Cassandra Bankson Reviews Serums: Where the Formula Has to Earn Its Price

"I love this so much that I used all the product. This is the Mandelic Acid Treatment from The Inky List. This is basically a spot treatment, but I use this as a serum on my skin. This is hydrating, it is effective, it is anti-pigmentary, it is anti-acne, and it's eleven dollars. It says that it's formulated for all skin, and I do feel like I can use it on my oily skin, or I can recommend it to people that are dry. This is the snack jar of skincare. This is the one I'm always looking for. I love this from The Inky List for the price, for what you get, for how tiny the little bottle is, but how it goes such a long way. This really cannot be beat, especially for the price and how it works. This is the top mandelic acid product that I've used on my skin or recommended to others, and I cannot rave about this enough. What's also fantastic about this formula is that it has jojoba oil, which mimics our skin's oils naturally. I love jojoba. My skin loves it. A lot of other people do too, because it really helps to strengthen a skin barrier. On top of that, this has rice bran, which is a beta glucan option that really helps to hydrate the skin. Although this isn't the same as Skincare by Hiram, it's a little bit thicker. I feel like this works so much better. You can use this day or night, although they recommend it at night."

"I absolutely love this Peptide Glazing Fluid. You can see it leaves such a dewy glowy look on the skin and has peptides and marula oil and hyaluronic acid so it has all these really beautiful amazing ingredients that are great for hydration."

"This is the 35% Vitamin C Perfecting Serum and what's amazing about this is that it's an oil-soluble form of vitamin C. This can actually absorb into the skin because our skin is made up of oil and most vitamin C is water soluble, meaning it has a hard time getting in. Using an oil soluble vitamin C it can actually penetrate into the skin and get into the nucleus of the cell where it needs to work on things like hyperpigmentation fine lines and wrinkles. As a bonus because this is oil soluble it actually works for living under the water because if you don't seal it in with an oil it's all gonna get washed away. This is an expensive option at one hundred and forty dollars, but this is fantastic. It's a waterless base so for dry skin and for living under the sea this is an absolute slam dunk. The main ingredients include different forms of vitamin C, ascorbic acid and tetrahexadecyl ascorbic which is the oil soluble form, superoxide dismutase and a glutathione complex."

"This is technically called the Dose of Wisdom Bouncy Skin Reactivating Serum and boy does this plump up the face. This has hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, adenosine, and a plantain leaf extract which is anti-inflammatory. I was super lucky because I got to try this before it came out. I used it in cold weather, then I took it to Dubai and Abu Dhabi where it was hot and humid. My skin became so bouncy, so happy, so luminous, and visibly plumped when I applied it. When I forgot it on the plane and my skin got dehydrated, I immediately reapplied it when I got home and holy my face felt brand new. I was impressed by my experience and seeing the study they did on 106 women. This is also amazing because Philosophy is officially leaping bunny certified. If you're looking for plump bouncy juicy hydrated skin with adenosine and hyaluronic acid and vitamin C which also helps with radiance and luminosity, this one does it."

"Some Collagen Peptide Serum could save the day. The Collagen Peptide Serum from the Inkey List does not label itself as a hyaluronic acid serum but it does have hyaluronic acid in it and when you actually look at it, it is extremely plumping, helps to support the skin barrier, helps to nourish the skin, grabs hydration and pulls it into the skin because of the peptides and collagen in here. Collagen and peptide sides are humectants and they can draw moisture into the skin for 72 hours. This one from the Inkey List does this for a fraction of the price, and it is also vegan collagen which we love to see. It's not $90, which also makes this much better and more affordable to use regularly because you need to use skincare regularly in order for it to work."

"I love the Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% plus B5 Hydrating Serum. This specifically has B5 as panthenol which we love, and we also love hyaluronic acid because it is a humectant so it can hold on to moisture and draw that into the skin. It also has glycerin, so it's very hydrating to the skin, and then it has a red algae extract, so really good for antioxidants. For $6 and 80 cents, like you cannot beat this. I know it's a small amount but it works well."