I put Kendall’s fancy new serum on my left cheek and a drugstore retinol on my right for two weeks. The $19 one made my skin smoother.
That’s not me being contrarian. That’s me literally counting the fine lines around my mouth with a magnifying mirror at 11pm. The 818 didn’t do anything wrong — it just didn’t do *more*.
It’s a lightweight night fluid, $98 for 1oz. The big claim is “bakuchiol + squalane” as a gentler alternative to retinol — which is smart marketing, because bakuchiol is just plant-derived retinol that’s been trendy for three years.
Glass dropper
Feels expensive. Also breaks if you look at it wrong — drop it once and cry.
Scent
Faint citrus. Not perfumey, but it lingers longer than I’d like.
Absorption
Takes a full 45 seconds to sink in. The drugstore one was dry in 15.
Photo: ibnu ihza / Unsplash
The formula is genuinely good — just not $98 good. It’s a clean, simple blend that works fine but won’t transform your face overnight. The star ingredients are fine, they’re just not revolutionary.
- Bakuchiol: Plant retinol, gentler but slower to show results
- Squalane: Moisture barrier repair, makes skin feel soft immediately
- Niacinamide: Calms redness, shrinks pores over time
- Hyaluronic acid: Plumps, but it’s in literally everything now
Photo: simon / Unsplash
It’s a milky gel that feels like a light lotion. Not greasy, but you *feel* it sitting on your skin for a bit — like a thin film that eventually melts in.
By day 10, my left cheek (Kendall’s side) looked slightly more hydrated. By day 14, the difference was gone. My right cheek, using the $19 retinol, had visibly smoother texture around my nose. I wasn’t expecting that.
Photo: Fleur Kaan / Unsplash
Measurable change: slightly softer skin. That’s it. No glow-up, no “wow” moment. The drugstore retinol gave me actual texture refinement in the same time frame.
Photo: Rosa Rafael / Unsplash
It’s a nice serum. It’s not a *better* serum. You’re paying for the name on the box, and your skin will know the difference.