Six months ago, I retired my cream moisturiser for a gel-based one because it felt to heavy on my oily skin, and I found myself pleasantly surprised. The Clinique Dramatically Different Hydrating Jelly seemed to meet all my skin nourishing needs. For someone with oily skin, there’s a fine line between feeling moisturised and feeling outright greasy, and for some reason, this gel never tread over it. Just two pumps post cleansing left my skin smooth and supple—and then this skincare fairytale got an upgrade. Clinique introduced a way in which I could tailor my moisturiser to tackle my various concerns, through the form of Clinique iD and I had to put it to test.
Clinique iD: Hydrating Jelly +Active Cartridge for Pores & Uneven Texture, INR 3,800
How does it work?
I went in for a consultation with an expert at the Clinique store, who helped me zero in on my biggest concerns: dullness, large pores and uneven texture. Based on that, she recommended a hydrating base (in my case, it was the jelly) and the blue cartridge from a selection of five different ones—green for irritation, white for uneven skin tone, orange for fatigue, and purple for lines and wrinkles. Other than the Hydrating Jelly, you can choose from the Dramatically Different Moisturzing Lotion+ and the Dramatically Different Oil-Free Gel as the base. The cartridge is placed in the bottle and it pumps out the jelly with a few drops of the serum—you can even see the blue tint floating in the gel which was my personalised mix.
Now, onto the cartridge. This particular cartridge contains concentrated levels of Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA) and other active ingredients that help reduce the appearance of pores. The serum also promises to leave your skin with a polished, natural radiance. It removes all the dead skin cells so that fresher skin is revealed.
Did it work?
Simply put, it did, but not the extent I expected it to. I have used the product for three months daily, morning and night, and I have seen visible results. The concentrated serum did brighten my skin, giving it a natural radiance. However, in terms of smoothening the texture, the ID let me down a little. Since I have blemish prone skin and a lot of texture issues thanks to acne, I think the power of the product could only function to a certain point. In conclusion, it helped with providing a glow, but failed to give me that instant polish.
If you’ve got skin like mine, don’t go for it with really high expectations. It will help you combat your daily skincare woes, in my case, oiliness and dull skin, but won’t tackle your major struggles. If you’re a skincare newbie and would love to upgrade your regime to something that is multi-tasking, then this one is for you.
The hydrating jelly is definitely one I will continue to use in my daily skincare routine. However, the customisation hasn’t got me sold… yet. The price remains the same, whether you choose to go with just the base or the base + cartridge, so there’s no harm in giving this product a go!
ELLE verdict: 3.5 / 5
