Cien Q10 Night Cream
Cien is the beauty brand sold by budget supermarket Lidl. Over the last few years I've seen increasing amounts of people in the UK and Ireland raving about their products, from the moisturisers to the cleansers and hair products. I was suspicious of this raving as I felt that a lot of this was either bandwagoning after a few bloggers had said they liked the products, or really just based on the incredibly low price point - I love a bargain as much as anyone else, but I'm not going to convince myself I love a product because it's cheap and purse-friendly. My only prior experience with the brand was a body moisturiser which was quite honestly rubbish and not in the least moisturising as well as smelling extremely cheap, their conditioner which I love and still buy and their micellar water - which I dislike because I'm not a huge fan of them in general, and it stung my eyes and dried out my skin. I do however love the packaging - it's one of those press down pumps which is genius and all liquids should be packaged in these. I'm keeping the packaging to refill with something else, but I've poured the micellar down the sink.
I digress.
Long story short I was checking out a Lidl near my house and saw the day and night creams by the check out. I don't remember exactly what it costs, but it was less than €4.
It contains two exciting ingredients for any skincare enthusiast - Coenzyme Q10 (firming, antioxidant, helps with signs of ageing) and Myramaze - a plant derived ingredient that replenishes skin moisture.
I'm going to go off on a bit of a tangent here, but bear with me!
This cream was hailed by some as a cheap alternative to La Prairie Cellular Radiance Cream which costs almost 500 quid (utterly ridiculous, honestly - if you have that much to spend on your moisturiser knock yourself out but is in NO WAY necessary) because, and this seems to be the only reason such a dramatic comparison was made, they both claim to do the same thing which is aid in the skins regeneration process and reduce signs of ageing such as fine lines.
The ingredients and the delivery systems ARE NOT THE SAME. How could they be?! The La Prairie cream may be insanely expensive but there is far more sophisticated research and development, ingredients and science behind their cream - you will not get that for €4. It's like if you say that a Gordon Ramsey recipe for roast chicken (think farm-raised, hand-fed chicken with expensive truffles and garden-grown ingredients) is the same as roasting a regular low-price chicken in olive oil. Both will taste good, but let's be honest - Gordons is going to win hands-down, they are NOT the same. Or something like that...!
#fakenews
There is a great article here with Andy Milward who is a UK facialist and aesthetician, where he explains all of this more succinctly than I ever could.
In short, please don't ever believe anyone who tells you that a cream you can buy for less than a tenner rivals one you'd have to remortgage your house for.
Anyway, the cream.
Packaging is good - sturdy plastic pot. The cream is also protected with an aluminium cover that you peel back and that I have kept - anything that helps to keep the product 'fresh'.
Speaking of fresh, I like the scent. It's not heavy, pretty light. Fresh and floral. All in all, pretty pleasant. The consistency is what surprised me the most - I'd expected it to either feel utterly unmoisturizing or 'chalky', the way some cheap creams do. In fact, it's relatively thick and has a gorgeous spreadability. Once on I find that it sits on the skin slightly, although it does sink in overnight.
Results are good - after using this as the last stage or second last stage (when using an oil) of my evening skincare routine my skin feels fresh, bright and calm the next day. I'm not saying the cream alone did this - I have a good skincare routine, and this cream is just a part of it. I suppose what I mean is if you go out to buy this and expect to wake up with the same effects without using other products, it won't work. It's not the most moisturising overnight cream I've ever tried, but when layered on top of hyaluronic acid, a serum etc it doesn't need to be. It does a lovely job of sealing everything in - I like the smell, the texture and how my skin feels the next day.
Have I seen any long-term changes in my skin? No, but I wouldn't expect to at this price, or for a product that's an anti-oxidant. However, it nicely fills a gap in your skincare shelf if you're in the market for a cheaper night-cream, or even one to alternate with your more expensive night-time lotions and potions. Again, I would recommend using it as part as a balanced skin care routine - to lock everything in and provide some hydration.
Would I buy it again? Definitely! I think I paid €3/4 for it so once this one is gone I'll pick up another and switch it around with my other night-time treatments like Weleda SkinFood and Clarins MultiActive Night.
If you see it in your local Lidl give it a try - I'm sure you won't mind losing the €4 even if you don't like it!
Thanks for reading!
A x
Find me on Instagram for daily makeup, skincare, life photos and rambling stories😂
Cien is the beauty brand sold by budget supermarket Lidl. Over the last few years I've seen increasing amounts of people in the UK and Ireland raving about their products, from the moisturisers to the cleansers and hair products. I was suspicious of this raving as I felt that a lot of this was either bandwagoning after a few bloggers had said they liked the products, or really just based on the incredibly low price point - I love a bargain as much as anyone else, but I'm not going to convince myself I love a product because it's cheap and purse-friendly. My only prior experience with the brand was a body moisturiser which was quite honestly rubbish and not in the least moisturising as well as smelling extremely cheap, their conditioner which I love and still buy and their micellar water - which I dislike because I'm not a huge fan of them in general, and it stung my eyes and dried out my skin. I do however love the packaging - it's one of those press down pumps which is genius and all liquids should be packaged in these. I'm keeping the packaging to refill with something else, but I've poured the micellar down the sink.
I digress.
Long story short I was checking out a Lidl near my house and saw the day and night creams by the check out. I don't remember exactly what it costs, but it was less than €4.
It contains two exciting ingredients for any skincare enthusiast - Coenzyme Q10 (firming, antioxidant, helps with signs of ageing) and Myramaze - a plant derived ingredient that replenishes skin moisture.
I'm going to go off on a bit of a tangent here, but bear with me!
This cream was hailed by some as a cheap alternative to La Prairie Cellular Radiance Cream which costs almost 500 quid (utterly ridiculous, honestly - if you have that much to spend on your moisturiser knock yourself out but is in NO WAY necessary) because, and this seems to be the only reason such a dramatic comparison was made, they both claim to do the same thing which is aid in the skins regeneration process and reduce signs of ageing such as fine lines.
The ingredients and the delivery systems ARE NOT THE SAME. How could they be?! The La Prairie cream may be insanely expensive but there is far more sophisticated research and development, ingredients and science behind their cream - you will not get that for €4. It's like if you say that a Gordon Ramsey recipe for roast chicken (think farm-raised, hand-fed chicken with expensive truffles and garden-grown ingredients) is the same as roasting a regular low-price chicken in olive oil. Both will taste good, but let's be honest - Gordons is going to win hands-down, they are NOT the same. Or something like that...!
#fakenews
There is a great article here with Andy Milward who is a UK facialist and aesthetician, where he explains all of this more succinctly than I ever could.
In short, please don't ever believe anyone who tells you that a cream you can buy for less than a tenner rivals one you'd have to remortgage your house for.
Anyway, the cream.
Packaging is good - sturdy plastic pot. The cream is also protected with an aluminium cover that you peel back and that I have kept - anything that helps to keep the product 'fresh'.
Speaking of fresh, I like the scent. It's not heavy, pretty light. Fresh and floral. All in all, pretty pleasant. The consistency is what surprised me the most - I'd expected it to either feel utterly unmoisturizing or 'chalky', the way some cheap creams do. In fact, it's relatively thick and has a gorgeous spreadability. Once on I find that it sits on the skin slightly, although it does sink in overnight.
Results are good - after using this as the last stage or second last stage (when using an oil) of my evening skincare routine my skin feels fresh, bright and calm the next day. I'm not saying the cream alone did this - I have a good skincare routine, and this cream is just a part of it. I suppose what I mean is if you go out to buy this and expect to wake up with the same effects without using other products, it won't work. It's not the most moisturising overnight cream I've ever tried, but when layered on top of hyaluronic acid, a serum etc it doesn't need to be. It does a lovely job of sealing everything in - I like the smell, the texture and how my skin feels the next day.
Have I seen any long-term changes in my skin? No, but I wouldn't expect to at this price, or for a product that's an anti-oxidant. However, it nicely fills a gap in your skincare shelf if you're in the market for a cheaper night-cream, or even one to alternate with your more expensive night-time lotions and potions. Again, I would recommend using it as part as a balanced skin care routine - to lock everything in and provide some hydration.
Would I buy it again? Definitely! I think I paid €3/4 for it so once this one is gone I'll pick up another and switch it around with my other night-time treatments like Weleda SkinFood and Clarins MultiActive Night.
If you see it in your local Lidl give it a try - I'm sure you won't mind losing the €4 even if you don't like it!
Thanks for reading!
A x
Find me on Instagram for daily makeup, skincare, life photos and rambling stories😂
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