Dark spots
are caused by different factors – aging, sun damage, acne scars, rashes,
hormonal imbalance or some medication (e.g. birth control pills). In my case,
it is more due to sun damage. The discoloration it made on my face is mostly on
the apple of my cheeks & I cannot NOT notice it when I look in the mirror.
I would also have a few pimple scars every now & then. At the time that
I started trying these products, I have two pimple marks on the top right of my
forehead (I know, I'm so specific! But i have to, for review purposes :P) .
Searching
in the internet, I see a lot of people giving positive feedbacks on Philosophy
Miracle Dark Spot Corrector. So I went to Sephora’s site & order it online.
Within the same week, I was in a Sephora Shop inside JC Penney & when I
asked the consultant what she thinks is a good dark spot corrector, she gave me
a sample of Murad Rapid Age Spot & Pigment Lightening Serum. She said the
sample might not be enough as effects are normally visible after 3 weeks, but
at least I can get to try it.
As I don’t
know how much the sample size is, I took below picture of it beside the Philosophy
product so you can see:
The
Product & its claims
MuradRapid Age Spot & Pigment Lightening Serum ($60 for 1oz) – is a
fast-acting dark spot treatment serum to help fade and prevent dark spots, age
spots, and freckles.
Claims:
- Clinically proven to reduce the appearance of sunspots and age spots. Hydroquinone fades existing dark spots, age spots, and freckles while hexapeptide-2, an advanced skin-lightening peptide, prevents future damage by helping stop pigment formation. Glycolic acid exfoliates to remove dead skin cells, encouraging active ingredients to penetrate more quickly for fast-acting results.
- Research shows 88% of participants saw a more even skin tone in 2 weeks
Philosophy Miracle Worker Dark SpotCorrector ($64 for 1oz) – is an all-over brightener and dark spot corrector.
Claims:
- Work miracles with this product's innovative, clinically-proven skin brightening technology.
- Designed to visibly improve the appearance of skin discoloration associated with age spots, acne scarring and sun damage, this treatment helps to reveal a more uniform complexion.
- Delivers dramatic results without hydroquinone, making it suitable for those with common skin sensitivities.
- Clinically-proven results in 4 weeks
My
experience & thoughts on these products
Since the
consultant said it would take 3 weeks to see the results, I decided to use
Murad once a day only. That is, in the evening after I wash my face &
before I put on anything else. I also just apply it to the specific areas where
i have the discoloration instead of using it in my entire face.
The
product’s color, texture & smell reminds me of the snail cream / serums. In
the first week that I used it, I felt a bit of a tingling sensation on my
cheek. Just a bit. It didn’t scare me at all to stop using it. And it will just
be for 2-3 minutes maybe. And it’s just in the first week. In the second week, I
don’t feel nor see any difference. I began doubting if the product will work. Before
the end of the third week though, I noticed the dark spots on my right cheek
has become lighter. The left cheek also looked better but not as light. I
think this is a great improvement as I’ve tried a lot of products before
& I didn’t see any results at all.
It doesn’t seem to have any effect on my pimple marks though. Unfortunately, I’ve
used up the sample & so was not able to test if it will indeed lighten the
pimple marks as well if used longer.
Similar
with Murad, I had been trying Philosophy Dark Spot Corrector for a month now. I also only used it in the evening – also applying it after I wash
my face & before anything else. This one though I put on my entire face
instead of just specific areas. This is so I can also have even skin tone (plus,
I’m not using sample size anymore :P ).
The color
of the product is brownish & not so nice to look at (can’t they make it
pinkish?). The smell is not so good also (but bearable). The texture is fine as
it’s not sticky. First to third week has no difference at all. I felt nothing
& I see no improvements. I was already thinking if Sephora would still
allow me to return it & get Murad instead. On the fourth week, I noticed
slight improvement on my cheeks. For me, this is still not convincing…until I
noticed my pimple marks. I was so focused on my sun damage that I forgot about
the two dots on my forehead! And why not when you can only see one & that
remaining one is also almost barely there!
I don’t have a “before picture” but I hope you can see with
the recent picture below how my right cheek has clearer texture than the left
& that there is only one pimple left on my forehead.
Will I
re-purchase?
If you’ll notice, both products have the same size (1oz)
& the price is almost the same (Philosophy is just $4 more).
If I will re-purchase (or in the case of Murad, 1st
purchase), I most definitely will! On the other hand, since these products have
different effect on me, I will prefer the one that will address my bigger
concern. That would therefore be sun damage & that would then be Murad. J
To sum up, both products are really great & really
effective. How soon results can be seen differ though:
- Murad – fast improvement on sun damage, slow on pimple marks
- Philosophy – slow effect on sun damage, fast results on pimple marks
Again, hope you find my review useful. Feel free to leave
your comments! Take care!
-Carla
