Axis Y Dark Spot Correcting Glow Serum Review – Clear Skin Glow
Axis-Y is a plant-based Korean skincare company that takes into account environmental impact and sustainability into every product they make. Their formulas are designed to be balanced, simple and very effective. Almost all their products are perfect for acne-prone skin, designed to reduce acne-causing bacteria and with a texture light enough for tropical and oily-prone areas. They have mastered lightweight recipes that allow gentle hydration of the skin without irritation, occluding pores and using natural botanical extracts to help boost skin health. Their products are holistic, clear skin care that have been popular across the globe.
Their Dark Spot Correcting Glow is their absolute best seller and most famous product. Not only does it help cool and hydrate acne-prone and irritated skin, it has a dual mechanism of rosemary extract to reduce acne-causing bacteria and clearing red spots as well as brightening niacinamide and vitamin-rich sea buckthorn extract to help reduce dark spots and pigment to help clear hyperpigmentation and scarring. This serum has a 20% successful reduction of dark spots in just one month of use and 95% of users report smoother, hydrated and improved skin tone.
So, is it truly the holy grail of dark spot and acne care? Let’s put it to the test over a month to see the real results that can be seen in one of K-Beauty's most beloved acne serums.
What's In The Bottle?
Niacinamide: brightening vitamin B3 that helps reduce dark spots and pigment and even skin tone.
Rice bran extract: refreshing and hydrating rice extract that helps boost collagen and elastin for plumper, smoother skin texture.
Calendula flower extract: healing floral extract rich in antioxidants to boost skin repair and help seal damaged skin barrier for improved recovery of skin cells.
Papaya extract: soothing extract that helps cool redness, irritation and dryness for moisturized, clear and nourished skin.
Sea buckthorn extract: incredibly vitamin-rich extract (infused with vitamin A, C and E) that enhances skin repair, reduces fine lines and helps reduce appearance of dark spots.
Acerola fruit extract: vitamin-C rich fruit that helps improve collagen production and lighten skin texture (by inhibiting tyrosinase enzyme).
Glutathione: brightening antioxidant that helps clear pigment and dark spots for clearer, even skin texture for K-beauty's most gentle brightening agent.
Allantoin: deeply moisturizing and soothing extract that helps gently exfoliate away dead skin cells for bright, dewy skin.
Rosemary leaf oil: anti-bacterial agent that helps reduce growth of acne-causing bacteria and also helps soothe redness and inflammation in skin.
Who Should Avoid?
This gentle formula to help clear and balance oily skin is not designed for dry skin types. It can help topically to reduce acne spots in dry skin (and some dark spots), but must be followed up with a thicker moisturizer to ensure good maintenance of the skin barrier and hydration.
The Results
This light, dewy serum is the perfect foray into Korean beauty and to start off your clear skin journey. It's lightweight, well balanced and helps clear not just red spots and acne, but also dark spots and scars. It's a lovely, light formula (and really well priced) to help get your skincare journey right on track. It comes in a pump tube, allowing you to carefully dispense as much as you need and it provides rich coverage and treatment of skin.
I have combination skin and acne (always), so looking for products to help improve and clear skin is always the priority. Rosemary can be a really great tool (and beloved in K-beauty) to help reduce acne spots, but it's important to remember it can reduce your natural skin flora whilst treating acne. This is one of the few oily skin serums that also does not exfoliate the skin, which makes it safer for thinner and more sensitive skin types.
I added it to my morning and evening (AM/PM) routine as it's gentle enough to be used twice, and mixes well with other skincare products. It's good to take care, however, mixing it with other high-concentration niacinamide products as this can lead to mild irritation of your skin. Within two weeks of use, you can see a great reduction in redness and acne spots (thanks to the rosemary extract).
After 1 month, there's an improvement and smoothing of skin texture, improved plumpness and improved softness. It's such a lovely, gentle formula and I genuinely love how dewy it makes my skin feel. This serum was enough on it's own when I was just starting my K-beauty journey and it was actually the only product in my routine.
I don't recommend using it alone for a very long time, however, as the rosemary can potentially cause damage to your natural microbiome and it's important to balance it out with gentle exfoliation and probiotics (if you struggle with acne). For dark spots alone, you won't find a more balanced and nourishing serum to add to your routine.
Final Thoughts
This nourishing, lightweight serum is the perfect addition to oily skincare regime. It's designed to synergistically reduce dark spots, clear acne and boost collagen production for smoother, plump skin. It does take time to produce results, but on it's own can do a lot of good for your skin.
Looking for more exciting skincare for oily skin? Check out the fabulous Axis Y range available on Arktastic. From the latest releases to their classics, it's all available on Arktastic.
Want to learn more about Axis-Y? Check out their brand history and learn about their charity events below. Or check out our review of the Axis Y TXA Brightening Cream.
