Review: HERA White Program Biogenic Effector

The grass is always greener on the other side. I tan easily. So when it comes to summer, I simply need to be standing outside for a few hours and the next day I'm tanned. So then it's only expected that I try every way to keep myself as untanned as possible. I've been using Missha All Around Safe-Block Mild Essence Sun Milk SPF45 PA++ for the past month or so after getting back from vacation. For whitening, I usually use Hadalabo Shirojyun Arbutin Whitening Essence which has been the most effective for me so far for whitening after tanned skin. But I guess like everybody else, I'm always curious to see if there is something better, cheaper, more efficient out there. So when I got this sample I was looking forward to trying it!

Description (paraphrased from qoo10.sg):

• The serum improves melanin as well as the organic environment between melanocytes and their surroundings within the skin, resulting in clear, radiant skin
• The serum blocks the generation and retention of melanin
• This highly enriched serum gently spread and is quickly absorbed as soon as applied onto the skin, giving a silky texture
• Helps whiten and improve wrinkles on the skin
• Take an appropriate amount and apply it evenly onto the skin

My impression:

This is my first time trying a product from HERA. Shim Min Ah (actress from My Girlfriend is a Nine-Tailed Fox for those who watch Korean drama) is the celebrity endorser for HERA so this brand is definitely up there. Looking at the price of this bottle, $90 for 50ml, I guess I would say its price range is in between Sulwhasoo and Skinfood, though it's more on the Sulwhasoo side.

This effector is pretty light. I was afraid it may be oily so I only put it on at night but I can totally see myself, with oily/combination skin, put this on in the morning. The description says it is quickly absorbed and I do agree that it was pretty quick despite me putting so much on my face. It's not oily and I did not break out from it. In fact when I used this I had a pimple and I just put this effector over it. My pimple got smaller, less bumpier and less red the next morning! Now, I don't think that's due to the effector but at least I can say that the effector doesn't irritate/worsen my pimples/clogged pores.

This effector was impressive. I noticed that my face was whiter the next morning. This sample gave me two generous applications so I applied them on two consecutive nights. I would say it made me whiter than the night before. I wouldn't say my second application made me EVEN whiter than the first application did, just that it helps from whatever sun rays I got from the day before. But perhaps with continuous application I would actually get progressively whiter?

I only used this twice so I can't say much about the anti-wrinkle effects. I didn't see any.

It seems like HERA isn't a very popular Korean brand overseas as eBay only has three listings for this. I would like to give this a try and buy more samples BUT I've been hearing great things about the History of Whoo White Seol Essence so I think I'm going to be trying a few more whitening products first before I decide on which one to buy more of.

Summary:

Light-weight, no oiliness, quick absorption
No clogged pores, didn't make my pimple worse
Impressive overnight whitening results
$90 for 50ml on qoo10.sg, $15 for 30 samples (~30ml) on eBay

Grade: 4.5/5 because it had pretty impressive overnight whitening effects. Perhaps I'll give it 5/5 if I try more samples and it actually makes my face progressively whiter

Value: 3.5/5 pretty expensive for a whitening product considering Hadalabo Shirojyun Arbutin Whitening Essence was effective and cheaper

Repurchase? I'll be trying some more whitening products like OHUI White Extreme Cellshine Essence first before I make my decision