrinkles, sagging, and dullness.” Immediate results are promised, and the star of the product, the Bio-Corrective Complex is said to promote production of collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid. Lofty promises.
Upon first use, I could tell this was formulated to appeal to a more mature set. The fragrance in this is dictionary “old lady fancy cream” smell. It wasn’t bad, but I’m not a fan of synthetic fragrance, it doesn’t really do anything and makes me think a lot of time was wasted trying to tune the smell, which to me really doesn’t matter for a skincare product. Upon application, I immediately recognized the ‘slick’ feeling and sure enough – this product is a silicone powerhouse!
water, dimethicone, glycerin, butylene glycol, dimethicone crosspolymer, betaine, talc, polysorbate 20, ammonium acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP copolymer, silica, alumina, titanium dioxide (CI 77891), PEG-150, polyvinyl alcohol, phenoxyethanol, mica, alanine, trisodium EDTA, tocopheryl acetate, sodium citrate, fragrance, sodium metaphosphate, serine, potassium hydroxide, citric acid, sodium metabisulfite, alpha-isomethyl ionone, benzyl benzoate, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, hexyl cinnamal, limonene, linalool, citronellol, geraniol, sodium acetylated hyaluronate, butylphenyl methylpropional, syzygium jambos leaf extract, carthamus tinctorius (safflower) flower extract
Of the top 5 ingredients, 2 are silicones. Judging from this list, it seems this is a product that mainly uses silicones and synthetic humectants to ‘smooth’ skin. This must be why they are promising immediate results, since silicones act right away to smooth fine lines — but the moment they are washed off, your lines are back! Also, notice how high ‘fragrance’ is listed, not cool.
I’m disappointed this product took so many shortcuts to deliver at best temporary results after the high praise it gave itself. After 14 days of use, I couldn’t bother using it anymore. It didn’t break me out (although it made my eyes water a little – so that isn’t good), but it really did not do anything good for my skin besides make it feel clogged with all the silicones. At $80 for 30mL, I cannot recommend this product.