Chanel Hydra Beauty Skincare

How’s everybody enjoying their weekend so far?  I’m still reeling from a massive haul yesterday at the Tom Ford workshop and Guerlain event yesterday!  Pictures are all up on my Instagram if you’re interested!  Anyway, today I thought i’d review another range of hydrating skincare, this time from the doyen of beauty – Chanel!  I received a set of samples of Chanel Hydra Beauty skincare collection the last time I made a purchase at their counter, and have been using it over the past week in preparation for this review.

I believe this is a reformulated hydrating skincare collection that replaced Chanel’s old Hydramax+Active range last year.  The Hydra Beauty collection consists of a lotion, serum, 2 types of moisturizers (gel crème for normal to combination skin, and crème for dry skin), and an eye gel (I received 2 sample sachets that are not pictured here).  I found a foaming mousse cleanser lying somewhere in my stash and decided to use it along with the entire collection.

The Chanel Hydra Beauty collection responds to the hydration needs of every woman, regardless of age or skin concern.  Camellia Alba PFA acts as an active ingredient promoting optimal moisture retention within skin cells.  Combined with the powerful antioxidant Blue Ginger PFA, the perfect synergy of ultimate hydration and protection is created.

The very first impression that hit me when I came into contact with Hydra Beauty was the luxurious floral scent.  The textures of the products were also incredibly light weight and pleasant to use.

Chanel Mousse Douceur

The mousse douceur is a rinse-off foaming mousse cleanser and makeup remover for normal-to-combination skin.  It contains Tulip Tree Extract that acts as an anti-pollutant and Mallow Extract for hydration.

Despite its name, this actually does not create much lather as you can see from the picture above.  Neither does it feel like mousse on my hand.  Regardless, I found this to be a nice, gentle cleanser that left my skin feeling clean and comfortable without that overly taut feeling.

Chanel Hydra Beauty Lotion

The Hydra Beauty Lotion is a prelude to Chanel’s hydration ritual.  It claims to respond to the skin’s needs, gently hydrating and balancing the pH level of the skin.  I don’t really have very strong reactions to this lotion – I found it to be rather pleasant, it did not sting my skin like some lotions do; but it did not blow my socks off (although i’m not sure what would).  Generally with lotions, most of it gets absorbed by my cotton pads, and in the 5 seconds it takes to swipe my entire face, i’m left with not much of an experience.  Most of the time, I either love a lotion or I don’t.  However, quite often, I’m rather ambivalent which is the case with this one.

Chanel Hydra Beauty Serum

Chanel’s Hydra Beauty Serum is suitable for all skin types, and claims to provide moisturizing and beautifying benefits with the power to protect your beauty and restore all your radiance.

According to Chanel, after using HYDRA BEAUTY for 4 weeks, the skin reveals its full-bloomed beauty:
Increase in skin hydration: 81%
Clinical study by a dermatologist

Skin is protected: + 86%
Complexion is more even: + 79%
Complexion is more luminous: + 90%
Skin is softer: + 97%
Self-evaluation (n = 29): percentage expressing satisfaction

This serum has a watery texture that applies and absorbs into the skin rapidly.  It also comes in a spray mist that I experienced in the store during a flash makeover, which I thought was so convenient for rehydrating throughout the day!

Chanel Hydra Beauty Gel Crème

There are actually 2 different moisturizers in the Hydra Beauty collection – a gel crème for normal to combination skin, and a richer crème for normal to dry skin.  Both provides a boost of hydration to the skin, and advanced antioxidant benefits.  The sample I received was for the gel crème, which is a really lovely gel texture (as you all know by now, i’m terribly biased towards gel creams!).

As you can see from the pictures above, both the serum and gel crème just completely disappeared into my skin immediately after application.  I loved how they left my skin looking supple and dewy, ready for makeup application right away!

Chanel Hydra Beauty Gel Yeux

And finally, Chanel Hydra Beauty Gel Yeux is an eye gel that not only provides hydrating benefits to the delicate eye area, it also claims to combat puffiness and dark circles.  Just as with the rest of the line, I found this eye gel to provide unmistakable hydration to my eye area, which sets it apart from many other eye gels that I found lacking.  However, I did not find it helping with puffiness and dark circles.  I did enjoy the gel texture as it absorbs much quicker and left my eye area less oily than creams, something which is a pre-requisite for my morning routine as my oily lids have a serious problem letting my eye makeup stay.

Overall thoughts

There is something about Chanel, maybe it’s the omniscience of the brand and the immediate association with quality… that somehow always leaves me wanting just a bit more whenever I experiment with their skincare products.  Individually, I can find no fault with the products reviewed here.  In fact, I quite enjoyed each of them.  Having used the entire range cohesively for a whole week, I can definitely see my skin getting plumper.  However, if I were to find fault with it, it is that the Hydra Beauty collection left my skin dewy and doesn’t provide any oil-control benefits, so my skin gets progressively oilier throughout the day.

If I were to compare with Dior’s Hydra Life range (reviewed here), both performed equally well, but I preferred Dior’s Essence-in-gel texture over Chanel’s milky serum, but I preferred Chanel’s scent.  I also have a strong feeling Dior’s controlled my oil better, but it is really difficult to measure that.  Comparing with Guerlain’s Super Aqua (reviewed here), I preferred Chanel’s for its speed of absorption, but I think Guerlain’s left my skin feeling & looking better.

Have you tried any Chanel skincare products?  If so, how did you like them?