This product was provided to me by Neogen for my honest review. Affiliate links are not used in this post.
When I look into products for my skincare routine, I will generally be focusing on hydration and brightening properties – since they are my main skin concerns. I first came across this Real Ferment Micro Serum from Neogen on Instagram, and I was first interested because the packaging looked really sleek and compact. So, I was pretty excited when it showed up at my place in a PR package and I put it to the test that very evening.
From when I first started to use this, I saw immediate results and I’ve been using it once or twice a day since then (except for a few days break when I was having skin allergies from hayfever). This product feels great on my skin and gives me an instant boost of hydration, as well as helping to brighten and (gradually) diminish my acne scarring. The effects that I’ve seen from incorporating this into my skincare routine have been really good, so I’m keen to share this.
This product is selling on either the official Neogen website or their international stockist Sokoglam for USD$38 – on the pricier side, but worth it for the the effectiveness; especially considering that there are many more expensive products.
So, read on for my full detailed review on this!
Product Description
This product is a relatively new addition to their line, following their Micro Essence (which is a hydrating/brightening essence). According to Sokoglam, the official stockist for the brand, this product is marketed for ‘honey skin’ – which is a skin trend focusing on glowing, healthy skin and “entails using a routine with a lot of humectant and toning ingredients.”
The official Neogen website describes this as:
An intensive gel-type serum containing 61% natural fermented ingredients, and active ingredients like panthenol, collagen that quickly absorb into the skin to help reinforce skin elasticity while delivering instant hydration and skin radiance. This real fermented micro serum helps improve skin’s natural strength for firmer, brighter, and healthier looking skin.
This Micro Serum specifically aims to deliver nutrients and antioxidants to the skin, providing strong hydration and brightening benefits similar to the previously released Micro Essence – though clearly in a highly concentration.
Looking at the ingredients list (which you can see on Sokoglam), there are three main things here: Bifida Ferment Lysate, Saccharomyces Ferment Filtrate, Rice Ferment Filtrate. In addition, there are a few others that I am particularly fond of: Sodium Hyaluronate (a form of hyaluronic acid), Adenosine (anti-wrinkle and skin restoring) and Niacinamide (brightening) – I feel like it is these three in particular that have given me the results that I am seeing.
In addition, this serum is free of parabens, mineral oils, and artificial fragrances.
Packaging
This product comes in a reflective silver and blue box with modern and simple design. Similarly to the other products that Neogen has released, it looks really clean and professional. The design of this also ties in with the Micro Essence, which is a nice consistency.
The serum itself comes in a fairly short glass pump bottle. It has a slight iridescent finish, which you will be able to see in the photos below, and the glass has a certain weight to it. It’s probably not the best for travel, but it feels high quality – which is what I have come to expect from Neogen. If I were to travel with this, and I think that I will soon, I would prefer to decant this; which is easy enough to do.
Overall, I’m happy with the packaging of this. The quality of the bottle and the pump is good, which is what gives it a more high end feel, and the packaging design is simple and modern. The only thing that I’m not keen on is the use of silver for the box packaging but that’s a personal preference and isn’t too important. I would be happy to gift or buy this product for other people because it looks like a more expensive product.
Application & Personal Experience
This product is described to have a gel-like consistency but I was really surprised at the actual formula – it feels thick and and is surprisingly viscous. When applied to the skin, it feels almost like a soothing mask so it does take a moment to fully sink in. This is good for night, as I feel like this provides more hydration than a thinner formula, but is a bit thick for morning use. To counteract this, I just use a little less and find that it will absorb well.
Generally, I will use two pumps at night, and one in the morning.
I find that this product works well underneath foundation, but does have a tendency to make any silicon based primers pill up so it’s best not to combine them. Aside from that though, it keeps your skin will moisturised without affecting base make up – in fact, I find that my skin feels softer after I cleanse.
The Micro Serum gave me a good dose of instant hydration and a very nice dewiness to the skin (hence why I also like to use it on some mornings). The break outs that I had on my chin also calmed down a little and the acne scars that I have are slowly fading. They aren’t completely gone yet but I definitely see improvement in my skin condition compared to before I used this. The brightening effect is subtle but effective, and I like that it doesn’t dry out my skin.
As for the promise of oil balancing, I actually don’t feel like I see that much with my own skin. It is keeping me hydrated but I don’t see any rebalancing in my oil production.
In my experiences, this is a serum that works well for my skin and I personally really enjoy it. Of course, it isn’t perfect in that I don’t find it rebalancing my oil production and it can affect some primers, but that doesn’t bother me too much.
I really love how it’s changed my skin. People who have been following me on Instagram will note that I’ve been having some skin problems in the past few months – a lot of break outs and resulting scarring that simply won’t fade away. Although it hasn’t completely recovered my skin, I can confidently say that the addition of this product into my routine has mostly recovered my skin.
Aside from the hydration and brightening benefits (which will be from the hyaluronic acid and niacinamide), I feel like it is the use of adenosine which has strengthened my skin barrier and helped it to recover from these recurring break outs. I love this product and I will be continuing to use this product in my daily routine.
So, here’s the verdict!
SO WHAT IS IT?
A gel-like serum that has brightening, hydration and skin strengthening benefits.
THE GOOD
- Luxe and high quality bottle with a pump dispenser
- Immediately visible hydration benefits
- Long term benefits (brightening, hydrating and strengthening skin)
- No noticeable scent
- No adverse reactions
- Can be used under most base makeup
- Free of parabens, mineral oils and fragrances – may be suitable for sensitive skin
THE BAD
- Relatively expensive (but worth it)
- No noticeable oil balancing
- Can make silicon based primers pill
RATINGS
- PACKAGING | 4/5
- PRICE POINT |3/5
- SCENT | 5/5
- BRIGHTENING | 4/5
- HYDRATION | 5/5
- SKIN STRENGHTENING | 4/5
OVERALL RATING? 8.3/10
WOULD I RECOMMEND?
This product worked really well for me and I’ll be 100% continuing to use it in my routine. For people with similar skin concerns to me, I would also highly recommend to check this out! However, I feel like this will be too heavy for people with very oily skin, especially since I don’t think it will help with oil control.
If you are have dry or combination skin, with any break outs or sensitive skin barrier, then this is a great product to look into. It is a bit expensive but, as I previously mentioned, I think that the price is worth it for the effectively.
WHERE TO GET IT FROM
If you want to get your hands on the Real Ferment Micro Serum, it is selling on the Neogen website or on Sokoglam for USD$38.
