La Roche-Posay Effaclar Pore-Refining Anti-Aging Serum

I am a huge fan of LRP, especially the Effaclar line - it completely cleared up my skin, resurfaced the texture and eliminated the bumps that were persistent but never formed into any sort of acne. I was really upset when they discontinued Effaclar K and began searching for other alternatives which put me on an emotional roller coaster ride as the texture of my skin reverted back to it's old ways. When the serum was launched I opened the tester, took one whiff and swore I'd never buy it because it reeks like rubbing alcohol. Alcohol Denat is the second ingredient! Now, normally I would say run as fast as you can from any product with this so high up on the ingredient list but after many agonizing months of less than ideal skin I decided to give this serum a try anyway and jumped both feet in. Could I kick myself in the @$$ any faster for ignoring the brand that literally transformed my skin after years of misery??? Just like my first experience with LRP Effaclar products, my skin cleared up within days. Truly my miracle cure.

Texture - extremely light weight, no oily feeling at all, in fact, it feels more like water than a typical serum feels
Fragrance - as mentioned above, very strong alcohol scent, horrible in fact, but thankfully, once applied it is no longer present
Efficacy - literally transformed my skin in days, all texture/bumps are gone, skin is plump and tone is more even (I have redness and dark spots from years of sun damage) which is a total bonus
Price - be prepared to shell out for this, it's not cheap but you need very little so it should last a long time

I drop a tiny dot on each finger on one hand, press together with my other hand and then quickly apply to my face. It absorbs fast, leaves no residue behind at all, skin feels as though nothing is on it. I follow this up with a light facial oil and finally nighttime moisturizer.

Love this serum, highly recommend if you are not sensitive to Alcohol Denat.

I'm on the fence with this product. I suffer from very dry skin, this product made my skin so smooth and flake free. The only issue was that after about a week or so of consistent use, I had an acne breakout that still hasn't gone away.

It works to get rid of melasma and hyperpigmentation from acne! I had severe melasma due to going back on the pill for 6 mths. My skin therapist told me I would need a course of peels, retinol and light therapy and possibly laser if nothing worked. So, I went straight to Makeup Alley to find a cheaper option. I'm so glad I trusted the rave reviews for this product as within a month the melasma was gone (it faded so quickly and I only used it 2-3 nights a week), it's taking a lot longer to fade the acne hyperpigmentation but it's from years of acne so I expect it to take longer. But I now no longer wear foundation or concealer, just a high SPF day time moisturiser. This is amazing for me. I've been battling acne for 20 years :( I use the LRP serum every second night now. I find it very gentle on my skin, no burning or redness, it's really helping to shrink my pores (so far by about 30%) and stops all my monthly breakouts. The bottle is going to last for ages! I paid $50 AUD which I think is really cheap considering I could have spent thousands on peels and laser!! I'll continue to use :)

So far, so good. This has only just become available in Canada, and I found this randomly at the drugstore and was super excited to try it. I am in the midst of the worst breakout of my life, thanks to trying some new products (I'm looking at you, Clinique and AcneFree) and was looking back to some better brands to help me out. The ingredients, yes, are suspended in alcohol so there is a very strong scent when you put it on but I think the alcohol evaporates quite quickly as this doesn't dry me out at all. About 4-5 drops seems to cover my face completely and it sinks in beautifully (haven't tried makeup over it yet though). I can honestly say in less than 24 hours my skin is clearing, pimples are reduced and my pores are looking cleared out. My skin is feeling calm again. I am holding my breath and keeping my fingers crossed that this serum continues to work. I haven't compared the ingredients in this to their AHA serum which I have also used (and loved) but I suspect their somewhat similar (there's about a $10 difference in price; the Effacer being the less expensive of the two). It's funny how far away you get from products you know work for you, when you are on the quest for the holy grail. I know I will still do it, and I'm reviewing this product so that when I am back in this position, I can check my MUA ratings for the things that helped me ;o)

I have very sensitive skin. When I was younger, I used to suffer w acne that caused me to go on oral antibiotics and later, accutane. since accutane, my skin has been generally quite clear, with the occasional breakout from my period, or a product it didn't like.

i had just healed from a bad product breakout (elf's setting spray) and was looking for something that would help w scarring. knowing that la roche posay is formulated for sensitive skin, i turned to them for a serum - the effaclar serum, which is supposed to exfoliate and increase cell turnover.

after a couple days of use, my skin looked brighter, it felt very firm and taunt. but after a while, i noticed blemishes popping up - which i could only attribute to the serum.

knowing this serum had active ingredients like AHA and LHA, i thought to let it run its course and 'purge' if need be. to exfoliate the layer underneath my skin where the pores are clogged. i kept this up for about a week, week and a half, until i got to a point where i just could not bare to use the serum anymore

the serum broke me out in a cluster of white heads around my nose and deep white heads around my chin area, making me feel just as shitty about my skin since before i went on accutane.

this is the most expensive breakout i've ever purchased - seeing at this serum is around $40, it's cost me my confidence and my clear skin. plus, I'm probably going to have to get some sort of serious skin treatment to fix these no-doubt soon to be scars, that are currently just big red bumps. if that wasn't bad enough, this serum has seriously dehydrated my skin - probably because of the hefty alcohol content.

SO disappointed in this product AND in la roche posay.
off to the dermatologist's i go

I used a whole bottle of this and it made absolutely no difference. Then I purchased Vichy`s Pore Refining Essence from the Normaderm line, and that stuff worked so much better. My pores are still there, but much smaller in size than before, and I now live in a very humid country, so I consider that a real tribute to Vichy. The other downside to using La Roche Posay`s serum is that it contains a pretty high concentration of glycolic acid, which means you`ve got to be careful and wear a high SPF sunscreen, too. I mean, you should always wear a sunscreen, but glycolic acid just makes your skin that much more likely to suffer from exposure to the sun. Not to mention the stinging sensation when you apply this to your face because the acid and alcohol are eating away into your skin. Ouch!

The pores on my forehead and cheeks are the same after 4 months of use twice daily. Don't feel it did not do anything for my skin. Would not repurchase, too expensive for the results.

This has become my HG face treatment!
It's hard to find, I had to order it online because I wasn't able to find it anywhere in Canada. It's also pretty expensive (I paid $45 or so).
But, it's worth it.
I have oily/combination skin with some old acne marks, and thanks to this serum, all marks have faded to almost nothing. The texture of my skin has improved greatly, it's smooth and glowing. This serum also balances my skin, I don't get oily anymore.
I can't speak about the anti-ageing properties because I don't yet have wrinkles or anything, but I'm hopeful it helps prevent them.

It smells very lightly like alcohol when I apply it, but this smell goes away very quickly. It's a clear liquid with a bit of a viscous texture, that spreads easily and dries very fast. I only use about 3-4 drops for my entire face, and that's more than enough.
I like to apply my Avene Skin Recovery Cream on top after it's dry, just to moisturize and calm down any irritation that may occur.

I use it nightly, with the exception of a night or 2 per week when I do a short contact therapy with 2.5% BP.

I hardly ever break out anymore, and I'm finally happy with my skin.

I purchased this on sale because I didn't have high hopes but wanted to try the LHA it. Aha wise it's low in my book. It's around 6% but because of the LHA and Aha together it's working wonders on my skin. I use this mostly at night sometimes during the day with a good sunblock. I have found in using this for a few months my pores are smaller and cleaner. My genetic smile lines are diminished and my face has clarity or a nice even tone. I use this as a serum then use CeraVePM and Laneige sleeping pack over it. I have experienced no dryness or flaking. My dry patches are gone. It's annoying because I have Combo skin so finding the right products is daunting at times.

With this serum which is worth every penny because even used 2x's a day it will last up to a year. I love the glass bottle and dropper. It helps me not waste product. This works so well on acne I used it on my boyfriends forehead and it cleared in days with no peeling. So, for the both of us this product really works. I used to use Retin A all the time till I figured out how wonderful Aha's are. I now just use aha's and my acne is finally under control. Also my fine lines are either plumped or gone. I didn't have many but prevention is key to me and this does that.

If you have large pores,light acne, and some fine lines this will work really well. If you don't yet, I still say go for it because once you start using Aha's your skin feels so soft and I just never want to go back:) LRP products have worked very well for me and even though here in the US they are a little pricy the results are totally worth it. This serum is great especially if you have some acne,fine lines, and pore issues. I love how my skin looks now even without MU I'm quite impressed! I also think anyone with acne that's on the mild side to maybe moderate should give this a try. For me Aha's work better on my spots verse BP. So, if you're done with BP definitely give this a shot:) Recommended

i have enlarged pores and oily skin. after two days using this serum day and night i noticed that my forehead (where the skin wasn't too bad to start with) looked completely flawless and the skin was tighter. then after a week all my pores were refined and my skin tone was way more even. after using it for two weeks i've gone down to only applying it am as i like to give my skin a chance to rest during the night.

one lippie off as it contains alcohol and is slightly dehydrating.. can't see how how an anti-aging serum with alcohol as second ingredient will work in the long run? also, my skin is still as oily but i have a feeling that is just something some of us just have to accept... but anyway, can't give it a lower rating as my skin looks better than ever.