Product Review: SK-II WS Derm-Renewal Essence

 

I'm running into formatting issues when sending pictures directly from my phone as opposed to when I upload it to my computer then creating the blog.  Oh, well.  As they say, the show must go on!

The claims regarding the SK-II Whitening Source (WS) Derm-Renewal Essence are as follows:

SK-II WS Derm-Renewal Essence gently removes the dead skin cells on face, nourishes your skin with hydrating ingredients such as Pitera and stimulates the growth of healthy skin-cells.  SK-II WS Derm-Renewal Essence helps to improve the texture and moisture balance of your skin in the long-term.  Contains no fragrance.

I am not paid to do product reviews; everything you read here is based on my experiences with this product.  Please read my About Me page.

This product a mask.  Apply it on clean skin and leave on for 10-15 minutes.  Rinse off.

Contains no fragrance

It definitely doesn't contain fragrance of either the candy sweet, fruity sweet, or floral variety.  It smells like a concentrated form of SK-II Facial Treatment Essence.

Gently removes dead skin cells

I like to apply this in the shower after I have used my JnJ Head-to-Toe Baby Wash to cleanse off all my makeup.  Whenever I apply this, I can feel a slight tingling sensation on my skin, which is the product working to removing dead skin cells.  I can tell that my skin feels softer and smoother after rinsing this off.

Nourishes skin with hydrating ingredients such as Pitera

All SK-II products contain Pitera, the brand's legendary secret ingredient to softer, smoother, and hydrated skin, so I believe that there is a bit of Pitera in this product to maintain hydration in my skin.  However, I don't believe that you can rely on this solely to deliver Pitera and hydration to your skin.  You definitely need another moisturizer or serum to lock in the benefits of the mask.  The immediate benefits of the hydration is that my fine lines under my eyes and on my upper cheeks are immediately lessened.  They don't disappear, but they look less like developing wrinkles.

Stimulates the growth of healthy skin cells

Based on an age/sun spot assessment, this product doesn't seem to be working because my age spots don't look diminished.  However, the areas between my under-eye and nostrils seem more radiant and clear.  My usually visible pores seem a little tighter, though not completely diminished.

Improves texture and moisture balance in the long-term

I think that if used consistently, this product will go a long way to helping you maintain the elements of great skin.  However, I'm too impatient to try new things so I probably will not have a chance to see how long is "long-term."  Food for thought: if this mask is good for short-term improvements, think only of how well it will work over time. 

Final Verdict

Even though SK-II has a special place in my heart, I probably will not repurchase this mask.  I think that there are other masks (like my Envie de Neuf Platinum CellWhite masks) on the market that do the same thing as this mask, and will also help target my age/sun spots.