Product Review: Garnier Light Daily Moisturizer

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Baby, it's cold outside! Or, at least it was last week. Frickin' freezing, actually, undeniably heralding the arrival of our Canadian winter. Which is why I was so grateful for my super-duper-special delivery, all the way from Asia!

So, you may have heard me proclaim the virtues of Garnier's Light Daily Moisturizer. I'd fallen in love with it on a trip to Hong Kong, but since it's only available in Asia, I had to settle for a boring Neutrogena moisturizer when I ran out of the good stuff last spring. Neutrogena was alright for summer, but it wouldn't cut the cake now that it's cold and dry and miserable. So I finally bit the bullet and bought a couple jars of Garnier Light off EBay. And, oooh, lemme tell ya, it's like comin' home.





The "Light" line's main feature is "Fairness + dark spots prevention" (mmmm, Engrish), and the ads claim that regular use of their products will lighten your skin-tone by 2 shades, through the gentle exfoliating power of lemon essence, the mysterious and potentially euphemistic properties of "Long Dan", and the ... um, sunshine-y goodness of vitamin C.

While I think this "2 shades lighter" business is totally subjective and completely unprovable, I must admit that my skin does somehow look brighter and clearer after using the cream again. Not "clear" in reference to acne or anything, just.... clear. Clear like a crisp cool morning. Clear like the tone of a pure bell chime. Clear, unlike over-extended and dubious metaphors.

Right. So in addition to the brightening aspect, this is just a really great moisturizer in general. The white cream is comforting and soothing, and moisturizes without stickiness. The soft lemony scent is refreshing, and it doesn't sting around the eye area (unless I really get it in there). It's gentle, doesn't cause irritation or breakouts, and for my slightly dry skin, it's a great daily cream for any season.

The problem of getting your hands on this great product remains a pain in the butt. Sasa.com carries the entire Light line, but unless you happen to be buying a bunch of other stuff too, you'll have to pay shipping. The shipping charges are reasonable if you live in the States ($6), but not if you live in Canada -- $18 for standard shipping??? Um, no. (If you are in the market though, Sasa also has Fiberwig mascara for much cheaper than Sephora's $22.)

The other option is to go through EBay (I found a pretty good deal), or beg a kind friend who lives in Asia to send this to you. The in-store cost in Hong Kong worked out to about $15 CAD for a jar, which lasts 3-4 months. But I'd pay $20 for it if I could only find it in a store here!

Anyway, the line offers a plethora of products, from cleanser to moisturizing "milk" (a super light moisturizer, I guess?) to spot treatments and various masks. I have tried the Dark Spot Corrector Pen without much success, and have heard that the eye cream is ineffective, though I have not tried it myself. I might be tempted into trying out some of the masks, or the "intensive" products if I get bored, but in the meantime, I'm plenty happy with the truly awesome and delicious moisturizing cream!