I was excited to get a chance to try out two essences from the currently trending Korean skincare brand Purito: The Purito Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence and the Purito Galacto Niacin 97 Power Essence. Learn all about Purito today, and find out if these two products managed to win my heart!
Purito has been appearing quite a bit on my Instagram feed lately, and I’ve felt intrigued about their products and the seemingly “green” and natural image they portray. Thus, I was happy to be approached by the brand for a review opportunity!° Even better – they allowed me to pick my own review product, which is always nice. I prefer to have a choice and be allowed to pick a product that meets my skincare concerns.
I decided to go for the Purito Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence, since I have a bit of a weakness when it comes to fermented ingredients in skincare, and I am also still searching for that perfect first treatment essence. This, however, was before I started using the Secret Key Starting Treatment Essence Rose Edition,* which has turned out to become my favourite FTE of all time!
And, speaking of essences, Purito also sent me their Galacto Niacin 97 Power Essence, which was an unexpected, pleasant surprise. I have a strong fondness for anything with Galactomyces and/or Niacinamide in it, and so I was excited to try out this highly concentrated K-beauty essence. I decided to review both of these Purito essences in one blog post, since – spoiler alert – I have somewhat mixed feelings about both of them. But first – a few words on the brand itself.
Purito – Green and clean skincare?
Purito is a Korean brand that is attached to the online seller Eopenmarket – from what I gather, Eopenmarket are the main distributors of Purito products, so they would also be the best option to purchase them.
The brand presents itself as “green” and “natural”, though they are not certified organic, and the word “natural” can be used pretty much for any sort of ingredient list that contains plant extracts. They do promise that their skincare products are free from:
- Parabens
- Ethanol/Alcohol
- Artificial colorants
- Artificial fragrance
Personally, I have no issues with parabens or artificial dyes and fragrance, but many of you prefer natural options, so this brand may be one to consider. Furthermore, they promise to be cruelty free – still somewhat of a rarity when it comes to Korean brands. Eco-friendliness is also part of their branding, with the packaging consciously simplistic and fully recyclable. The outer packaging is a simple, unbleached cardboard box, which looks surprisingly stylish in a hipster sort of way. I am digging their eco-minimalist branding! Even better: the brand is very reasonably priced for what they offer in terms of ingredient composition and quality (don’t you just love K-beauty for that?).
The ingredients are all EWG green level, so the “clean” part is true insofar as that all ingredients are considered free of harmful toxins or chemicals deemed aggravating for the skin. So…nature-derived, but maybe not what I would consider organic, if that label is important to you.
Purito Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence – My Review
I was super excited to try the Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence – with a list of intriguing fermented ingredients, as well as a 3% concentration of skin-brightening, impurity-fighting niacinamide, this first treatment essence sounded right up my alley.
Here is the full list of ingredients for the Purito Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence:
“Butylene Glycol, Lactobacillus/Rice Ferment, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Taraxacum Platycarpum Extract, Morus Alba Bark Extract, Niacinamide, 1,2-Hexadeniol, Bifida Ferment Lysate, Acrylates/ C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Allantoin, Viscum Album Leaf Extract, Arginine, Caprylyl Glycol, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Adenosine, Perilla Ocymoides Seed Extract, Glycerin, Saccharomyces/ Viscum Album Ferment Extract, Saccharomyces/ Imperata Cylindrical Root Ferment Extract, Lactobacillus/ Soybean Ferment Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Disodium EDTA.”
A whole host of fermented ingredients makes this essence so interesting: bifida ferment lysate, said to help soothe and calm skin, fermented mistletoe extract – often found in Korean skincare products targeted at acne-prone skin, “saccharomyces”, a form of fermented yeast used for skin-brightening (similar to my beloved galactomyces).
The Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence is said to have a “3 in 1” function, described as “ph balance, skin layer, skin tone” – I must admit that I am a bit confused as to what exactly is meant by “ph balance”, but I assume it’s supposed to balance out the ph value of the skin. I don’t own any measuring equipment for ph value, so I couldn’t really check up on this claim. Given the ingredients list of this product, I don’t really see how this could work in raising or lowering ph levels of the skin.
The texture of this essence is on the watery side, but it does have a certain viscosity, especially when compared to other fermented FTEs such as the Missha, Secret Key or SK-II one. Many reviewers use this more as a skin toner or even serum, and I can see where they’re coming from – the essence is definitely more on the nourishing and hydrating side than I expected!
I use this product as a PM essence, right after cleansing and my actives. The essence feels a tad “oily” and takes a while to be absorbed by the skin, so it doesn’t work so well for me in my morning routine. I’ve been using the Fermented Complex 94 Boosting Essence for a good month now, and I must admit I have been putting off writing this review because… well, somehow, this promising K-beauty product just doesn’t really wow me the way I anticipated.
The essence is one of those products that aren’t terrible, and this isn’t a negative review at all. It’s just… To be honest, this just doesn’t seem to do much for my skin. See, whenever I switch this out for my favourite essence, the Secret Key essence I keep mentioning, my skin shows an immediate, positive reaction: it looks brighter, smoother and more youthful, and there is a lovely “rosy” glow to my skin that looks healthy and refreshed.
I just don’t get anything like that from the Purito essence – my skin looks hydrated, which is nice, but I can’t see anything else resulting from the product. I guess I just expected more, especially given how much my skin loves fermented ingredients! Frankly, I keep dragging out using this up, and whenever I use it I yearn for my Secret Key essence and the lovely things it does for my skin.
If you are interested in buying the Purito Fermented Complex Boosting Essence, you can find it either at Jolse* or at Yesstyle* usually around 20$ unless there is a sale – compare prices before you purchase!
Purito Galacto Niacin 97 Power Essence – my Review
The second Purito product I received sounded equally promising, if not more so, than the fermented essence: as I’ve said, I adore products with high concentrations of niacinamide, such as my holy grail when it comes to sleeping creams, the Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask. The concentration of nianinamide in the Galacto Niacin 97 Power Essence is even higher than in the fermented essence, and roughly as high as in the Klairs Vitamin E Mask: 5%.
Here is the full list of ingredients for the Purito Galacto Niacin 97 Power Essence:
“Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate (92%), Niacinamide (5%), 1,2-Hexadeniol, Viscium Album Leaf Extract, Bifida Ferment Lysate, Lactobacillus Ferment, Acrylates/ C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Arginine, Allantoin, Adenosine, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Disodium EDTA.”
This is a very “pure” essence, with a clear focus on both the high concentration of galactomyces and niacinamide, so the main purpose of the product is to brighten skin, fight excess sebum, and improve overall skin texture. Arginine and Adenosine are also wrinkle-fighting ingredients, so this in combination with the galactomyces makes for a nice anti-aging essence.
The texture of this felt slightly less viscous than the fermented essence, but strangely enough more “oily” – I put oily in quote marks because this doesn’t actually contain oil, but I never know how else to describe the feel of this type of formulation. It is quite similar in feel to the Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin C Drop.
I started using this as my morning essence, and it definitely tends to sink into my skin faster than the fermented essence, leaving no residue or stickiness behind. Since I have a tendency to be oily, as well as generally quite a dull, tired complexion (although the By Wishtrend Mandelic Acid Skin Prep Water has helped tons in improving this problem!), I was curious to see if the Purito Galacto Niacin 97 Power Essence could help with that.
Everything about this essence reads “perfect” on paper: strongly concentrated ingredients that I know work well for me, free of anything that could potentially aggravate my skin… But… sigh… Again, I wish I could tell you something exciting here, but… This just didn’t do anything for my skin! Guys, I don’t get it either – galactomyces usually work so well for me, and the supposedly high concentration should technically have amazing results, but… It just doesn’t, really.
Again, it also doesn’t have a negative effect on my skin, so this isn’t a totally negative review. I also know of many other reviewers on Instagram who loved this essence, and I have no idea why this did not work for me the way I had hoped based on the ingredients list. It just goes to show – and this has always been my conviction – that an ingredients list by and of itself is not enough to judge a skincare product.
If you would like to purchase the Purito Galacto Niacin Power Essence, you can find it either at Jolse* or at Yesstyle* – compare prices before purchase to get the best deal!
Purito Skincare – the Bottom Line
Even though both Purito products didn’t quite manage to wow me, I still have a strong fondness for this brand. I love the philosophy behind their products, and I would love to try out more! Their centella products, for instance, look promising, especially the newer fragrance-free Centella Unscented Serum.*
Sometimes, a product that looks good on paper and/or has amazing results for others just does not work for the individual, and this is how I feel about the two essences I tried. Maybe it has also to do with the fact that the Secret Key Rose Essence works so well for me that any other product with similar types of ingredients and functions has to work extra hard to dethrone my current holy grail. In any case, I would not discard Purito as a brand after my lukewarm experience with these products, and I am sure that other products could still potentially win over my heart.
If you are interested in purchasing any other Purito products, you can find them at Yesstyle*, Jolse* or if you live in the US also at Beautytap.* You can also read more about Purito on their English website.
Have you tried anything from Purito yet? What are your experiences with this K-beauty brand?
Take care, guys!
Sugarpeaches
*Affiliate Links, meaning I earn a small commission if you decide to use the link to purchase an item. This does not raise the purchase price for you, and it helps me and my blog to grow – so, thank you for supporting me in this way!
ºPR Samples provided by the brand for an honest review
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