Skincare | Murad Review and Favourite Products

I’m back today with a little roundup of Murad, a brand I was introduced to just before Christmas as part of their influencer ambassador programme – the Skin Wellness Squad! Founded in 1989 by Dr Howard Murad, Murad believe skincare is healthcare and selfcare and their products are science backed high-performance technologies and formulas. I have quite a few products here from different ranges so let’s get into it! 

 

 

The Environmental Shield is part of their brightening range and targets dark spots and uneven tones. This, along with fine lines and aging is currently my biggest skincare concern. Since finishing up my third course of Roaccutane a year ago, my skin has thankfully *touch wood* stayed clear this time! I have noticed a huge difference in stubborn spots of pigmentation since introducing the Vita-C Glycolic Brightening Serum RRP £74* into my routine. It really is a powerhouse antioxidant serum and after struggling with Vitamin C formulas that help brighten but don’t do much for specific areas of pigmentation this has been a welcome addition! The inclusion of glycolic acid gently exfoliates and helps ensure effective Vitamin C (in the form of L-ascorbic acid) delivery and the serum itself absorbs quickly, makes my skin look brighter and more even and over time I have noticed my attention being drawn less and less to the stubborn pigmentation I thought was never going to shift! I LOVE this serum!

 

Next up, the Vita-C Triple Exfoliating Facial RRP £67* and I know physical exfoliants can sometimes be a source of contention in the skincare world but personally, I am a big fan! As well as being a physical exfoliant, this also combines chemical (glycolic, lactic and salicylic acids) and enzymatic exfoliants to slough off dead skin cells and smooth skin. It contains Vitamin C too and on rubbing into the skin it changes colour from orange to while to let you know you can stop scrubbing! This isn’t as gentle as some scrubs I’ve tried but it’s in no way harsh either! I usually leave on my skin for 10 minutes after scrubbing before washing off and I am left with smooth, brighter skin that is primed for the rest of my routine! 

 

Lastly, from this range at least, is the City Skin Age Defense Broad Spectrum SPF 50 RRP £60*. This is a mineral sunscreen that shields against digital blue light damage, UVA, UVB & pollution. The formula is lightweight and has a peachy tint that is easily worked into the skin leaving no white cast (I have pale skin for reference). It sits well over the rest of my skincare as well as under makeup and I love that its SPF 50, my skin feels protected and the formula is beautiful, no difficulty rubbing in or pilling either!

 

 

The purple products are from the Hydration range and perfect for sensitive skin. The standout for me from this line is the Intense Recovery Cream RRP £69* and I already featured it a few months ago in this post! This is the ultimate comfort blanket for stressed out, dehydrated, sensitive skin and I am obsessed! It contains shea better, macadamia oil and microalgae extract to provide deep moisturisation and smooth the look of stress lines as well as reducing redness and irritation. My skin was really playing up at the start of the year, I think from a mixture of retinol products, the weather and working from home all day in central heating. It was red, inflamed, itchy and flaky and this came to the rescue thankfully! It feels instantly soothing on stressed skin and is so comforting! It reduced my redness as well as hydrating my skin and getting it back to normal and as you can see, I have been making my way through it quickly! It feels like more of a balm than a cream and it melts into skin keeping it hydrated and protected overnight. I also used this in the day under makeup and was pleasantly surprised how well it sat under makeup given it is so balmy, a must have for sensitive skin! 

 

Sticking with moisturisers and the Nutrient-Charged Water Gel RRP £55* is another favourite. It’s oil-free, lightweight and instantly hydrates, plumps and locks in moisture.

It’s made up of five vitamins (B and E), five minerals (silicon, iron, zinc, copper and magnesium) and five peptides to smooth skin, reduce the appearance of fine lines, improve tone and texture and restore the skins barrier. A little goes a long way with this one and like it promises, my skin feels and looks plump, smooth and hydrated, fine lines are less visible and it provides a lovely base for makeup, working well with the City Skin SPF!

The Revitalixir Recovery Serum RRP £75* contains these spheres which hopefully you can see in the photos and works for the eyes as well as the face! It’s a blend of niacinamide, caffeine, neuropeptide, paracress and cannabis sativa seed oil which helps smooth skin, calming and depuffing it and the illuminating pearls help hydrate! The scent of this is so familiar and nostalgic to me but I have no idea why as I had never tried it before, but it is very comforting! This is a nice serum but I am not blown away by it! 

 

The Resurgence line is for anti-aging and targeting line and wrinkles as well as lifting and firming. Starting with the Retinol Youth Renewal Night Cream RRP £73*, this is actually one of the products I have been reacting to as mentioned above - along with the Medik8 Crystal Retinal 6. I used both of those products with no issues a handful of times before Christmas but they both separately caused reactions around January/Feburary, and it took me a while to realise what was causing the reaction as I hadn’t had issues before! I have started reintroducing the Murad back into my routine over the last four weeks and have been sandwiching with the Revitalixir serum and a little intense recovery cream on top and no reactions so far so I do think it was down to my skin being extra sensitive in winter rather than the product itself!

 

I love the packaging of this with the pump ensuring you get the correct amount of product each time. The formula contains a fast-acting retinoid, a time-released retinol and a retinol booster as well as niacinamide to improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and strengthen the skins barrier. I’ll update this more as I use it for longer but since my sensitive skin issues have subsided this has left me with plump skin in the morning! My mum also has this and really enjoys it for her more mature skin also finding it plumping and targeting her fine lines and wrinkles.

Lastly, the Targeted Wrinkle Corrector RRP £70* and this is a nifty little treatment to diminish the look of wrinkles by working like a filler flooding lines with hyaluronic acid to plump and smooth. At 31, I am more concerned with fine lines than deep set wrinkles, so the effects are not so drastic for me! This is a nice little extra though if you are concerned with deeper set lines and a nice alternative to filler. Like I said, it contains hyaluronic acid, squalane to prevent moisture loss and hexapeptide to boost elasticity. Application is pretty important too – I used this without reading the directions and put it on right before applying my makeup which resulted in my foundation sticking to the places, I had applied it very obviously lol. The best way is to apply after cleansing and toning but before serum, moisturiser and SPF. It has a lovely cooling applicator but I find the best way to apply is with my finger by tapping into the areas I am using it on such as my elevens, forehead and smile lines. Used in this way it doesn’t affect my makeup and makes my skin look smoother. While working instantly it also it a preventative product too!

 

While the products are pricey, for me the stand outs are worth it (Vita-C Glycolic Brightening Serum, City Skin Age Defence Broad Spectrum SPF 50, Intense Recovery Cream and Nutrient Charged Water Gel) and if you shop around you can usually find a 20% off offer or pick up a set of minis to try! As well as their own website, they are also available from Space NK, Look Fantastic and Cult Beauty among others!

 

Have you tried anything from Murad before? What’s your favourite product?

 

*denotes a PR sample that was sent to me.

All opinions are my own. Affiliate links used.

See my full disclosure here.

 

Danielle xx

 

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