Recently I was given the opportunity to try some new Olay products.
Disclaimer: Products provided free as part of a survey panel. No review was required to be written online, but I just felt like sharing 🙂
The products are (pictured left to right):
- Olay Total Effects Cream Normal 50g
- Olay Total Effects Pore Minimising Toner 150ml
- Olay Total Effects Pore Minimising CC Cream 50g
The Pore Minimising products are so new, that I can’t even find the official Australian webpages for them yet! (Edit on 6 March 2015, links now added). The star active ingredient of all three products is
niacinamide, which is proven to help treat uneven skin tone and the red marks (hyperpigmentation) left after acne. Even better that niacinamide is listed as either the third or fourth ingredient for these products, and not near the bottom. Actually, niacinamide is featured quite heavily in a lot of Olay’s promoted products, especially their pricier lines, like
Regenerist.
Anyway, read on to find my opinion on this new range!
1. Olay Total Effects Cream Normal
This is classic for a good reason! This is not actually part of the new range, but I wanted to start with this one. After almost three weeks of continued use of this moisturiser, I really do think my skin appears more radiant and even-toned. And no trickery use of mica either, which I detest in skincare products. Make-up okay, but not skincare. It’s very creamy in texture and applies easily. It doesn’t feel like I have a thick layer on. It is fairly moisturising, but with my dehydrated skin, I need boosters through serums
and Hada Labo lotion. Unfortunately, the silicone heavy formula means it can
visually accumulate on my skin when I’m using more products on top, like sunscreen, but especially make up. After a bit of over a month’s trial and error, my tip for preventing this is don’t use too much. I think I was being too generous with my initial pumps. Less product will be reduce the probability of balling. Overall, this is another
recommend from me! This is priced at $32.99, so I would recommend waiting for a sale. A 40% off sale at Priceline would bring this down to just under $20, which I think is fair price to pay for such an effective product.
2. Olay Total Effects Pore Minimising Toner
This product is supposed to be used straight after cleansing and I really enjoyed using this product. The product feels watery and looks clear. It’s a refreshing toner. Unfortunately, ingredients do list alcohol and menthol, which can be irritating. Olay tries to balance these bad ingredients with various plant extracts, like cucumber, aloe, snow fungus, kelp and mulberry, so I feel that the toner doesn’t make my skin tight. I use this Asian style in the morning (pour on hand and pat into face) and Western style at night (pour on cotton pad and wipe skin). Despite double cleansing at night, the pad still does not wipe clean! Probably more an indication that I need to change my cleansers! Has it made my pores smaller? Unrealistic to say yes, but I do feel like my skin is cleaner after using this product. And cleaner and clearer pores can give the illusion of smaller pores! I don’t know what the pricing of this will be, but if it’s reasonable, this is a recommend from me!
Edit on 6 March 2015: The product has now finally been released. The RRP is $15.99. I would deem this reasonable pricing, but still recommend to wait for a sale. More of $10 type of product.
3. Olay Total Effects Pore Minimising CC Cream
I was supposed to trial all products at least for 14 days, but I couldn’t do it with it this one. I was quite excited to get a new CC cream as I was running low on full size foundation products in my stockpile. CC stands for Colour Corrector and they are supposed to be similar to tinted moisturisers. I was given Light which is really light. Anyhow, the shade doesn’t matter anyway, as this provides like only 1% coverage! I had been thinking that another CC product I was using had low coverage, but this Olay one is almost nothing! I would equate this CC cream more to those instablur/nanoblur type of primers, which “blur” out some imperfections like fine lines and pores using silicones. Personally, I found this just sat in my pores and I also felt that it contributed to skin congestion. It has SPF15 which is fair, but I really think SPF30 should be minimum in Australia. That said, I have no idea of the UVA protection, since Australia is so behind on UVA protection labelling. According to packaging claims, it can be used as a sole moisturiser. My response: No way! This is not hydrating at all! Also, when applying, I felt fine grits, which kind of hurts my sensitive skin! And then after application, my skin also felt a bit itchy. Unfortunately, this is a not recommend from me.
Edit on 6 March 2015: The advertising copy for this particular product is laughable! “
I want a Flawless Finish without an Airbrush”! Sorry, but you won’t get even close to this unless you already have relatively good skin. Apparently the RRP for the 50g version of this product (the one I received, but it appears a 20g version is also available) is $39.99! Oh my God! Bahahaha! For that price, go and get a real foundation!
Summary
Well, as they say, two out of three ain’t bad. The Total Effects Cream is available now. Not sure when the Pore Minimising products will be, but keep a look out to see whether the range is for you!
Free sparkly Necklace and $20 voucher from 
With the Vogue coupon, I dropped by the Myer Melbourne store yesterday and received these 5 free goodies!
tanoshii.ki 