We break down everything from ingredients to size to performance.
Face mists are an essential staple for me as the first step of my morning routine throughout the entire year, but I’m especially grateful to them in the summer. I live in an extremely hot climate (it was 110º F/43.3º C yesterday) that’s also really dry, so between the atmosphere and the constant air conditioning, every bit of hydration I can keep in my skin is worth its weight in gold. When you add my combo-oily skin type to the mix, it’s not a good time as it produces extra oil in the summers and even more when it starts getting dehydrated.
I used to be a serious devotee to setting my concealer/foundation with loose powder, touching up with blotting powder throughout the day, and then piling on even more powder. Y’all don’t understand, I was using an obscene amount of powder. The real solution that I’ve discovered over the years is the light use of some blotting paper once throughout the day if I’m out for a while, and refreshing my face with a mist. My skin feels instantly comforted, and if my foundation is separating in the oil and heat, misting helps with that cakey look and helps things look smoother.
So I recently got my hands on the Blanc & Eclare Serein Hydrating Mist to test for y’all, and after putting it through its paces over the last few months, here’s what I’ve found.
Price & packaging
At a $27 price point, you’re looking at the middle tier of the market. It comes in at 80ml, which is a little on the small side from the mist volumes I’ve become used to, but that technically does make the product more convenient to carry with you throughout the day and in line with airline regulations for liquids in your carry-on bags. The mist itself is a super thin, watery texture that absorbs very quickly into the skin. I was hesitant going into testing due to the volume of the mist, but that brings us to the most essential part of mist packaging, which is the spray.
The mist on this is one of the better, if not one of the best, spray nozzles I’ve found. The mist produced was always very fine with no random droplets spitting out, and it disperses very evenly all over the face. I would say that it’s because of this nozzle that the product lasted longer than I expected. I know that a spray nozzle might seem like a small detail to get excited about, but they really can make or break a mist.
My clumsy self also greatly appreciates the frosted plastic that makes up the majority of the component. I tend to drop things, and I can personally attest to the fact that the bottle and cap feel solid, and they both have endured a few tumbles on to my bathroom floor with no issue.
Notable ingredients
The base of the mist, like the majority of mists and toners, is water; however, Blanc & Eclare does pride itself on the type of water that’s used. For those of you out there who have struggled with Brita pitchers and other water filters, you know that all water is definitely not created equal. The water featured in this mist is Tasmanian rain water! I’m not quite savvy enough to know the specific benefits of said type of water, but ingredients in skincare that are specially sourced do make me happy in the skintertainment sense.
Sodium hyaluronate is included as well, which we know and love for its hydrating, water binding capabilities, and there is also apple fruit water that’s intended to lend some mild AHA qualities to the mist. Just to be very clear, this is not going to be a replacement for or something you can use as a dedicated exfoliating product, which I would consider to be a positive in a mist that you’re potentially going to be applying throughout your day and possibly in the sun. I like to think of these very mild AHA type products as gentle humectants and/or antioxidants in these types of situations, so if your skin is more sensitive to exfoliants, I wouldn’t think that this would cause any issues.
Performance & experience
I easily slotted this into my routine as my first hydrating step after my morning cleanse, and I will say that it performed solidly. I didn’t need a ton of sprays to get an even layer all over my face, and I found that my serums layered really well over this. The mist absorbs into the skin super quickly and doesn’t leave any type of stickiness behind. When I used it during the day to hydrate my skin, the rapid absorption was a huge plus; there’s nothing worse than going to use a mist to refresh your skin during the day and ending up with a sticky, heavy mess.
The hydration level of the mist was light to medium for me. If you live in a humid climate and/or have oily skin that you don’t want to add heaviness or shine to, then this is potentially a huge plus for you. As I mentioned before, my environment is dry as can be, so I need something with some more heft behind it or additional layers to really hydrate my skin. And on days that my skin is extra thirsty due to some exfoliation the night before or a long day out in the sun, I need more hydration after cleansing to keep my skin from feeling too stripped. While I have yet to meet a mist that can handle that job all on its own, the lightness of this mist does make it great for a midday misting session.
It is definitely worth mentioning that the fragrance of this product is prominent. I’m absolutely terrible at talking about fragrances, but the best way I can describe it is a slightly soapy, floral scent. I’ve recently found that I’m getting more sensitive to really heavy floral fragrances, especially when they’re artificial or particularly rose heavy. It’s a one-way ticket to a headache that hangs around all day. Thankfully, I didn’t find that this fragrance caused any kind of issue with my senses or my skin, which is a good thing because it isn’t one that dissipates very quickly after application. I would say a good hour or two later, I could still catch whiffs of it on my face, at which point the scent either dissipated or I got used to it. If you have a particular sensitivity to fragrance, I would say that is something to keep in mind; if you’ve never noticed any adverse reaction to fragrance in products, I think you should be relatively fine, and any concern with the scent is going to up to your personal preference rather than serve as a potential irritant.
I think the Serein Hydrating Mist is a solid addition to the Blanc & Eclare skincare line that has the one and only Jessica Jung at its forefront, and a much needed part of the collection in my opinion. There is an additional toner in the line as well, but mists have become a very essential part of my day-to-day routine, and I think the collection would definitely be missing something without it.
Have any of you tried the Blanc & Eclare Serein Hydrating Mist or any other products from the collection? Any that you’d like to see a review on as well? Let us know in the comments below, and I hope you’re all having a great week!
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