The Easy-Going Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum

It’s befuddling how browsing the net could bring us to. I’m always astonished, because otherwise I won’t be able to find the vast amount of information and of course, new products to try.

It was just a harmless (yeah, right) snooping around a certain beauty website’s brands list and chanced upon this brand. I then proceeded and read a bit about the brand’s history and philosophy, including the founder’s story. And it was really a chemistry sparked from the get-go. So, I took the plunge.

Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum.

I have to admit the neon pink cap (and the rest of the products’ presentation) was the first thing that caught my eye. The simplicity of the line is what attracted me the most though; 2 facial bar soaps, 2 serums, 1 face oil and 1 sunscreen. I opted for the night serum first because it’s the one skincare product that I’d be more than happy to invest in.

There weren’t a lot of reviews when I purchased this. So, I suppose this is one of those rare, gambling moments. I didn’t necessarily know what to expect, honestly. I was just simply giving Drunk Elephant a try.

What it is:

A 10% glycolic serum for night that refines and resurfaces skin by gently dissolving the glue that holds dead skin cells to the surface and increasing collagen production. Formulated with a “dream team” of AHA’s designed to reveal a smoother and more radiant complexion, T.L.C. Framboos™ enhances the performance of other products by clearing the way for maximum absorption.

What it is formulated to do:

It is a refreshing, hydrating gel that resurfaces dull, congested skin by gently lifting dead skin cells away, revealing an even-toned and radiant complexion. Fine lines, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation and other signs of aging will be greatly diminished, along with excess oiliness, acne and the appearance of pores. (read more here)

The Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum contains a blend of glycolic, lactic, tartaric, citric and salicylic acids which led me to think that this is most definitely an exfoliating serum.

Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum comes in an opaque white plastic bottle with a pump. There’s a few pros and cons about this. First off, I like that the bottle is opaque, means the serum will not be exposed to sunlight. But, I will never know how much is left inside, I’d have to guesstimate eventually. Of course, since it’s plastic, I’m not worried carrying this around during my traveling trips. The pump mechanism is not the best. I can’t adjust the amount of product coming out. It’s like a one-pump-fits-all type of thing. Thank goodness one pump is actually enough for me. Probably a touch too much, but I like to layer a little bit more on concerned areas. So that works out to be just alright.

I have been using Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum for the past 5 months, night time only. I use it in several different ways, first one being using it for 7 days straight then going back to my normal regime for the rest of the month. The second one is using it every other day. Sometimes I’d do 3 days straight in a week for a few weeks. No matter which one I did though, I never went overboard, as in using it more than 7 days straight. The skin needs time to regenerate and I will let it do its thing.

To make it fair, I restrained to use Sunday Riley Good Genes in my nighttime routine. Well, I did cheat once in a while, but that’s just when I needed a booster on my weekends or if I had special occasions to attend to.

Opening the box makes me feel I’m in for a treat.

I will say for an exfoliating serum, this is considered in the mild category for me. I never experience any stinging sensation whatsoever, even if my skin was feeling sensitive that night. Because of this, I’m able to incorporate this serum into my regime every week.

I wasn’t wowed by it in the beginning, but I keep using it because I really like the texture and how my skin feels afterwards. The clear gel texture is actually working really well on my skin. I don’t detect any scent, which is quite nice though rather odd. It takes just a bit of time working in the serum on my skin, leaving my skin just the tiniest bit sticky. I don’t experience that my-face-got-stuck-to-the-pillow that I get from FAB Facial Radiance Overnight Mask though. I leave it for about 10-15 minutes before moving on to applying my moisturizer/face oil.

My current favorite way of using this serum is to combine hydrating and moisturizing products to go with it. After double-cleansing and massaging/mask, I will apply Menard Fairlucent Clear Lotion as my exfoliating toner, Menard Lisciare Lotion extra moist as my hydrating toner, Shiseido Ultimune, Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum then wrap everything in with Menard Lisciare Cream extra moist. I’ve been sticking to this regime for quite sometime now, again, maximum 7 days straight, but I’ve been incorporating it for 3-4 times every week. I find this routine has worked to show the full potential of the Framboos Serum. I especially love this particular routine because it makes my skin feels like marshmallow!

The difference, or shall I say the improvements, are rather subtle that I didn’t see them right away. It’s like putting a puzzle piece by piece and after a while, I’m starting to see the bigger picture. And this is the case with Framboos Serum. With the exception for one (hormonal, I suspect) breakout on under the cheekbone area that I had to endure for about a month or so, the rest of my skin has always looked clear and in-check since I started using this.

It’s not the crystal clear-type, but the radiant, even-toned type. It’s not glowing-glow sheeny per-se (something that I find in Sunday Riley Good Genes), but it’s the type that gives me the effect of my-skin-but-better look, which is always welcome in my book. My skin looks smoother by the day, and I can see this improvement on my off-days from this serum and of course, when I apply my makeup. And it shows in photographs too, at least to my own eyes 😀

To anyone who might ask which one is better between Framboos Serum and Sunday Riley Good Genes, I will say that they have different purposes for me. Good Genes is more and always have been a treatment (exfoliating) serum for me and I’m always more cautious whenever I use this. The results are undoubtedly life-changing for me, but I can’t use it all the time because it is very potent and I don’t want to risk of over-exfoliating.

Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum, on the other hand, sits in my maintenance-category skincare. I feel that I can apply this on my skin in all conditions. It is not the greatest serum ever with swift and dazzling results, but I love it because that this serum plays incredibly well with pretty much every other skincare products that I apply beforehand and afterwards. And I don’t have that concern that I might go overboard because of its mild characteristics. The serum’s versatility allows me to experiment more and use my other specific or targeted skincare products, such as exfoliating toners, essence/pre-serums, moisturizers, face oils and sleeping masks. It fills in the gap and my need in finding a formidable daily serum.

In a nutshell, Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum has become the no-brainer serum in my nighttime skincare routine and whenever I’m feeling experimental. I am seriously thrilled I found this serum and took a gamble that paid off 🙂