Pick up any glossy magazine and you’ll read the same beauty mantra – cleanse, tone and moisturise and great skin follows.  But anyone who’s taken the time to ingest this information and invested in every newly released product will know just how not very simple caring for your skin can be.

Knowing your skin type is the first step.  Having oily/combination facial skin means I often struggle with products over moisturising, and trying to control break outs with blemished areas is my daily struggle.

Most products I’ve tried have dealt with addressing my skin type, but being in my 30s I’m also wanting protection that will feed my skin deep down.  Anti-aging creams are very often targeted toward older skin, which tends to be dry, so a rich formula leads me back to my angry skin type.

When Pharma Nord recently got in touch it was a lovely surprise.  Our first acquaintance actually occurred back in 2009 and had triggered my modelling stint, when I entered in a competition to be a face of the brand, and finished runner up.  Pharma Nord are a pharmaceutical company that produce health products like supplements and skincare, and are highly acclaimed for their quality.  I was really interested to learn more about their skin creams, so I undertook a trial of their Q10 day and night creams.

To give the creams a proper test I wanted to give them time to take effect, so I used them religiously, morning and night, for two months.

Q10 Revitalizing Day Cream, 50ml – £12.95

The day cream has a very mild smell since it is fragrance-free.  Its active ingredients are: Co-enzyme Q10, Pycnogenol and jojoba oil, so while it is scientifically advanced, it has a natural, paraben-free ingredient base.

Q10 Revitalizing Night Cream, 50ml – £12.95

Like the day cream, the night cream’s paraben-free formulation also includes the Co-enzyme Q10, with apricot kernel oil and sodium hyaluronate.  It has a light essential oil fragrance that smells fresh and is soothing for skin preparing for bed.

Both creams have a silky and light texture that applies easily to the skin.  While both creams contain active oil ingredients, they are water based, so the mineral free formula allows you enough time to blend the creams in.  Once absorbed, there’s no feeling of tightness or dryness, despite the creams sinking in completely, and even though the soft cream feels substantially moisturising, there is no greasy residue.

Both creams seem well matched to my usually problematic skin.  I love how my skin is left feeling fresh and oil-free without dryness, and replenished without being weighed down or left shiny by excess moisture.  I find this especially amazing since the formula is targeted toward mature, dry skin and yet it suits my oily skin!

My skin overall looks much calmer these days.  I still get blemishes and spots but the inflammation and redness is reduced.  I feel like my skin is balanced now and more able to cope with stress signs (no cream is going to eliminate hormonal spots) and I’ve definitely been more confident about my naked-skin days.

Does the Q10 element make a difference?

Yes, but honestly I don’t have a lot of aging to judge.  The slight lines around my eyes and the line on my forehead are still there, but my overall skin health is clearly benefiting from the ingredients.  My face feels and looks in a better condition these days, so it’s addressed the initial bug bear I had with my skin.

*PR Gifted*

I’d love to hear your experience with facial skin creams.  Do you like the scientifically advanced formula or do you prefer more basic moisturisation?  Have you ever tried Pharma Nord’s Q10 creams?