skin brightener

Nothing has the ability to make you feel older then looking down at your hands and seeing brown spots! Of course your hands get the most sun exposure and few people remember to apply sunscreen there so that doesn't ease the problem.  There is help!  Just keep in mind that if you are going to go to all the trouble of banishing the brown spots, you will have to remember your sunscreen or they will return!

La Roche-Posay Mela-D Hands - 50ml - $18 - fragrance and paraben free, it contains Kojic Acid + LHA to help slough off dark, dead cells on the skin surface to promote a brighter and more even skin tone.  I love the feel of this cream and how quickly it absorbs! I do have a couple of freckles on my hands which are still there, a little lighter but still there - but I do think my hands look brighter and more evenly toned and it's a good moisturizer.  I think if I really wanted the freckles gone I would need to use this for much longer!


Avon Anew Clinical Luminosity Pro Brightening Hand Cream SPF 15 - 75g - $15 - formulated with injectable-grade L-Aspartic acid to help inhibit pigment production and reduce the look of dark spots as well as visibly retexturizes skin's appearance for younger-looking hands.Dramatically reduces the look of creepiness and fine lines in just one week.  I think having the sunscreen built into the cream makes all the difference with seeing results - it's so easy to forget and not having it undoes all the work of applying a lightening cream.  It does take a little extra rubbing for it to absorb because of it though.
Available from your Avon rep 1-800-265-AVON or online at www.avon.ca

MD SkinCare by Dr. Dennis Gross Hydra-Pure Vitamin C Brightening Serum - 30ml - $112 - with an 18% Vitamin C complex - a lot of vitamin C products don't have much of the actual vitamin in them so I was happy to find this one - 18% is a decent amount!  The packaging is great, to use it the top swivels and then pops up to show the pump, when you close it, the pump swivels back down - this way no air can get in and mess with the active ingredients.  I did find it quite thick for a serum, so I actually used it in place of a moisturizer as well, which was fine for me during the summer weather, with sunscreen on top of course!  I had heard other people complain that it was very irritating, burned and felt stingy but I didn't experience any of these issues - I would recommend doing a test patch first to make sure you aren't going to react - get Sephora to make you a little sample of this first so you don't shell out big bucks for something that isn't going to work for you!  I definitely did notice that my skin looked brighter and felt smoother when I was using it, so I'm a fan!  My only disappointment with it - it doesn't smell like citrus, which I love in Vitamin C products!

And Canadians will find it easier to get their mitts on the line - The Shopping Channel is now carrying it!  They don't actually have this serum, but if you are a fan of the line, they do have some of the line's other products.  You can check it out at www.theshoppingchannel.com And of course you can also find the line at Sephora and selected The Bay locations including The Bay at 2 Bloor Street, Toronto ON - go to the store locator to see all of the other retail locations - http://www.dgskincare.com/locator_js.cfm

Avon Anew Clinical Luminosity Pro Brightening Serum - 30ml - $60 - brightening gel helps remove dull skin cells to visibly retexturize the skin's appearance.  Anti-Dark Spot helix is formulated with injectable-grade L-Aspartic acid to help inhibit pigment production that causes dark spots.  Instantly makes skin look brighter and more even-toned.  Formulated for all skin tones and types.  Use every evening after cleansing and before moisturizing.  Again I found this way too thick to be called a serum -  I never used moisturizer on top, it was enough moisture for me on its own.  I thought the texture was very silicon-like, much like a face primer.  I really like the overnight factor with this one, waking up with bright, soft skin before I even do anything to myself in the morning is a big improvement over my usual early morning look!  I did find that this serum felt very greasy on the oily parts of my face so I ended up using it very sparingly in those areas.

Available through your friendly Avon rep 1-800-265-AVON or online at www.avon.ca
Clarins Gentle Exfoliator Brightening Toner - 125ml - $34 - if you are super oily and prefer not to use serums you might want to try a toner instead.  Use it 1 to 2 times a week and make sure you use your sun protection as the AHA's in it may increase your sun sensitivity.  It also contains tamarind for gentle exfoliation and white nettle to refine enlarged pores.

And if you're still looking for more brightener reviews you can check out a couple of my other favourite brighteners which I reviewed previously:  NeoStrata Intense Skin Brightener and Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector