How often should you use Melano CC?

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This post will be reviewing the Melano CC Concentration Measures Essence.

Once in a while, you stumble on cult beauty products and hope they are worth the hype. Sometimes, they are impressive. Other times, they simply fall flat. But just like skincare products in general, it is a game of trial and errors. This is my experience with the Japanese cult favourite Vitamin C serum; Melano CC Essence. Like the rest of my reviews, I’ve been using this product for a while and now I’m ready to talk about it.

If you are new to this blog and wondering why I have to go so far to try a Vitamin C serum when there are tons of drugstore options, it is because I am crazy about Asian skincare; specifically Korean and Japanese Skincare. And as such, I try out quite a lot of products. You can stay updated on my favourite products here.

Without talking too much, let’s dive into this product!

First Impression of the Melano CC Essence.

According to YesStyle;

• Medicated whitening essence containing active Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid), an active whitening ingredient that is particular about transparency.
• Contains W, the active whitening ingredient active Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid) and the blood circulation promoting ingredient Vitamin E derivative.
• Two types of vitamins work directly on the skin.
• Rohto’s unique osmotic formula allows the whitening active ingredient to reach deep into the stratum corneum, suppressing melanin production and preventing blemishes and freckles.
• It also contains two active ingredients [Isopropylmethylphenol (bactericidal component), dipotassium glycyrrhizinate (anti-inflammatory component)] and the moisturizing ingredient Alpinia White.
• It also prevents anxious acne and moisturizes the anxious skin with acne scars to condition the skin.
• Liquid type with a non-greasy feel.
• An easy-to-use drop-type tube.
• Use it on your entire face after applying lotion, use points at the very end of care, or use it for morning and evening care if you like.

Transparent product description. Nothing too crazy. Now let’s see the ingredient list.

Ingredient List

Active ingredients: Ascorbic acid (Active vitamin C), Tocopherol acetate (Vitamin E derivative),

Dipotassium glycyrrhizinate, Isopropyl Methylphenol Other ingredients: Ascorbyl Tetra-2-hexyldecanoate, Ethoxydiglycol, Alpinia Katsumadai Seed Extract (Alpinia white), BG, Edetate, Viscosity modifier, Fragrance

As you can see, unlike other Vitamin C serums in the market, this is pure Ascorbic Acid and not a derivative which is common in every other skincare markets in the world. You really can’t blame them because Ascorbic Acid is such an unstable ingredient to work with as it oxidizes quickly. But Rohto, the pharmaceutical company that formulates Melano CC products have managed to create a Vitamin C serum that contains Ascorbic Acid and doesn’t oxidize. That’s quite impressive. No wonder, it is a cult Japanese product.

Also worth noting is the presence of Vitamin E in this ingredient list. When combined together, these two vitamins which are antioxidants work together to prevent photodamage.

Both work by negating free radical damage, but each combats different types of UV damage.

By adding vitamin C and E serums into your routine, or using products that contain both, you’re giving your skin double the antioxidant ammunition to fight damage from free radicals and more UV damage than vitamin C by itself.

healthline.com

As for the fragrance, it’s barely even noticeable. It might as well be fragrance-free.

Texture & Consistency

One of the things I don’t really like about this product is the liquid texture. I just couldn’t find a way to layer it with the rest of my routine. At the end of the day, I used it immediately after cleansing on damp skin before layering other products over it. This is why I will be getting the Melano CC Moisture Cream when I repurchase. Other than that, it is a liquid serum that most skin types can use. It is non-greasy and absorbs very fast! The fact that it can penetrate straight into your skin is what makes it a great product for fading hyperpigmentation including acne scars and sunspots.

Price & Packaging

I think one of the reasons why the Melano CC Essence doesn’t oxidize is because of its packaging. Formulating a Vitamin C in a tube with a tight dropper tip is one of the best packaging ideas I’ve seen in a while. This way, the product is not unnecessarily exposed to moisture or sunlight. Plus it saves you so much product as you only need about 4 – 5 drops at once. Depending on how well you use it, it can last you well over six months. For that price, it is an absolute steal! Speaking of prices, I used to get it for under £10/$12 last year but it has gone up a bit. But it’s still not a bad deal at all compared to buying 30ml of Vitamin C serums every three months.

I used this product for about 4 – 6 weeks and I didn’t really see any visible improvement but that doesn’t mean I’m taking it out of routine. As a result of its price, I’ll always have a couple of tubes layering around. Maybe when I’ve gone through all the Vitamin C serums on my wishlist, I’ll come back to it.

Performance

Now, before you come at me, this product is a hit or miss depending on how deep your hyperpigmentation is. For general brightening of the skin, you’ll get a slow gradual glow but it takes a while. This is a kind of product you use for about six months plus to get consistent results just like Tretinoin. If you are like me always trying out new products every six weeks, this results you get might be short-lived. When that happens it might look like the product doesn’t work. But no, you just haven’t used it long enough.

While it might take a bit of time to work, the general consensus is, you need to use it long enough. This is why a lot of people prefer not to use Vitamin C for hyperpigmentation because it just takes too long to get results. But you might just be lucky and get faster results. Who knows? After all, everyone’s skin is different.

Other Melano CC Products worth trying:

Luckily for me, while the essence might be the most popular product, there are other products in the range that you can use together to speed up results:

I’m getting the brightening gel next and I can’t wait to use and share my review.

In Conclusion,

This is a great Vitamin C serum to try. I mean, you have nothing to lose. It is cheap and it works. Even if it doesn’t, you won’t feel so bad because of its price. I don’t think you will get any other product with pure Ascorbic Acid for this price anywhere. Even though the percentage of Vitamin C is not know ( I’m guessing it is between 5 – 15%) , it is gentle enough to be used every day across all skin types.

Have you used this product before? What was your experience like?