I am reviewing the Innisfree Green Tea Seed Serum today. Usually i do not review trial size products but in this case, i thought it might help somebody with my skin type. Let us see how it fared on my sensitive skin.

What it is

A moisturising serum with organic Jeju green tea and green tea seeds that hydrate your skin from deep within!

1. More moisture and freshness with 100% green tea.
Rich in amino acids and minerals, green tea from Jeju’s own green tea leaves hydrates your skin.

2. Dual Moisture-Rising Technology™ derived from green tea and green tea seed oil
The fresh green tea deeply hydrates your skin and the green tea seed oil creates a strong moisture barrier to keep your skin moisturised longer.

3. The first thing to apply after a face wash!
As the first skincare product you use, it helps hold moisture in your skin and prevents moisture loss.

Product suggestions for the 3 most common types of skin

• Oily skin : The green tea fresh line
• Combination skin : The green tea balancing line
• Dry skin : The green tea moisture line

Ingredients

green Tea Extract (75.9%), Propanediol, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Ethanol, Glycerin, Betaine, The green Tea Seed Oil (208mg), Prickly Pear Extract, Orchid Extract, Tangerine Peel Extract, Camellia Leaf Extract, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Extract, Grapefruit Extract, Orange Extract, Tangerine Extract, Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Cetearyl Olivate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Sorbitan Olivate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Cocoa Extract, Dextrin, Potassium Hydroxide, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance

Colour

Pale yellow and clear

Consistency

Watery

My Experience

Skin Type – Normal Sensitive

I have normal but sensitive skin and hence i decided to try this trial pack first. This review may be of help to people with a similar skin type to mine.

I was really excited to try this as it is such a raved about product. But that excitement went down hill real fast and turned in to regret. 🙁 🙁

Innisfree Green Tea Seed Serum looks clear and watery. When applied on the skin, it gets absorbed instantly too. But, there is a slight sticky feel to it.

Two minutes after i applied the serum,  There was a tingling sensation, i noticed my skin turning red and warm. I washed the serum off and applied a soothing cream.  After an hour or so, the redness and irritation on my face subsided. But that scared the hell out of me.

However, it took longer for the redness on my neck to go away. My neck felt uncomfortable all the while, like it was stinging or tingling. I had to control my urge to scratch, rub and touch the area which would have worsened the condition.

Photo 🙁

I gave the rest to my husband. He has normal skin and it did not have any side effects. He did not like it that much though.

It may suit all other skin types except sensitive skin. But, keep in mind that there is a sticky feel to it. The green tea seed serum is certainly not suitable for summers.

I read somewhere that the green tea serum when used as the last step in their skin care routine does not leave the skin sticky. But i did not try the serum again. So i cannot comment on that.

Potential Reasons For Skin Irritation

Sorbitan Olivate – Derived from olive oil. Fungal Acne Trigger.

Hydrogenated Castor Oil – May irritate skin. Not to be used for sensitive, irritated or inflamed skin.

(1,4-dioxane a by product while making hydrogenated castor oil is carcinogenic and may cause skin allergies.)

Potassium Hydroxide – Ph regulator in cleansers and soaps. It could also irritate your skin.

Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane – Silicone makes your skin smooth to touch while doing nothing to improve the skin tone or texture. It accelerates ageing on long term use. 🙁

Alcohol – Previously there was alcohol listed as one of its ingredients but the ingredients list does not have alcohol as per their website. I am not sure whether they changed their formula recently. So just to be careful, check the ingredients list before buying this serum.

Fragrance – There is artificial fragrance in this serum which has a comedogenic rating of 8.

That is the end of my review of Innisfree green tea seed serum, I really wanted this green tea serum to work but unfortunately it didn’t. Now i switched to Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Serum. which i have already reviewed before.

Pros

• Travel friendly packaging
• Paraben free
• Alcohol free (New version)
• Easily absorbed
• Hydrates the skin

Cons

• Sticky finish (Could be because of the hot summer)
• Strong scent
• Expensive
• Not suitable for sensitive skin
• May cause irritation and breakouts
• No improvement in skin texture and tone (but it does hydrate)

Will I Recommend Innisfree Green Tea Seed Serum?

Many of you might disagree with me but,  I’d rather go for klair’s or COSRX any time. If it suits your skin type, then stick to it as there are thousands of reviews raving about this product.

Although it may suit other skin types the serum itself does not contain any ingredients worth mentioning. It is just a normal serum and hence there are better options available in the market.