COSRX ADVANCED SNAIL 96 POWER ESSENCE - SKINCHEM SCIENCES PRODUCT REVIEW

 COSRX ADVANCED SNAIL 96 POWER ESSENCE 

Hello, my beauty geeks!! Let's take a deep dive into this K-beauty cult favourite product, COSRX ADVANCED SNAIL 96 POWER ESSENCE.  I've been using this essence for over a year now and have mixed feelings regarding it.  Keep reading to find out more. 😘

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

Product Type - Skincare - Essence 

Brand - COSRX, Korea

Product Name - Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence 

Price - $25 or ~ Rs. 1850 (as on the official brand website) for 100ml (3.38 fl.oz.)

(Is available for Rs. 1250 - Rs.1 350 on other Indian websites but the price keeps changing)

Sizes - Available in a 30ml, 20ml and a sachet trial pack for $9, $5 and $1 respectively. 

Shelf life - 26 months from the date of manufacturing

Manufactured in Korea by COREA COSMEDICAL CENTER CO., LTD.

Brand Story - We have collected what our customers need and want regarding their skin concerns since 2002 and finally, “Cosmetics + Rx = COSRX” was founded in 2013. Jun Sang-Hun, who is the CEO of COSRX founded the company, formally on 16 December 2013. “EXPECTING TOMORROW” is the brand slogan. With skin-friendly ingredients that alleviate irritated skin, we want to provide a better tomorrow for our customers. Our perspective on beauty has always been in touch with our customers’ lifestyles. We provide the most ideal solutions that care for skin problems.

Product Story - It is a lightweight essence that absorbs into the skin fast to give skin a natural glow from the inside. This high-concentrated snail mucin essence protects the skin from moisture loss while keeping the skin texture smooth and healthy. This lightweight essence brings a natural glow to the skin without any residue. It is highly effective for hydrating and soothing damaged skin. This essence is created from nutritious, low-stimulation filtered snail mucin to keep your skin moisturized and illuminated all day. 

Product Claims - Helps the skin lose less moisture while keeping the skin smooth and healthy. It claims to give a natural glow from healthy skin, revitalize and soothe damaged skin. 

Ingredients - Snail Secretion Filtrate, Betaine, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium Polyacrylate, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Allantoin, Ethyl Hexanediol, Carbomer, Panthenol, Arginine

Find a detailed ingredient review and explanation HERE

 

MY THOUGHTS ON THE COSRX SNAIL MUCIN POWER ESSENCE 

It comes in elegant white packaging, a transparent bottle (which looks quite good on my rack),  a pump dispenser and a clear lid. The bottle is quite sturdy and does not feel cheap (I'll be honest it did fall down from my hand quite a few times but it didn't spill or break.) 

The consistency of the essence is very slimy, syrupy but does not feel sticky or tacky on the skin once absorbed. It does not smell snail-y (which by the way if it did, I wouldn't be writing this review because I'd never buy it in the first place) or like anything at all, it has no added fragrance or essential oils for perfuming (which I'm quite surprised wasn't needed despite the origin of the product). It has a mild smell (which is due to the ingredients) when you're new to it but will feel non-existent once your nose gets used to it. It takes some time to get absorbed but leaves a plump, hydrated feel behind (which I'm not complaining about). It is going to last you a while as only 2 pumps are required to cover my whole face and jaws and 1 pump was enough to cover my whole neck. 

                                                        

Now coming to the claims, it claims to keep skin hydrated, smooth and healthy which it definitely did. It also claims to give a natural glow which again, it did. It was my saviour when I got rashes from shaving my face so it does soothe damaged skin but do not use it on broken skin because you do not want snail mucin running in your blood (you don't right? ). My skin felt smooth, moisturized, hydrated and plump but I did get a few red, itchy rashes on the central part of my face (beside the nose bridge on both sides)  (read the MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE SNAIL MUCIN section). It did lighten my hyperpigmentation to some extent and it did not cause me any additional breakouts during the winters. It was not my favourite in the summers because I live in a humid city and it felt tacky, oily on my skin and did not absorb well. Anyways, it definitely gave my skin a healthy glow and improved my overall skin health.  

One thing to keep in mind while using this essence is that it has snail mucin, which is an active and the formula itself is quite concentrated. It contains 96.3% snail mucin, which you will know is a lot in the world of actives if you've been as indulged in the industry as I am. Generally, snail mucin is a highly tolerated ingredient i.e. people generally do not face any irritation or allergies from snail mucin. It is free of alcohol, fragrance and essential oils so compatible with sensitive skin as well. However, there are some people who can not tolerate snail mucin and are allergic to it. There isn't enough research and study in the snail mucin domain on its allergic reactions so it's a good idea to do a patch test before using it on your cute little faces. 

Many of you might be concerned that it is an animal-derived product but you don't have to worry about hurting any snails. Any animal tested product or animal-derived products by harming them is not legal to be marketed, sold or distributed in Korea. So rest assured that no snails were hurt during the process. However, there are some sources claiming that the mucin released by snails when they are 'happy' is not as effective and beneficial and do not hold the same moisturizing and hydrating properties as the 'stress-induced' mucin. However,  COSRX claims their products are cruelty-free and that the snails are placed over a mesh in a dark and quiet room, where they are left alone to freely roam the net and leave mucin in their trails. There is no external process applied or the mesh to force mucin production.

(However, if you are a vegan you do not want to use this)

MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE SNAIL MUCIN ESSENCE 

Let me talk about my snail mucin journey, which started in November'20 when my K-pop addict friend suggested this holy grail product of hers. Impressed by the positive reviews, I placed an order the same day. I started using it after my toner and before my moisturizer and I'd have to say I was nothing but impressed. My skin type is combination skin during the winters and oily during the summers. I used it all winter that year and oh boy!! I would be lying if I said it didn't do wonders for me. It did sting and burn a little bit when I first started using it which was expected as it is an active ( the skin takes time to get used to such things) but it went away after using it for a few weeks. I had awful skin health before coming across this magical bottle. I had black and white bumps all over my forehead, uneven skin tone from sun damage (because Indians don't teach their kids to use sunscreen 🙃), hyperpigmentation, damaged skin barrier and whatnot. It improved my skin texture and overall skin health massively. My skin felt soft, hydrated, plump and moisturized. I could see my hyperpigmentation getting lighter and I fell in love with this cute little thing. Seeing the wonders it did for my skin and lured by its cute little bottle without realizing how concentrated the formula actually is, I started using it twice daily, both in my AM and PM routine. Now, this is where I ruined it for myself. Despite its healing and soothing properties, overusing it damaged my skin barrier completely. My skin turned dry, stretchy and I got red itchy rashes on my cheeks. The worst part is it took me over 4 months to realize that this snail mucin was giving me those rashes and not the other products of my regime. I was so blinded by the glamour, the positive reviews and the miracles it did for me that it didn't even occur to me that the snail essence might be causing this. So be smarter than me my beauty geeks!! haha ...

I still use this essence and I still love it but in moderation because let's not be blinded by the lights ;p

I stopped using it during summers as it gave me a sticky, greasy feel which I did not enjoy but it is my BFF in the winters. 

Overall, I really liked the essence but do not ignore the 'power' like I did. I would definitely recommend this to someone with dry, sensitive skin struggling with texture and damaged skin barrier. 

So, the COSRX ADVANCED SNAIL 96 POWER ESSENCE is SKINCHEM reviewed and SKINCHEM approved. 

Thank you for reading. Leave your thoughts in the comments below and mention the products you want to be reviewed in the next post. 

Much Love, xoxo

Shruti,

Your own skin and hair care guide

Neither this blog nor any of the product reviews are sponsored. They depict my own honest opinion and clicking on the links mentioned won't benefit me in any way. Happy Reading ; )