Item Description
I'm a big L'Occitane fan, so I'll try and not be too biased. There, I got that out of the way right off.
Sometime last year, L'Occitane had a 25% off sale, and I decided to go whole hog and spend about $100. I had plenty of shave soap, and I have 3 of their colognes, and the CADE ASB, and CADE styptic pencil, so I decided I would get a whole bunch of bath gel, the CADE Juniper Bark Scrub, and this little jar of goodness for $38.
The packaging for this "Youth Concentrate" says that it is supposed to provide moisture for immediate comfort, while also fighting the aging process by reducing fine lines and wrinkles. It is a fairly little glass jar, 1.7 ounces, but it was filled up to the brim with this white, fairly dense cream.
The smell is your typical CADE -- a strong scent of juniper wood. Not the berries so much, but the wood. It is also a dry wood scent, not a moist, freshly cut wood. Think more like aged cedar chest instead of fresh hamster shavings. It is also a rather "warm" scent, it is not chilly and austere. For what it's worth, since I had no clue what "CADE" meant, and considering that I am a botanical geographer, I should know what it means, I had to do some research. Cade is another name for the Prickly Juniper/Cade Juniper, native to the Meditteranean, and Cade comes from the French name: genévrier cade. For those interested in taxonomy, it is Juniperus oxycedrus.
Wikipedia states: Cade oil is the essential oil obtained through destructive distillation of the wood of this shrub. It is a dark, aromatic oil with a strong smoky smell which is used in some cosmetics and (traditional) skin treatment drugs, as well as incense.
The cream is thick, so I've always been very light with the application. Just a dab on each cheek, a dab on the forehead, and a couple dabs on the chin and neck, and a quick massage throughout the face. It is fairly heavy and feels like a lotion on first application, even a little bit tacky or greasy. The good thing is that either my face is so devoid of moisture or the product is easily absorbed, because it does feel sheer and unnoticeable after 15 minutes or so. As it is, though, I do prefer to put it on my face at night after I've showered and used the CADE Juniper Bark scrub. I have rubbed some in before going to work just because I enjoy the fragrance and is very light. Some days, I just don't feel like putting any fragrance on, and this suits me.
As to results: I have rosacea and a pretty ruddy complexion, always have. I also sunburn/get red in the face fairly easily in the sun. I have noticed a lightening in my face which is nice. Also, while I wouldn't say I'm loaded with fine lines and wrinkles at 27, I do notice some wrinkling on my forehead (I probably squint my face too much at students in my class who say weird things). The wrinkles have pretty much nearly vanished. I can't say that it's all from this creme alone since I'm 27 and not 47, I'm sure having some youth left in me probably helps this along.
In any case, though, I think it is a good product. I have had the jar for 6 months, and I'm still at a little over half of a jar. A tiny bit goes a long, long way with this, so the $38 could easily last a year, I'm sure. I don't think I'll be looking to refill until Christmastime, and I got this jar in early November.
All in all, it's a relatively simple, unobtrusive way to soften the face, brighten the complexion, and take care of some lines. The smell is inoffensive (the CADE ASB has a different smell because it has that Shea butter base, the "old lady" smell that people refer to with CADE, to me, is when there's Shea butter in there. It smells just like the Shea butter hand cream.) If you buy the other CADE products (Youth Concentrate, Anti Fatigue Gel, Juniper Bark Scrub), you'll notice the smell is distinctively woody and without some of the powdery, floral aspects you find in the CADE products with Shea butter.
Discussion of this review is over here!
Sometime last year, L'Occitane had a 25% off sale, and I decided to go whole hog and spend about $100. I had plenty of shave soap, and I have 3 of their colognes, and the CADE ASB, and CADE styptic pencil, so I decided I would get a whole bunch of bath gel, the CADE Juniper Bark Scrub, and this little jar of goodness for $38.
The packaging for this "Youth Concentrate" says that it is supposed to provide moisture for immediate comfort, while also fighting the aging process by reducing fine lines and wrinkles. It is a fairly little glass jar, 1.7 ounces, but it was filled up to the brim with this white, fairly dense cream.
The smell is your typical CADE -- a strong scent of juniper wood. Not the berries so much, but the wood. It is also a dry wood scent, not a moist, freshly cut wood. Think more like aged cedar chest instead of fresh hamster shavings. It is also a rather "warm" scent, it is not chilly and austere. For what it's worth, since I had no clue what "CADE" meant, and considering that I am a botanical geographer, I should know what it means, I had to do some research. Cade is another name for the Prickly Juniper/Cade Juniper, native to the Meditteranean, and Cade comes from the French name: genévrier cade. For those interested in taxonomy, it is Juniperus oxycedrus.
Wikipedia states: Cade oil is the essential oil obtained through destructive distillation of the wood of this shrub. It is a dark, aromatic oil with a strong smoky smell which is used in some cosmetics and (traditional) skin treatment drugs, as well as incense.
The cream is thick, so I've always been very light with the application. Just a dab on each cheek, a dab on the forehead, and a couple dabs on the chin and neck, and a quick massage throughout the face. It is fairly heavy and feels like a lotion on first application, even a little bit tacky or greasy. The good thing is that either my face is so devoid of moisture or the product is easily absorbed, because it does feel sheer and unnoticeable after 15 minutes or so. As it is, though, I do prefer to put it on my face at night after I've showered and used the CADE Juniper Bark scrub. I have rubbed some in before going to work just because I enjoy the fragrance and is very light. Some days, I just don't feel like putting any fragrance on, and this suits me.
As to results: I have rosacea and a pretty ruddy complexion, always have. I also sunburn/get red in the face fairly easily in the sun. I have noticed a lightening in my face which is nice. Also, while I wouldn't say I'm loaded with fine lines and wrinkles at 27, I do notice some wrinkling on my forehead (I probably squint my face too much at students in my class who say weird things). The wrinkles have pretty much nearly vanished. I can't say that it's all from this creme alone since I'm 27 and not 47, I'm sure having some youth left in me probably helps this along.
In any case, though, I think it is a good product. I have had the jar for 6 months, and I'm still at a little over half of a jar. A tiny bit goes a long, long way with this, so the $38 could easily last a year, I'm sure. I don't think I'll be looking to refill until Christmastime, and I got this jar in early November.
All in all, it's a relatively simple, unobtrusive way to soften the face, brighten the complexion, and take care of some lines. The smell is inoffensive (the CADE ASB has a different smell because it has that Shea butter base, the "old lady" smell that people refer to with CADE, to me, is when there's Shea butter in there. It smells just like the Shea butter hand cream.) If you buy the other CADE products (Youth Concentrate, Anti Fatigue Gel, Juniper Bark Scrub), you'll notice the smell is distinctively woody and without some of the powdery, floral aspects you find in the CADE products with Shea butter.
Discussion of this review is over here!
