natjtan Welcome to another Beauty Finds! This edition is all Vitamin C. Urang’s Yuja Vita Ampoule with a little comparison to Kora Organics Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum. Scroll down a paragraph for the review.
As usual I have a few requirements when it comes to beauty products: cruelty free, natural, clean, vegan better. I do my best to avoid nasty ingredients such as SLSs, parabens, PEGs, silicones, etc. Petrochemicals are the sneakiest with so many derivatives and aliases. I also avoid palm oil and it’s derivatives as I prefer orangutans. Coconut oil marketed as the good oil I’m also cutting down on as it can be just a damaging crop as palm oil. If I do get products containing palm or coconut oil I try to get organic or sustainably sourced. With make up it’s a little harder so I go for cruelty free brands. I prefer products with less plastic and thankfully more brands are aware consumers don’t want unnecessary plastic (or governments are telling them less plastic). My skin type’s oily sensitive, acne prone and now wrinkles. I know nothing stops those lines, but if I can delay them then….
A milky-textured ampoule containing Geoje Island’s* organic Yuja is know to be richer in vitamin C than other citrus fruits. a synergy recipe of orange Yuja Water, Yuja Essential Oil, and brightening ingredient Aplha-bisbolol, the ampule gives vitality, brightening and elasticity. Fully energise dull skin and experience the fresh scent of Yuja.
For a few years I’ve been using Kora Organics Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum and I didn’t think I would switch to another vitamin C serum. It probably isn’t necessary to use one, but this girl likes to have a little glow and smooth skin. I prefer to spend money on skincare than makeup so I’m willing to spend a little more as eating healthy only goes so far. Sometimes your skin needs a little extra help dealing with daily pollution, lights, blue light, easing the appearance of lines which is where vitamin C comes in. More info here.
I think you know when you’re considering switching products when you start to question a current product or look at others. I was getting little tired of Kora Organics prices and that for the price and the care of the environment, the Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum is all packaged in plastic, which is surprising considering Kora Organics is all about organic ingredients and it’s expensive. Urang Yuja Vita Ampoule, isn’t. The bottle’s glass, the dropper’s glass with the only plastic being the lid and dropper cradle. Kora Organics however recently announced more products like their Noni facial oil and eye oil will now be in glass bottles or more easily recyclable and reusable packaging. While my skin had glow using it, Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum also made my skin at times feel tight and dry.
I was eyeing up Urang Yuja Vita Ampoule debating to try it as the price while is less expensive than the Noni Bright Vitamin C serum for a product you might not like it’s expensive. Thankfully Miin Cosmetics, yes my favourite skincare shop in Barcelona, had a Spring 20% off sale. Thankfully too it was for a week so I could ask for a small sample to try if I took in my own pot. From the sample I noticed that it was more hydrating, my skin had a little something something going on and purchased the full size bottle.
That said I didn’t start using I think for another month as to get through the Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum first. Honesty I felt a little conflicted as I like the idea of noni extracts and had a small case of FOMO. However I also read up that the main vitamin C ingredient in Urang Yuja Vita Ampoule, yuja or yuzu is one of the most powerful sources of vitamin C. Did I regret my choice?
Some products you know straight away if they’re working, others make promises only to break them a few weeks later as they’re in it for the money (as explain in Netflix’s Explained Know Your Skin episode. That episode left me feeling dumb for buying so many products when all you need is soap to cleanse, something to put the moisture back from cleansing and leave your skin to itself), others straight up you know they’re not working and others needs a little more time. Urang was the latter. In Miin Cosmetics a little later I mentioned this with one of the amazing shop assistants who with a wink, advised to wait until the bottle’s finished.
The bottle finished and I repurchased! Thankfully with face massage and facial exercises I don’t have many wrinkles. It’s more the lack of facial fat that doesn’t hold everything up, however while I think Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum might be a slightly better on the wrinkle/fine lines defence, Yuja Vita Ampoule’s much better at hydrating, that glow and overall skin texture and easing acne scars. I prefer Yuja Vita Ampoule’s scent and that thanks to it being in dropper format it’s easier to control the amount you want. Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum’s a pump format so you can’t always control how much until the get the pump pressure down. Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum also has a harsh scent, almost synthetic all though all ingredients are natural.
With regards to price vs volume there’s 5ml difference between them. Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum, 30ml seemed to last a little longer, I’m happier not paying Kora Organic prices and both on average last 3 months. Yuja Vita Ampoule, 35ml although it took a while to work out the right amount needed. Any excess I add to my décolletage and elbows. You don’t need much, a small drop is more than enough to cover both the face and neck. Both contain hyaluronic acid and both say they’re are vegan. I have my doubts about hyaluronic acid whether or not it’s vegan as it can be confusing. Both brands can’t afford to say one thing when in reality it’s not, so I’m going in good faith that both their hyaluronic acid sources are vegan. Urang’s Yuja Vita Ampoule has 3 sources of hyaluronic acid!
The colours in both are different yet still in that vitamin C’s got to be yellow to orange shades. Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum’s an orange colour while Yuja Vita Ampoule’s white. The yellow on the glass is just for show. I also like that Yuja Vita Ampoule’s is a much more concentrated amount of vitamin C being an ampoule with lesser ingredients than Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum. Regards of either I always where sunscreen as vitamin C can make skin more sun sensitive. At night I use retinol using vitamin C serums during the day. While Yuja Vita Ampoule’s a ampoule and Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum a serum, there isn’t really much different between the two as both are concentrated formulas. An ampoule is usually used just once a day when a serum can be used twice a day as the ampoule is usually more super charged than a serum. Honesty there’s not much different between the two. It’s more what your skin likes. Would I recommend Urang Yuja Vita Ampoule? Yes! Would I recommend Kora Organics Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum? Yes! I would though try to find a sample size first as each for the money are expensive. I decided to continue with Urang Yuja Vita Ampoule as I prefer the price, the texture, its effect, lesser ingredients and that it comes in a glass bottle.
*Geoje Island is the second biggest inland in South Korea after Jeju Island! One day Nat!
Urang Yuja Vita Ampolue C: Urang website, Miin Cosmetics
Kora Organics Vitamin C Serum: Kora Organics website, Douglas for Espana/Spain, Sephora USA for reviews