Azure Naturals Retinol Serum Initial Impressions Review + GIVEAWAY!

I am mentioning this in all of my posts for Vitamin C, Hyaluronic Acid and Retinol Serum reviews

For the next several weeks, I will be reviewing several different types of Vitamin C serums and Hyaluronic Acid serums.  I have done past reviews on these types of products recently and in case you are wondering why I have so many…here’s why.   I belong to the Tomoson network, and they connect bloggers and businesses together to review products.  I have had good luck in being accepted in several campaigns and I pick ones that are of interest to me.  As I just started derma-rolling, my interest in Vitamin C, Hyaluronic and Retinol serums has increased, because it is very important to use good products on your face after you derma roll.

I received Azure Naturals Ultimate Retinol Serum in return for my honest and unbiased  review from Tomoson.   I am also hosting a Giveaway (USA address only) for this serum, so please read my review and enter in my Giveaway at the end of this post.

About Azure Naturals Ultimate Retinol Serum

• HOW DOES IT WORK? Cellular renewal happens continuously when we’re young, but as we age the skin’s ability to renew itself slows down. Retinol has a very small molecular structure that allows it to deeply penetrate your skin activating collagen and elastin. Applied at night ULTIMATE Retinol will increase your skin’s moisture, promoting cellular turnover and renewal.
• VITAMIN A WORKS! Retinol is one of the most effective ingredients for reducing fine lines and wrinkles. Vitamin A is proven to improve pigmentation, fine lines, wrinkles, skin texture, skin tone, color, as well as increase your skins hydration levels. ULTIMATE RETINOL is the most advanced Retinol product currently available. We have designed a delivery system that allows very high strength 2.5% Retinol to be used around the eyes and even by people with sensitive skin. Our elegant suspension of Retinol combined with a synergistic blend of other active ingredients, softens and heals the skin.
• HOW DO YOU RECEIVE OPTIMAL RESULTS? Start using in your late twenties or early thirties. Early use of Retinol can combat fine lines before they become apparent. If you don’t have prior experience using Retinol products start slowly and be consistent with your use. Apply a small amount every other day, after a couple of weeks you can begin applying more frequently as your skin adapts. Just like exercise, it is very important to use your skin care products consistently. If you do experience any irritation decrease usage for a few days and work your way back up after that.

Azure Naturals Ultimate Retinol Serum not only contains a professional strength percentage of 2.5% retinol, but 10% hyaluronic acid, which can attract and retain more than thousand times their weight in water (source), thus giving our skin more hydration and plump up and smooth out fine lines and wrinkles.

Retinol is a Vitamin A derivative and is a very potent antioxidant that helps combat not only aging concerns, but also helps with acne and troubled skin.  Not only does retinol help with fine lines, wrinkles,  hyper-pigmentation due to aging and sun damage, acne, but reduces and heals scarring and discoloration from scars from acne, along with increasing the moisture level in your skin, boosting collagen and elastin production and speeding up cell turnover, inhibit free radical skin cell damage and exfoliating dead skin cells.  Retinol also increases blood vessels formation, so that helps with circulation, which in turn makes your skin look healthy and bright.   I’ve mentioned this bit before when talking about retinol, but I will repeat it again here:

As we age, we naturally will develop fine lines, wrinkles, sun damage, hyper-pigmentation and other signs of skin aging.  Retinol (Vitamin A) is an ingredients that can “talk” to your cells and remind them to be healthy.  Seriously, this is called a “cell communication” ingredient:  

Cell-communicating ingredients, theoretically, have the ability to tell a skin cell to look, act, and behave better, more like a normal healthy skin cell would, or to stop other substances from telling the cell to behave badly or abnormally. They do this by either direct communication with the skin cell or by blocking damaging cellular pathways or other cell-communicating substances. Cell-communicating ingredients complement antioxidants to improve skin-cell function. (source)  

 

Azure Naturals Ultimate Retinol Serum comes in a dark bottle with a pump applicator, which is my preferred applicator type over eye droppers.  This is a clear, thicker gel ~ not watery ~ but medium weight, in the consistency of aloe vera gel.   It has a scent of herbal botanical, due to the organic herbal infusion ingredient. This serum absorbs quickly into my skin as I massage it in for full absorbance.  I like to use retinol only in the evening, not in the morning.

 

As this is a serum, the product will initially leave my skin hydrated, but as it penetrates deeper into my dermal layer, I will not notice the product on my skin anymore.  That is what a serum does ~ it does not just sit on the top layer.  I always follow up with a moisturizer, as that will lock in the nutrients from this serum in my skin and also provide a hydrating, moisture barrier on my facial skin.  Since retinol can cause UV sensitivity, always use a SPF product, whether it is in your moisturizer or foundation/BB creams; otherwise, you are more susceptible to hyper-pigmentation.

This product also contains a few more good ingredients worthy of note:

• Hyaluronic Acid ~ absorbs water, locks in moisture and creates cell “plumpness”
• Organic Jojoba Oil ~ a natural emollient that has a similar structure to your own sebum allows this oil to absorb easily into your skin
• Phospholipids ~ powerful humectant, usually derived from soy lecithin,  that is “very effective in mimicking and enhancing the skin’s ability to retain moisture and protect it from external factors.” (source)
  
• Vitamin E ~ The antioxidants of all antioxidants ~ prevents free radical formation, protects the upper skin layer from initial harmful UV radiation and prevents the deterioration of fats in your cell membranes.
• Green Tea Extract ~ Green Tea contains antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties, as well as the ability to prevent collagen breakdown and reduces UV sun damage to your skin.
• Propolis (Wildcrafted Resina Propoli)  ~  this resinous material gathered by honeybee, mixed with their enzymes, is a powerful antiseptic,  anti-microbial and anti-fungal, as well as antioxidant, preventing cell damage
• Witch Hazel ~ an anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial (soothes and heals the skin), astringent (due to the large quantity of tannins), and locks in moisture to your skin
• Triticum Vulgare (wheat germ oil) ~ a skin conditioner, full of Vitamin E, which is beneficial to your skin
  
• Aloe Vera ~ soothes and heals sun burns, tones skin, shrinks pores, and is a rich source of silicon to help the skin regenerate

This product does not contain Vitamin C, so I do not mind that it has sodium benzoate, which is only controversial if the product list specifically contained Vitamin C.   This serum is made with 97% natural and 72% organic ingredients, contains no alcohol, parabens and GMO’s.  Azure Naturals Ultimate Retinol serum is plant based, cruelty free, never tested on animals and made in the USA.

What is “Organic Herbal Infusion”?  I asked Azure Naturals, as I am curious about this particular ingredient that seems to be a common one in many organic/natural products and it is the first ingredient in their list.   Their response

“Organic Herbal Infusion is a mixture of Organic Gotu Kola, Organic Geranium, Organic Horsetail, and Organic Dandelion.

• Organic Gotu Kola works specifically to stimulate the production of collagen in the skin, as well as the growth of new skin cells. This translates into renewed, supple and youthful skin.
• Organic Horsetail, also know as shavegrass, contains a highly concentrated form of Silica. Silica is an age old beauty secret and is a building block of hair, skin, and nails.
• Organic Geranium promotes the regeneration of skin tissue, helps treat acne, reduces inflammation, heals wounds, and reduces wrinkles.
• Organic Dandelion helps prevent the degeneration of skin cells and DNA, halting free radical damage.”

I have added those ingredients in the list below, to help with the cosmetic analysis of the serum

Ingredients: Organic Herbal Infusion (gotu kola, geranium, horsetail, dandelion), Organic Aloe, Botanical Hyaluronic Acid, Witch Hazel, Pentylene Glycol, Phospholipids, Retinol, Polysorbate 20, Potassium Phosphate, Hydroxyethyl Cellulose, Carrageenan Gum, Organic Jojoba Oil, Triticum Vulgare, Vitamin E (Tocopheryl Acetate), Organic Green Tea, Wildcrafted Resina Propoli, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Ethyl Hexyl Glycerin cosDNA.com analysis

Azure Naturals has a 1 year 100% money back guarantee if you are not happy with your purchase.  This product is made in the USA.  Azure Naturals Ultimate Retinol Serum retails at amazon.com for $23.95 for a 1 oz bottle or $38.95 for a 2 oz bottle

Azure Naturals has promos you can use on Amazon.com so you can save up to 25% off your order.

• Special Promo Code for my readers ~  AZURES20 promo code for  20% off, expires February 14th, 2015
  
• Buy 1 Bottle of ULTIMATE RETINOL Serum and Receive 20% Off Our ULTIMATE RETINOL Moisturizer!   **
• Buy 1 Bottle of ULTIMATE VITAMIN C Serum and Receive 20% Off Our ULTIMATE RETINOL Serum! **
• 20% off your entire order when you purchase 3 or more Azure Naturals products! Build your own gift set! Enter code AZUREH20 at checkout.
• 25% off your entire order when you purchase 5 or more Azure Naturals products! Build your own gift set! Enter code AZUREH25 at checkout.

** To take advantage of this offer, you must do the following on amazon.com

• Add all products described in the promotion to your Shopping Cart in one of two ways:
• Via the “Add both to Cart” button in the promotion description, OR
• Via the “Add to Shopping Cart” button on each respective product information page.

GIVEAWAY

Azure Naturals is giving one of my lucky USA readers a free bottle of their Ultimate Retinol Serum.   I am so pleased to offer this chance to you.

Here is what you can win ~ 1 oz bottle of Azure Naturals Ultimate 2.5% Retinol Serum, valued at $23.95

This contest is only for USA residents only.  Okay, read the next few sections so you know what to expect…Gotta have the disclaimers!

What you need to do to enter

• Use the Entry Link below to enter via Rafflecoper.  This will open a new page with the entry form.  This is legit as my copy of wordpress does not allow me to embed the entry form directly into my blog.
• All entries will be verified and anyone who has multiple accounts will be disqualified.
• Qualified entries will then be randomly drawn.
• I will notify the winner within 24 hours of the contest close. The winner will have 36 hours from then to contact me  with the following information:  your email address
• If the winner does not contact me within 36 hours,  another winner will be selected and the original entry is null and void

What you need to know

beautyfindsforme/unboxing beauty is me 🙂

By entering, you are agreeing to all of the following items:

• beautyfindsforme is not responsible for the products contained in the boxes, shipping, lost, damaged, stolen boxes or any other issues with Azure Naturals.  These are being shipped directly from Azure Naturals and not beautyfindsforme.
• The winner is responsible for verifying the products and their contents and to determine the suitability of those products for their own needs.  beautyfindsforme is not responsible for the actual products and ingredients.
• This giveaway is open only to USA
• You must be 18 years of age or older (or the age of majority in your own country), or must have the express permission of a parent or legal guardian to enter and receive the prize.
• beautyfindsforme will verify the winner and notify the winner through email, in order to get the winner’s name and shipping address ~ must be in the USA. 
• beautyfindsforme will send the winner’s name and address to Azure Naturals and Azure Naturals will ship out the product to the winner

 

Just click on this link or the image below and enter!  Good luck!  This contest begins on 2/1 12 am EST and runs until  2/8 12 am EST.

 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.