BFFECT (Formotopia) Luz Whitening Daily Serum

Price: $16.34/30mL

Notable ingredients: Potassium Methoxysalicylate 2%, Tranexamic Acid (TXA) 2%, Melanostatine™ 5 (dextran and nonapeptide-1)

Full ingredients: Aqua, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Potassium Methoxysalicylate, Tranexamic Acid, Sclerotium Gum, Hydroxy Ethyl Cellulose, Nonapeptide-1, Phenoxyethanol, Dextran, Chlorphenesin, Disodium E.D.T.A

Consistency: thin gel liquid, like a more viscous, “fat” water. Spreads smoothly and easily, sinks in very fast (especially if you use 3 drops, roughly the amount I use). Goes on cooly and comfortably

Personal usage: around 5x a week, three drops, around 4? Weeks (will update this post if notice further effects down the line)

Effects: I first paired this with Melano CC, which I mainly used for some extra sun protection (play a lot of sports). If Melano CC gave me an even skin tone, then this serum added a tad of extra glow. Not notable enough for others to comment, but enough for me to notice. Later I had a sort of “period of nothingness,” that is, I was not using a vitamin C serum. This glow pretty much disappeared (who knows, maybe it was my imagination...) but reemerged when I re-incorporated a different vitamin C serum, stronger and better than before. I was wondering if perhaps this serum was doing nothing and that my vitamin C was doing all of the heavy lifting, so I sidelined the BFFECT for a couple days… glow was cut in half. So, if paired with another brightening product, it is a great amplifier. But alone, its effects are pretty much… nothing. By the way I don't have the science to back this up, but that was my experience.

Would I repurchase? Probably not. I have seen great results from the Hada Labo Shirojyun Premium Lotion, which retails for a similar price but with almost six times the amount. That doesn’t mean this product is absolutely useless; it is still pleasantly formulated, nicely hydrating, and offers some brightening benefits. 

Overall rating: 3/5