Skincare on a Budget – Good Molecules Review

If you’ve been on Instagram and you follow somebody into skincare chances are you’ve seen this brand around. Here is my review of Good Molecules

Good Molecules is an affordable skincare brand that puts out effective products with transparent and well-sourced ingredients and a mission to eliminate plastic waste in their packaging.

What’s not to love right?

Disclaimer: I received these products from the brand with no obligation to post. These are my honest opinions.

Disclaimer bis: recommendations are based on my own experiences and one product might work for me but not for you. Please do your own research to further decide if this is something you wish to try.

About the brand

Good Molecules is simple – efficient and affordable. If this reminds you of The Ordinary, yes, there are similarities. Personally, The Ordinary just doesn’t do it for me, and I’ll talk about it in a future post about products that didn’t work for me.

Good Molecules offers products with efficient formulations that target various skin conditions, especially acne and hyperpigmentation which is my top problem.

They are also vegan, cruelty free, fragrance and alcohol free.

Their products are available for order on their own website and also on beautylish.

My review of Good Molecules

I will review all the products I have tried from Good Molecules. As I said, they have been sent to me as PR, with no obligation to post, and these are my honest opinions.

Rosewater Daily Cleansing Gel

This is the newest product of the bunch. I have received it a few weeks ago and already made a good dent in it.

The cleanser is meant to be a gentle, ph balanced, daily cleanser, that doesn’t strip the skin. If you’ve read my previous post on the skin barrier, you’ll know that it is very important to have ph balanced products in our routine to not destroy the acid mantle that protects the skin.

Rosewater is rich in antioxidant and is hydrating and soothing to the skin. This cleanser lathers up but not too much. The foam is very creamy and forms very small bubbles. It has no scent.

I was impressed with how clean yet not tight my skin felt. However, if I take some time between the wash and applying my toner, the tight and dry feeling can be noticeable. That is not to say that their claims are false, it’s just that my skin feels that way and that is my personal experience with the product. I continue to use it even though I am on Accutane because it is that gentle.

Clarify & Cleanse Bar

I’ll have to admit, I haven’t used this one a lot. Something about a cleanser in the form of a soap bar just rubs me the wrong way. It is soap-free, so there’s no reason to be afraid. But it just doesn’t sit right.

The few times that I used it I found it to be just a tad too harsh. Effective on my breakouts, but not something I would use on the daily.

They say on their website that this is “ultra-gentle”. It is formulated with salicylic acid and tea tree which are very well known ingredients to fight off acne. There is also kaolin clay that reduces excess sebum and also rosehip and grape seed oil to moisturize the skin.

On the paper it sounds like an amazing products, but for me it’s a pass.

Pineapple Exfoliating Powder

I have raved about this powder before and I will rave again. This and the Blithe Splash Mask are my top favourite exfoliators. And I’m certain you’ll fall in love with it too.

It combines physical and chemical exfoliation and is actually gentle enough to be used 3 to 4 times a week.

For the physical exfoliation part it contains rice starches and silk powder (making this product non-vegan). It also contains 1% calamine powder, which is usually found in acne spot treatments because it helps visibly reduce inflammation.

For the chemical part it combines the fruit enzymes of pineapple, kiwi and papaya, which gently break down the dead skin cells.

So you are breaking down and gently buffing away the dead skin cells. Brilliant right?!

The powder lathers and creates a creamy foam, and is very gentle and non-abrasive so you don’t have to worry about such things as micro-tears in the skin (which a scientifically not proven, but why take the risk).

Niacinamide Brightening Toner

It’s a toner. But unlike any I have tried before. I just love the ingredients it has in it. There’s niacinamide, liquorice, arbutin and vitamin c. All to promote a brighter complexion and tackle dark spots.

It has a ph of 6.2, which is close to the skin natural ph level of 5.5 but also close to neutral which is 7. So it will not disturb the skin barrier.

The texture is watery but with a slight body to it, no scent, as always, and feels very gentle on the skin.

Now, this is a toner, and I’m a little torn on toners. I love them but I also don’t know if they work. I’m not talking about this one in particular, but any toner. Its main purpose is to balance the ph, not to tackle any serious problems. I think that the added ingredients are very interesting, and in a cumulative way, with serums and creams, it will help tackle more serious problems. But on their own, they just don’t stand out to me.

That being said, I really enjoy this toner and might even purchase it myself. The texture is very “comfortable”, be it applied with my hands or with a cotton pad. And I love the glass packaging, it adds quality and it is sanitary.

Discoloration Correcting Serum

Raving, and raving, and raving. This is one of the most efficient products out there to tackle hyperpigmentation.

They reformulated it recently, and I have to say it’s totally different from the previous serum which I have also used in the past.

The first formula didn’t impress me, and the actual ingredient % wasn’t available. They changed this with the new serum with the Nothing to Hide ingredients list. I am very thankful for this because I am very particular about that. Many times if a product doesn’t list the % of the active ingredient, I won’t buy it, period.

This serum is formulated with 4% niacinamide and 2% cetyl tranexamate mesylate, both of which tackle pigmentation. It is ph balanced, milky white, no scent, absorbs real fast and doesn’t tingle or irritate my skin. Then again, my stratum corneum is ridiculously thick.

I talk more in-depth about tranexamic acid and why it’s even better than vitamin c in a previous post.

Niacinamide Serum

This was one of the first products that I received from them and I remember not being impressed. That was my bias at work because I was a great fan of The Ordinary Niacinamide serum which left me with great impressions. This one just didn’t meet those expectations, though it must be also due to the fact that the formulas are different.

I have since repurchased The Ordinary serum, aaaand, I’m disappointed because it pills like crazy on me. I tried to make it work, but it just doesn’t and I’m sad to have to throw it away.

So my plan is to purchase the Good Molecules one and give it another chance because I think it deserves a fair opinion.

Overnight Exfoliating Treatment

A blend of 10% AHA and BHA to use around 3 times a week to treat texture and spots. The plus of this is that AHAs will work on removing dead skin cells on the surface of the skin while the BHAs will penetrate the pores and remove sebum and dirt. So it’s a perfect mix.

I don’t use this that often. I prefer my exfoliants in toners or masks while this is more of a serum. When I do use it I love it and I can see it working overnight. It’s just that it’s a product that often gets neglected in my routine because I reach for other exfoliants.

Caffeine Energizing Hydrogel Eye Patches

Now here’s the thing, I don’t think eye patches are in any way necessary, but they are fun!

These ones here have some amazing ingredients to boast. There is 1% caffeine, known for the anti-puffiness effect. Also, niacinamide to brighten the under-eye area. There are hyaluronic acid and aloe to soothe and hydrate and reduce the appearance of wrinkles. And also the benefit of the hydrogel to deliver these ingredients and work its magic in 10 minutes.

I have been enjoying these as a pick me up in the morning and I do have to say I love them (my under-eye area suffers from a bit of dryness, but I don’t get particularly puffy.)

Pure Cold-Pressed Rosehip Seed Oil

“Sourced from sustainably grown & hand-picked rose hips in Southern Chile using fair-trade practices”

Rosehip oil is one of the best oils in my opinion. Back when I started my skincare journey, I had a bottle of it in my routine, and I found it fabulous. And of course, I still keep it in my routine.

It reduces hyperpigmentation, fights inflammation and moisturizes your skin. It’s simply ideal for acne-prone skin. I apply it at the last step of the skincare routine to lock in all the goodness.

Now, this retails for 10$, which is a fair price, but I find that the bottle is ridiculously small. There’s only 13ml or 0.44oz. Now I will say that pure and cold-pressed are things to look for when choosing a rosehip oil, as it will keep all of its benefits. And, I do remember reading somewhere that the reason it is so small is because of the ethical sourcing.

I admire that they strive for the fair trade. But it’s so tiny.

In the end

Wow, looking at this list I relized I recieved so many products from them.

Out of the bunch of products I have tried, I believe that the Exfoliating Powder and Discoloration Correcting Serum are my absolute favourites and something I will purchase myself. I have even raved about these in the previous posts about exfoliation and about hyperpigmentation.

I hope that my review of Good Molecules has helped you, if you were just curious about the brand or wanting to try some products.

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