I've waited and waited on this. From my childhood I remember the positive and green image of Yves Rocher. Their perfumes used to be the only high-quality option for many people in Eastern Europe.
But enough is enough. The blurry and irrational memories can prolong my patience for only so long.
Let's get down to it: the good, bad and ugly about Yves Rocher products and the brand itself.
Disclaimer: I purchased all the products with my own money, and this post is 100% my honest opinion. I have not tried any Yves Rocher makeup, so this review is about skincare&perfumes only. My skin type is normal+combination in winter and combination+oily in summer.
SEBO SPECIFIC
But enough is enough. The blurry and irrational memories can prolong my patience for only so long.
Let's get down to it: the good, bad and ugly about Yves Rocher products and the brand itself.
Disclaimer: I purchased all the products with my own money, and this post is 100% my honest opinion. I have not tried any Yves Rocher makeup, so this review is about skincare&perfumes only. My skin type is normal+combination in winter and combination+oily in summer.
Ultra Matt Shine Reducing Moisturizer
The cream does not come with a protective seal, but comes in a glass jar. Thus I assume it contains a fair amount of preservatives to protect it from getting spoiled by bacteria.
The texture is jelly, light yellow-green color. It applies and blends nicely, leaves a very thin layer on the skin, not annoying but obviously not absorbing 100% percent. It has noticeable "herbal" perfume scent, more chemical than natural. I have not noticed a mattifying effect that would last longer than first half of an hour. The hydration is not enough for normal skin in winter, so I can suggest it as a generic day moisturizer for summer. On sale you can get it for 12$, IMHO way too expensive for what it is.
CURE SOLUTIONS
The serum does not come with a protective seal, but comes in a glass bottle with a pipette. Thus I assume it contains a fair amount of preservatives to protect it from getting spoiled by bacteria.
The texture is creamy liquid, semi-opaque white color. It applies and blends nicely, fully adsorbs into the skin, leaves a plumped refreshed feeling. It has noticeable "herbal" perfume scent, not too chemical.
I've been using it for a month and have not noticed any permanent anti-wrinkle or skin smoothing effect. So I can suggest it as a nice hydrating&smoothing moisturizer for all skin types. I suspect if you mix it with hyaluronic acid it might work even better:) On sale you can get it for 26$, IMHO a bit expensive for what it is.
DÉMAQUILLANTS AUX 3 THÉS DÉTOXIFIANTSTrial-size Micellar Cleansing Water |
The emulsion does not come with a protective seal. It comes in a plastic bottle with no doser\dispenser. Thus I assume it contains a fair amount of preservatives to protect it from getting spoiled by bacteria. It is also easy to get too much out and spill the liquid all around.
The texture is like any other liquid, non-oily, semi-transparent yellow color. It does not dissolve either water resistant, water proof or any normal makeup. At most you can smear it all over your face, partially getting the mascara off the eyes (after extensive rubbing), and then use a gelface wash to get all that off your face. The liquid has very faint "herbal" smell.
Well, this is a clear fail in terms of function. I would be better of using any generic toner. At least a toner has some skin benefits. Price is 3.5$, IMHO get a latte instead.
| TRADITION DE HAMMAM |
Moroccan clay mask - for face and hair - Travel Size
The mask does not come with a protective seal. It comes in a plastic bottle with a narrowed opening for dosing. Thus I assume it contains a fair amount of preservatives to protect it from getting spoiled by bacteria.
The texture is surprisingly fluid, between a normal clay mask, liquid and a scrub. It indeed contains scrubbing particles, that are large and not densely packed. I to this day do not understand, how a scrub can be combined with a clay mask in terms of usability and function, but here you go :) The color is cool-toned brown and dries to a grey-brown clay texture. Easy to spread around, but it dries very quickly, so I can not use it for 5 minutes prescribed (3min max), because it shrinks and tugs on the skin like crazy when drying. The liquid has very pronounced sweet smell, that I do not find particularly spicy or arabic-nights-eastern-morocco-like in character, this smell is frankly annoying:( The mask did not clear my pores, but my skin felt reasonably refreshed.
Price is 3.5$, IMHO buy it ONLY IF you are trying to add something to cart in order to get free shipping.
MASKS FRUITY
Price is 3.5$, IMHO buy it ONLY IF you are trying to add something to cart in order to get free shipping.
MASKS FRUITY
Fresh Mask with Lemon Zest
The mask does not come with a protective seal. It comes in a plastic bottle with a narrowed opening for dosing. Thus I assume it contains a fair amount of preservatives to protect it from getting spoiled by bacteria.
The texture is very jelly-like, very glycerine-like, has a weird chemical smell that is a bit lemon. The color is transparent yellow. Easy to spread around, but it dries within 5-7 minutes. It does refresh the skin for the first 15 minutes after, and then there is not further effect. I honestly do not see any effect, good or bad, what-so-ever. Price is 5$ (always on sale in seems), IMHO skip on this.
Ok, I gasped, when I saw that in the package. Yves Rocher just invented a new definition of mini! The nail polish was of a size on my thumb knuckle! It was so incredibly small, that the bottle might not be enough for one complete manicure!
It's both cute and weird, frankly, but one thing is certain: the Yves Rocher mini nail polish is a complete waste of money (3$). For God's Sake, you can buy FULL SIZED China Glaze for that price (on season sales) and Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear (all year around)! The quality of the nail polish was not good either, transparent, a bit streaky, not long lasting. It's laughable, really.
SECRETS D'ESSENCESVanille Noire Eau de Parfum - Travel Size (splash)
The eau de perfume does not come with a protective seal or doser, it is in a typical miniature splash bottle. The color is transparent brown.
I am not a big fan of gourmand sweet perfumes, and vanilla in particular, but I LOVE this one. It is a purely vanilla smell, no other notes. But vanilla here has a bit burnt almost very subtly smoked character. Maybe I'm affected by the bottle design, but the bottle catches the essence of this fragrance very well indeed. |
It is sweet without being edible, obnoxious, or predictable.
I would easily choose this cool, a bit burnt sugar vanilla over Prada Candy, where the latter is sweet, creamy and flowery. It is a subjective preference though. Both aromas are excellent quality, I'm just fed up with the abundance of syrupy, barbie-stylized frags lately. See what fragrantica has to say about it.
It lasts not a very long time, so I tend to pour it all over my neck, hands and hair. If I ever purchase from Yves Rocher again, I would get a big spray bottle of this one.
I would easily choose this cool, a bit burnt sugar vanilla over Prada Candy, where the latter is sweet, creamy and flowery. It is a subjective preference though. Both aromas are excellent quality, I'm just fed up with the abundance of syrupy, barbie-stylized frags lately. See what fragrantica has to say about it.
It lasts not a very long time, so I tend to pour it all over my neck, hands and hair. If I ever purchase from Yves Rocher again, I would get a big spray bottle of this one.
Ok, I gasped, when I saw that in the package. Yves Rocher just invented a new definition of mini! The nail polish was of a size on my thumb knuckle! It was so incredibly small, that the bottle might not be enough for one complete manicure!
It's both cute and weird, frankly, but one thing is certain: the Yves Rocher mini nail polish is a complete waste of money (3$). For God's Sake, you can buy FULL SIZED China Glaze for that price (on season sales) and Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear (all year around)! The quality of the nail polish was not good either, transparent, a bit streaky, not long lasting. It's laughable, really.
SO ELIXIRMini SO ELIXIR Eau de Parfum |
The eau de perfume does not come with a protective seal or doser, it is in a typical miniature splash bottle. The color is transparent yellow.
I can't wear heavy sweet perfumes, but I have a lot of appreciation for them, and my mom loves them so much, that I test a fair amount for the sake of giving them to her as gifts. It is a old type of perfumed oils mixed with olibanum\incense and amber perfume. It reminds me of many-many other popular in 60-80s. |
Not a genius composition, but very nice, sweet with major olibanum, spices and amber.It lasts a relatively long time (not too long though), it warms up the room, and can be overpowering, if you put too much of it on your skin.
It is a good balmy incensey classic, but not very sophisticated compared to some contemporary frags from the same category. See what fragrantica has to say about it.
Price is 5$ for a mini, IMHO try it in mini size first, if you like heavy balmy, honey-like sweet perfumes.
Ok, enough product reviews. Now about the brand. Yves Rocher was a leaping bunny approved brand for a long time, till they decided to sell in China in 2012. More: evidence1, evidence2, evidence3, evidence4. For many years the reputation of the brand was built on the values of natural ingridients, cruelty free development, and sustainable production.
Not any more, greed took its toll.
To make things more ugly, let me tell you that EVEN NOW Yves Rocher puts cruelty free on its packaging, and advertises, that they are "against" animal testing. Frankly it looks like a pimp praising virginity before marriage.
What really gets me is the blatant lies. Do not support animal testing in other countries and perform it, if you say you are AGAINST it, Good Lord! Just look at this:
Gosh it is so hypocritical, it makes my blood boil!
Second, the natural-ness and organic-ness of their products is so obviously not true. The only thing that makes it better, is that Yves Rocher send an extensive brochure with all product ingredients listed with every order.
So they do put bunch of green leaves on the packaging, and use nebulous half-truths to advertise their products, but there is so little regulation on that "natural"means anyway.
Third, very annoying and cheap marketing. I get so much paper spam from them with offers to get trashy cosmetic bags\swim wear\jewelry\other worthless chinese goods!
I don't want that crap, it useless, it is demotivating, it is disrespectful to my as a customer. Give a higher discount on your good products or start giving away better gifts! IMHO it is embarrassing, when brands send crap like this as gifts.
All in all, not natural, not cruelty free, not customer appreciative brand. I feel I'm done with Yves Rocher, even the good experiences with some of the products do not make up for the deceiving marketing and hypocritical brand values.
xoxo, Maria TwosRuse.
It is a good balmy incensey classic, but not very sophisticated compared to some contemporary frags from the same category. See what fragrantica has to say about it.
Price is 5$ for a mini, IMHO try it in mini size first, if you like heavy balmy, honey-like sweet perfumes.
| SECRETS D'ESSENCES |
Voile d'ambre Eau de Parfum - Travel Size
The eau de perfume does not come with a protective seal or doser, it is in a typical miniature splash bottle. The color is transparent yellow.
As I said I can't wear heavy sweet perfumes, but I have a lot of appreciation for them. It is another old type of perfume representing a mixture of oils and pronounced amber + olibanum\incense. It is lighter than So Elixir, but more honey like. They are very similar actually in my mind. I can not tell them apart, unless I smelled them sequentially. Yet this perfume is called Amber after all, so... It is indeed amber all out :)) |
Again not a genius composition, but very nice, sweet with major amber, warm, honey notes. I personally prefer Burberry Weekend, because it is more complex, floral and less heavy. Voile d'ambre lasts a long time, similar or maybe better than So Elixir. It warms up the room, and can be overpowering, if you put too much of it on your skin.
It is a good oriental incensey classic, but not very sophisticated compared to some contemporary frags from the same category. See what fragrantica has to say about it.
Price is 5$ for a mini, IMHO try it in mini size first, if you like heavy balmy, honey-like sweet perfumes.
It is a good oriental incensey classic, but not very sophisticated compared to some contemporary frags from the same category. See what fragrantica has to say about it.
Price is 5$ for a mini, IMHO try it in mini size first, if you like heavy balmy, honey-like sweet perfumes.
Ok, enough product reviews. Now about the brand. Yves Rocher was a leaping bunny approved brand for a long time, till they decided to sell in China in 2012. More: evidence1, evidence2, evidence3, evidence4. For many years the reputation of the brand was built on the values of natural ingridients, cruelty free development, and sustainable production.
Not any more, greed took its toll.
To make things more ugly, let me tell you that EVEN NOW Yves Rocher puts cruelty free on its packaging, and advertises, that they are "against" animal testing. Frankly it looks like a pimp praising virginity before marriage.
What really gets me is the blatant lies. Do not support animal testing in other countries and perform it, if you say you are AGAINST it, Good Lord! Just look at this:
Second, the natural-ness and organic-ness of their products is so obviously not true. The only thing that makes it better, is that Yves Rocher send an extensive brochure with all product ingredients listed with every order.
So they do put bunch of green leaves on the packaging, and use nebulous half-truths to advertise their products, but there is so little regulation on that "natural"means anyway.
Third, very annoying and cheap marketing. I get so much paper spam from them with offers to get trashy cosmetic bags\swim wear\jewelry\other worthless chinese goods!
I don't want that crap, it useless, it is demotivating, it is disrespectful to my as a customer. Give a higher discount on your good products or start giving away better gifts! IMHO it is embarrassing, when brands send crap like this as gifts.
All in all, not natural, not cruelty free, not customer appreciative brand. I feel I'm done with Yves Rocher, even the good experiences with some of the products do not make up for the deceiving marketing and hypocritical brand values.
xoxo, Maria TwosRuse.
Gah such a shame they've put that testing label on there! I enjoyed reading your reviews! :) My mom used to buy from them quite frequently...I'll have to ask her if she's tried anything from them recently.
ReplyDeleteYeah.. confusing to say the least! Let me know what she says, I wonder if current competition in skincare industry is already beyond YvesRocher to really catch up with.. or are there still some hidden gems in their product line?:))
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