[unpaid/sample] The thing about Spectacle Performance Cream is that I knew it was good before I knew anything about it. I get a lot of samples here and try my best to get through them at least on a surface level if not beyond that – in honesty, this was just another tube of stuff. I applied it in the morning without thinking much of it, realised by bedtime that I didn’t actually need any more moisturiser (it was a no make up day so no cleanse strictly needed) and then by the next morning, when I realised my complexion still felt fully hydrated that there was more to this cream that had first met my eye.
Spectacle is formulated for sensitive skin with a primer-like texture (you can use an SPF over it easily) that’s immediately at home on the complexion. It has the dream INCI – if you’re a die-hard skin care fan, this INCI is catnip – hyaluronic acid, copper amino acids, ceramides, peptides, niacinamide, squalane, encapsulated safflower oleosomes, encapsulated retinoid (0.1%) and gallic acid.
The safflower oleosome encapsulation is what gives the maintained moisture feel – approximately half of the micro capsules will burst on application, flooding the skin with moisture, while the other half bursts over a longer period of time so it’s a continuous feed for your skin. Gallic acid is truly a power player – if it’s not the next big thing in skin care I’d need to know why. It really has everything – anti-inflammatory, antimicrobal, antioxidant (I’ve seen it quoted as six times more effective than vitamin C in terms of brightening) and its an ingredient that loves skin.
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A little on the story of Spectacle because it’s not a faceless brand, neither it is built-for-the-gram and nor is it a millenial focused brand (yay). It’s for everyone and all skin. Founded in Sante Fe by former model Andre Cotin who was later joined by beauty editor Olivia Falcon (actually, they’re both ridiculously beautiful), it was based on a life long love of skin care. When Andre was at school, his uncle was on the cusp of launching a skin care brand but died unexpectedly, leaving the family with memories and many, many boxes of products which Andre worked his way through. After a stint in modeling (Lee, Ralph Lauren, etc) Andre studied cosmetic science eventually taking up work at the most prestigious labs in the US. His mum (a midwife to remote states – think flying midwife) lent him her nest egg (sorry, but aren’t mums great?) to found Spectacle. As we all know, it costs a fortune to independently launch a brand, so for now, Performance Cream is it.
It’s something of an outlay at £76 but yes, I’d buy it even though I’m extremely aware that good justification is needed for that kind of spend. The ingredients are the best possible quality, the amounts are precision calculated (0.1% encapsulated retinoid is usually tolerable for even sensitive skin) and everything sits well together to work in a combined action that works. There’s no SPF in there because it didn’t work within the formula so rather than try and fit a square peg in a round hole, you should apply your own SPF afterwards. There’s an energy behind this brand that its looks don’t give justice to – and on that point, the tube is made from sawdust (you can feel the grain when you hold it), the box is recycled newspaper and hemp and soy inks on both give Spectacle sustainability credits. I’m trying to find something that hasn’t been thought of, but it all has. I love that Spectacle’s success is a word of mouth campaign rather than flashy ads and hype – all the derms who have tried it love it and now I love it too.
The instructions for use are morning and evening, but if you don’t do a morning cleanse (I rarely do), I think once every 24 hours will do for normal to slightly dry skin which will make it go a bit further – twice a day or more and you’re spoiling yourself ;-). Alternatively, if you just need to rebalance and reset your skin now and again, I’d use it as an SOS cream to bring things back to life especially after sun or exercise. You can find Spectacle HERE.
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