Most of the things that I review on my blog are Asian – usually Korean. This isn’t surprising since I do love asian products, brands, ingredients and trends but, as someone who lives in Australia, it can be a bit hard to get my hands on them sometimes. We have to wait for online stores to carry then, sometimes pay exorbitant shipping fees or wait an eternity for things to arrive. With that in mind, one of my goals this year was to actually start reviewing Western products that would be more accessible for some of us, but still focusing on Asian beauty trends.
Kicking this off, I’ll be introducing a brand to you guys called Trilogy. They are New Zealand’s number one skincare brand (according to their website) and they call themselves a natural brand – against animal testing, non-GMO, supporting ethical practices and even with recyclable packaging. Unlike a lot of Asian brands where you are a little unsure of their stance on these topics – except for Innisfree that uses their recycling, natural image as a bit of a marketing gimmick – you can buy and use Trilogy products with an ease of mind.
Apparently, their statement is, “Maximum effect on your skin, minimum effect on our environment.” And I can definitely live with that.
They were started by two sisters back in 2002 and originally had a range of five rosehip oil products. Since then though, they have expanded their product line and – let me tell you – I do love them! I usually have some issues with Western products where they are a bit too heavy for my skin. Some moisturisers refuse to even absorb for me, which is why I turn to Korean products all the time, but these were perfectly hydrating for my skin.
I tried out three different products from them, all of which smelled and felt wonderful. Keep reading for my breakdown of all three products!
PURE PLANT BODY OIL | AUD$27.95
This product is part of Trilogy’s new body range, recently relaunched with a new clean and elegant packaging design. This oil is a new product to their collection and went in stores in October 2016 (which is still relatively new). According to their claims, this product “not only nourishes your skin with natural goodness, it also encourages you to take some time out for yourself.” And goodness knows that I need that!
This product is suited for all skin types and for daily use, as it is light and unscented. Overall, I found that it was a really simple product – nothing too fancy. It aims to hydrate, nourish and improve skin health.
This uses a pump dispenser and I generally use 3-5 pumps for my stomach and thighs. I love that the dispenser is really easy and quick to use. It’s smooth and good quality, and doesn’t pump too much at once, so you have adequate control over your application. The packaging also have a really luxurious, modern feel – which I am always a fan of.
This product uses rosehip oil (of course) to repair and hydrate, sweet almond oil to stabilise the natural pH of the skin (which, for those who are pH fanatics, helps to balance your skin and protect it) and apricot oil to soothe inflammation. This product is also ideal to use through pregnancy and is suitable for sensitive skin because it has no fragrances. I am told that it’s a good, and more natural, alternative to more common petrochemical-based body oils.
Aside from hydration, some of the other promises with this formula is that it will improve stretch marks and scarring. However, I feel that this might be a benefit you can only see with long term use and I didn’t see any improvements of my stretch marks (and don’t have obvious scarring to test it on). This might be because my stretch marks are pretty old now and have already faded to silver, so might be more effective on newer marks. Still, I was a little disappointed about this. However, it is a great hydrating product and would be even better in winter when my skin dries up all over.
Although I have been testing it on my stretch marked areas, I think that I will continue to use this product around my elbows and knees – especially once winter hits. This is where I tend to get a lot of dried (and sometimes painful) patches in the winter.
The formula is quite watery. It absorbs slowly but, once it does, doesn’t leave any sticky or heavy residue. The price point for this body oil isn’t cheap when compared to Asian products, but for the quality and the brand promises (environmentally friendly and with no animal testing), I think that it’s a pretty fair price tag. Still affordable; especially for those of us in Australia who are used to paying a bit more for nicer things.
It is important to note though that this is a body oil. It is intended for the body so please don’t use it on your face. Instead, look at the below product for that!
ROSESHIP OIL ANTIOXIDANT+ | AUD$35.95
For those who are looking for a beauty oil for their dry complexions, I definitely recommend checking out this product from Trilogy! This was actually the first time that I used a beauty oil and it was really intimidating – I have dry skin with an oily T-zone, especially during the warmer seasons and it is only just beginning to cool down now. With all of the black heads and greasiness that I had been dealing with, I was really hesitant to apply more oil only to face. Biting the bullet though (and reading advice from a few other people), I am so glad that I did.
This product, which contains the Trilogy Certified Organic Rosehip Oil also contains red berry super antioxidants (hence the name). It is powered by their own trademarked formula of Rosapene and claims to deliver “intensive nourishment to replenish softness and elasticity while providing daily antioxidant protection for radiantly healthy skin with a youthful glow”. It’s all a little dramatic, but it works – really.
The product comes in a small and elegant looking frosted glass bottle. Although the packaging of Trilogy products may not be as ‘cute’ as we’re used to – they definitely make up for it in elegance. The dropper applicator is easy to use and hygienic – reminding me a little of the It’S Skin power effectors. Although it is a pretty small bottle for the price, a little goes a long way and I actually don’t know when I’ll be able to finish this.
Every night after cleansing and toning, I use the oil first as it has the thinnest and most easily absorbed formula. The recommended usage is 2-3 drops and I use three every night. I start off with my cheeks and then work it to my forehead and the centre of my face. Although I was a little bit afraid to put the oil on my T-zone at first (in particular my very greasy nose), I decided to give it a shot and I found that my skin was actually more balanced when I was using this. The oil helped to hydrate my skin and, by incorporating a beauty oil into my regime, I sort of tricked my skin into thinking it has produced enough oil and so managed to balance sebum secretion for a moist and dewy finish.
I do try to use this at night only because I’m worried about how it looks with make up on on top. For those who love the Korean dewy skin look and have trouble achieving that though, definitely try mixing a drop or two of this into your BB cream and you will be glowing. I think that this is a trick I’m saving for winter!
Six months after the product launch, this was named ‘Best Natural Face Oil’ in Harper’s Bazaar UK (Hot 100) and was – perhaps a little too exaggeratedly, called a “secret miracle oil”. It is a great product though! I could visible see improvement in my skin tone, elasticity and that my complexion was brighter too. It also claims to help reduce wrinkles, but I don’t have anyway to prove that.
So this oil falls at the beginning of my skincare routine and, before I launched into my usual Asian products, I actually followed up with one more Trilogy product:
ROSAPENE RADIANCE SERUM | AUD$42.95
This serum is the first to join the rosehip range and is also fairly new, launched in October 2016. It is different to the other products in that it has a more lightweight, almost gel-like texture, and is more easily used under make up. The antioxidant complex (Rosapene) combined with sea algae extract and aloe vera to soothe, smooth and nourish a tired complexion. The following information is from their press release:
Rosapene our unique antioxidant complex, is a blend of nourishing certified organic rosehip and cranberry seed oils and potent antioxidents from tomato and acai seed oils which help repair skin and protect against free radical damage, one of the key causes of skin-aging.
Sea Algae an innovative marine active registered as Juvenessence, acts to preserve skin tissues from accelerated ageing, providing hydration, firmness and improved skin radiance. It also stimulates the detoxification of skin cells, an important biological function in combatting the effects of environmental pollution.
And, lastly, Aloe Vera. Famous for its cooling and calming properties, helps maintain moisture balance and is beneficial for soothing sensitivity and irritation.
Basically though, this serum has some good natural ingredients – not chemicals. It actually reminds me a little bit of the more natural Korean skin care products (such as Innisfree and Skinfood) and it definitely smells just as good! The product has a strong but very natural rose scent which slowly disappears as you apply it. If you’re sensitive to the smell of rose products though, then this might not be for you.
This product has a dispense pump as well but, unfortunately, I hate this. It’s a well packaged frosted glass bottle, which looks very elegant and classy. However, this dispense pump is really hard to push down and on more than one occasion, I’ve nearly broken a nail. It tends to get stuck when you first push it and then suddenly work, which means that it is ridiculously hard to really control how much you use. I hope that this is only an issue with my bottle though, because for a good product, this would be a shame.
As I mentioned before, I love the scent of this serum. It’s very effective with hydrating and soothing my skin, with a clear cooling sensation as soon as I apply it. Out of all three of these products, this sort of serum formula will be most familiar to k-beauty fans. However, don’t shy away from using the oils though because I think that these products work best put together.
This product, unlike the face oil, can be easily used both morning and at night. It’s a refreshing and flexible product – I just wish the pump was flexible too. Below I have the photos of the serum applied. I purposely didn’t rub the product in for the photo, but this serum absorbs very quickly and is easily pat onto your face.
And that’s the three products that I have to introduce to you from Trilogy! I hope that you enjoyed this review and please let me know if you want me to review more Western products too. As someone who sometimes have adverse effects to heavier formulas, I think that it’ll be really interesting – and useful – to see how my skin type reacts to some of these formulas.
If you are interested in buying these products, they are available from selected Priceline, Priceline Pharmacy, Chemist Warehouse, Myer, pharmacies and health stores. For further information, call 03 9533 1336 or visit their website at trilogyproducts.com
Until next time!
Please note that the above three products were sent to me for PR purposes. All opinions stated are my honest opinions and experiences. Factual information (ingredients, product claims etc) are taken from the official press release only.
