Lancôme Génifique

RRP: £52; €74; $78 (30ml)

--What does the promo say?--
"The secret of youthful skin revealed, drop by drop. Beautiful skin for every woman at every age. Instantly, skin feels silky soft, smooth and supple. Drop by drop, day and night, skin appears breathtakingly beautiful, radiant, even-toned and more refined. Skin looks noticeably younger, as if infused with life."

--Packaging--
My mother (the 'control tester', if you like, for this product's target age group) and I both agreed that while the bottle looked nice (although difficult to see through the shaded bottle how much of the serum remains), it was heavy (being made of glass) and that the dropper was somewhat difficult to use as it lacked the controlled pre-measure of a pump applicator. The lid and dropper does look very space-age, modern and James Bond-ish though.

--Application--
Lancôme says to apply as a 'step zero' to your skincare routine, though I wouldn't say this is entirely accurate, as if you apply it before your cleanser and toner you'll just be washing it off (which at this price is stupid)! Apply after toner, but before moisturiser. 2-3 drops is sufficient for the whole face, and it melts into the skin easily (perhaps a little too easily, almost drying before you have a chance to rub it in).

--Appearance--
Opaque, clear, and leaves no visible marks on the skin. Disappears totally, from which you can probably infer that your skin really needs it and just drinks it up.

--Scent--
While Lancôme claims this is scentless, my mother and I both found otherwise. The product does have a very pleasant but MILD scent (nevertheless, a scent). Does not interfere with perfume.

--Texture/consistency--
Very runny, though the dropper holds it well, meaning wastage is minimised. Rubs into the skin very well.

--Does it do what it says it will?--
While this isn't one of the listed results, it does provide a temporary minimising of pores when first applied. It also gives excellent smoothness and softness to the skin, both short-term and long-term. However, the reduction of wrinkles was barely detectable. According to my med-student sister, the science behind this is apparently also very plausible.

--Value for money--
With one bottle lasting 10-12 weeks, this is longer than the projection by Lancôme, and would mean £5.20 a week if it lasts 10 weeks, £4.30 a week if it lasts 12 weeks, and £3.50 a week if it lasts 15 weeks, which could be better, but definitely could be worse. Even if it doesn't quite deliver on the anti-wrinkle claim, it definitely brings home the bacon when it comes to restoring softness and smoothness and minimising of pores. Although honestly, at this price, I'd just stick to suncream, water, eating well and not smoking for the anti-ageing part, and with Garnier's trusty £11.99 serum for the moisturising part.