Hello out there! Goddess Granny here high and dry in South Texas but I'm sending out hugs and good thoughts to those affected by Ike and all the craziness he caused.
What a YEAR this has been so far? A girl has got to really focus on keeping mind/body/soul in good working order these days! Between the weather and the stock market,I think we've all had our share of "outside stress" this year! I for one am looking forward to using this time to re-evaluate and purge,both my product-stock and the toxic crap in my life!

Speaking of stress,I am seeing a HUGE array of "anti-stress" beauty products on the shelves currently: we all know that stress can mess you up in more ways than Tina Fey can make us laugh but I"m wondering if this is based on the effectiveness of the products themselves to wave that magic wand we all hope for and fix what ails us or if it's simply a word that triggers SUCH a response from us that we need to buy it hopefully,to insure that bottle or jar will grant us a moment's peace,LOL!

Enter the "Skyn Iceland" line of products which says it is the "only skincare line specifically formulated to counteract the detrimental effects of chronic stress on skin..." They go on in their info to let us know that stress can profoundly affect our hormone and chemical levels and therefore cause the skin to become "starved" an in need of some good stuff applied to it in order to regain it's health!Their products are a "soothing" experience and supposedly,even the "shape of the packaging in your hand is relaxing..."

I think I need every single product they make RIGHT NOW,how about you?

Lots of reading on their site and I do think that many of the ingredients and products sound very lovely.I calmed down just reading through it all!

The sample I received to try is their "Skyn Artic Brightening Serum" and it's very generous,probably enough for a week's worth of testing.Lovely "cooling sensation" as it's applied with a slight cirtus-scent.Very clean and nice to apply...figured I'd leave it on overnight and awake to a complexion that was as glowing and pink as a walk in an Icelandic meadow but alas...it was not meant to be.

Within 5 minutes,my skin was burning terribly and little red bumps were forming at the corners of my mouth...great...even the ultimate "anti-stress" product was going to mess with me this month! I did read the ingredients on the site,which include some very impressive actives and some rares as well but Holy Cow,I had to go and wash my face asap and it still continued to feel as though I was too close to the fire for about an hour after I removed as much of the product as possible...I felt guilty as I knew I'd want to "review it" here which also stressed me out.

Was it the artic root? The Siberian ginseng?The maral root? What was the offender??? I am seriously thinking that the "kombucha" which "goes to work to brighten skin and bring back the glow you left behind..." aka known as the "miracle mushroom" may have been the culprit in terms of my allergic reaction to the product.Tried the "tea" years ago when it was all the beauty rage and also got sick from it.

I ended up sad as I so wanted to "like" this product: the site is cool and informative and they have won numerous awards and many magazines have given the products a thumbs up. I think they are a bit pricey but again,you're paying for the active ingredients that really do make that difference in a product as opposed to base and fillers.I think I shall order their "Detox kit" for stressed skin and give a few of the other fine products they create a whirl...thinking this was a one product/time only event and I am willing to see what else they market that does work for me!

Sooooo....feeling guilty that this isn't my most positive review to date BUT I would add that I think it's a good lesson: some of the more esoteric ingredients,when applied topically,can result in less than stellar results and it's probably a good reminder to this old dog to do a "test patch" when trying a product so full of goodesss,unusual ingredients, and actives!

I give the company a thumbs up for their marketing and innovative products and myself a negative for smearing something on when it's pretty much clinical in ingredients.Spend a bit of time on the site,it's truly sort of refreshing and calming.

Exclusive to Sephora,you can buy it here: SKYN ICELAND

After my admission of guilt,does anyone else share the gift of over jealous application of products?Are you pro-active in your ingredient inspection or do you smear on and then go into shock?

Do you believe that any product has the ability to reduce the effects of stress? I'm gonna' stick to yoga/wine for now,LOL!