Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum

I have been wanting to do this post for a very long time now – simply because this product is literally a gold mine for skincare and I HAD to share it on the blog. This is not a sponsored post in any way, no samples were sent across (I have bought the product twice already) and it was about time I shared it with you.

I’m not sure how I stumbled upon this brand (I think it was through Paula’s Choice), I did more research on it, read all the reviews I possibly could, because at the time I was desperately wanting to incorporate a Vitamin C serum in my skincare regime. And when I read rave reviews about this product EVERYWHERE (mind you not a single bad or even a slightly negative review), I decided to give this a shot. Downside is that it’s not so easy to find if you’re living in India. Drunk Elephant is an American brand, made and shipped only in the USA through their own website. Which is a huge bummer because they have many other stellar products that I want to try out. No big beauty websites stock or sell them internationally either.

Pricing:
The original value of this product on the Drunk Elephant website is $80 which amounts to ₹ 5,000 to ₹ 6,000/- for a 30ml bottle.
On the Amazon India website you can purchase this product for ₹ 15,800/- currently which is about 3 times.
My first purchase, in mid September 2016 coincidentally was on Amazon India but I got lucky when there was 1 bottle available for ₹ 8,700. I grabbed it despite the 2-3k price difference because that’s how badly I wanted to try it out and I figured for safe shipment from USA added over it, the pricing wasn’t so bad. I am still using the first bottle but have purchased another one.
My second purchase which I haven’t yet started using since I’m thankfully still on my first bottle was through ebay.com (not India but international). I again got a bit lucky and found a bottle for ₹ 7,500 including shipping and it arrived within a week so that was great too.
So if you manage to find this serum decently priced on a website that delivers to India please let me know too!

Drunk Elephant as a brand is safe, minimal, effective and most importantly non-toxic. They have a HUGE list of harmful ingredients, irritants or animal hurting ingredients that they do not use AT ALL. If you are interested here it is – Animal fats, oils, and musks, Benzalkonium chloride, Benzophenone and derivatives, Bisphenol A (BPA), Butoxyethanol, BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene), Chemical Sunscreens(with Retinyl Palmitate, Oxybenzone and Octyl Methoxycinnamate), Coal tar hair dyes and other coal tar ingredients (including Aminophenol, Diaminobenzene, Phenylenediamine), Essential Oils, Ethanolamines (MEA/DEA/TEA), Formaldehyde, Fragrance or flavor, synthetic OR natural, Hydroquinone, Methyl cellosolve, Methylisothiazolinone and Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Mercury and mercury compounds (also listed as Thimerosal), Oxybenzone, Parabens, Phthalates (DBP, DEHP, DEP and others), Polyethylene glycol (PEG compounds), Resorcinol, Retinyl palmitate and Retinol (Vitamin A), Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLS and SLES), Toluene & Triclosan and Triclocarban.
It’s a long list and makes me go back to my Chemistry school days and remember why I hated it so much. I’m not going to get into the details of how each of these is harmful since you can find all that info on their website.
Their products are Cruelty-Free. Gluten-Free. Recyclable and they are supporters of IEF (International Elephant Foundation)

Now on-to the actual product:
In very basic terms this is the best day-time Vitamin-C serum that you can use for your skin. Very potent Vitamin C with powerful antioxidants that are meant to firm and brighten the skin and improve signs of photo-aging and prevent more of it from happening. I have read a few reviews where people have found this to be better than the holy grail of Vitamin-C serums – by the brand Skinceuticals.

Since I already have a set night-time skincare routine and frankly had no space to include this, it was perfect for me because I was looking for a day time serum to up my skin game.

Application:
After I have cleansed/scrubbed my face in the morning, I use a mild glycolic acid toner pad and swipe it on my skin. Wait for it to dry. After which I apply 4 drops of this golden liquid – 1 on each cheekbone, 1 on the forehead and 1 on the chin. Using my fingers I spread it across the entire face avoiding the eyes. Finish with dabbing the fingers on my skin and wait for this to dry up completely. After that I follow up with my moisturizer and sunscreen.

Texture:
This is a liquid serum with the slightest viscosity. It has an orange tint to it which disappears as you spread it on the skin and it has a somewhat chemical-ly fragrance which is not added and probably comes straight from the potent ingredients. The fragrance stays for about 5-10 minutes on your fingers but you can’t really smell it from your facial skin. After application you can feel a definite sheen/glow that appears on the skin almost like an outer lining/veil.

Other key super-awesome things about the serum:
– It has a reservoir effect, which means it will stay active on skin for up to 72 hours and cannot be washed or rubbed off. Whaaaaat! So technically you can use it after every 3 days but I use it everyday because it’s frikkin amazing!
– It has a pH level of 3.3 to 3.5, which Drunk Elephant believes is the key to a non-irritating, effective formula that allows the ingredients to work at their maximum potential.
– And it shows immediate effects – You can instantly feel a certain glow on the skin and it feels smoother. Over time I can feel that my skin has somehow grown stronger and my complexion really looks a lot better.
– The bottle has a pump design which can be opened by twisting so there’s never a chance of the product leaking while travelling and it also prevents all of the product from being exposed to the air every single time you use it.
– Even though this is such a strong Vitamin C serum, it does not dry out your skin like most other Vit C serums do which is a huge advantage for this one.

Results:
I have been using the same bottle for about 4 months (I use it once in the morning daily) so a little bit goes a long way and it actually doesn’t come out to be all that expensive if you’re looking for one of the best Vitamin C serums out there.
Like I said, skin has an added glow to it, feels stronger and firmer, complexion is more even and oh did I mention – it’s amazing even under makeup!

I just hope this company doesn’t go bankrupt or stop making this and I do hope that I have helped you discover a really good, unique beauty product that actually does wonders…however hard it may be to find in India! Boo!

More closeups to show you the product and packaging:

The twist mechanism

To show you the size of the bottle for reference.

Hope you enjoyed the post!
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