Indie Lee: Discovery Kit Review

I've never been a dedicated follower of new skincare brand fads, such as Drunk Elephant, The Ordinary and Pixi, but my friend strongly suggested I try Indie Lee's Discovery Kit after a particularly well timed sale at Sephora a few months ago. Since then, I've been switching up my routine and putting Indie Lee's products to the test over a long period of time - and as most skincare products aren't likely to give miracle results, and repeating a test is obviously the best way to guarantee consistency! 

The Indie Lee Discovery Kit is described as : 

A travel ready collection of best sellers from Indie Lee featuring Brightening Cleanser, CoQ-10 Toner and Squalane Facial Oil. Excellent for travel or to discover Indie Lee, this kit contains Brightening Cleanser to gently wash away makeup and impurities, COQ-10 Toner to hydrate, rebalance and protect against environmental stressors and Squalane Facial Oil to hydrate and help improve the appearance of texture and tone. 

The brand was created out of trying to focus on providing safer and cleaner alternatives for skincare, and the brand is entirely free of ingredients like parabens, petrolatum, sulfates, talc, siloxane, mineral oil and formaldehyde, and is also vegan and cruelty free. One of my personal favorites aspects is that the brand tries to package with glass wherever possible - and I absolutely love the fact that the squalene oil is in a glass bottle. Also, I love the color theme! 

CoQ-10 Toner - An alcohol free, antioxidant-rich toner that helps hydrate and rebalance the skin. 

This powerful essence helps hydrate and rebalance pH levels, making it a must-have to help the skin acheive a more toned, radiant appearance. Never drying, CoQ-10 Toner is alcohol-free and formulated with Hyaluronic Acid, Aloe Vera, Chamomile, Cucumber, Sage and rejuvenating enzymes from Papaya that leave the skin calm, primed and protected from pollution and environmental aggressors. A blend of plant, flower and fruit extracts benefit the complexion and help promote the formula's intoxicatingly fresh scent.

My thoughts: I don't particularly dislike this, but I don't love this either. It's not bad, but it doesn't seem to yield any long term results, and is pretty annoying when it comes to application. The instructions say you should apply this directly after cleansing, and that you have to use a cotton pad to apply this all over the face, and to avoid the eye area - and to finish with your normal steps. The Skin Care Edit also claims that this doesn't work well with acid treatments, such AHA or BHAs - although I personally haven't experienced any interferences with BHAs and AHAs at all so be sure to check if you have sensitive skin. 

Pros: This is alcohol free! 

Contains all those nice antioxidants and herbal extracts! 

It does smell nice - has a sort of indistinct herbal scent. 

It comes in a travel friendly spray bottle. 

No weird sticky/tacky film post application. 

Cons: No notable toning or radiance after prolonged use

Relatively pricey 

Instructions/Method of application

To expand on my last gripe: I really don't know what to with the instructions given. It says it should be used with a cotton pad, but is actually sold in a spray bottle. Personally I try to reduce cotton pad usage at all opportunities, and if I have to, I use my reusuable cotton rounds to prevent more waste. Most times I just spray this either directly onto my face and try to avoid the eye area, or onto my hands before patting it onto my skin, and I can't say I've noticed a huge difference with the method of application and I wish they'd mentioned that instead of giving such specific instructions for the product. 

Conclusion: I'm just not sure this warrants a price tag of $14 for a 30ml spray bottle for the minimal effects I've seen. It does have a nice smell and is travel friendly, but with the strange application, it's not super easy to work into my routine and I find that I just don't reach for this all that often. Not a bad product to try, but not one I'd go and full size after I've finished. 

Squalane Facial Oil - A lightweight moisturiser that is 100% pure olive-derived Squalane Oil

 Improve the appearance of texture, tone and elasticity of your skin with readily absorbed Squalane Oil. This light, hydrating oil leaves the complexion soft and nourished and is ideal for all skin types.

My thoughts: You can apply this oil any time you reach for a moisturizer, so I typically replaced my water based moisurizer with this instead. Personally I'm not a huge fan of using facial oils at all in any step of my routine, whether it be cleansing or for moisturizing. I find that with my normal/oily t-zone skin that it actually tends to give me a little bit of trouble, and with this oil, while it's notably a lot less greasy and super light weight, I was started to get more blackheads and other clogged pore action than I usually do with my skin. Most people rave about squalane oil because it's apparently closest to the skin, and Indie Lee itself claims that it will tell oily skin to stop producing as much oil as well, but didn't feel that it was evening out my skin at all.
What I do like? This is perfect as nail oil. It's not greasy, it's super absorbent and is super effective at tackling dry spots - as most oils tend to be. Unlike lotions and other cream based products, oil is stubborn and is much harder to rinse off and clings on, and this is perfect for putting on your hands because the oil still stays effective even if you have to wash your hands frequently. When I was using this on my face, I noticed that all my cuticles looked amazing, and repeated use left them super healthy and shiny. While probably not the intended use, I absolutely love using this for manicures now. 

Pros: Glass bottle. 

A longer shelf life. 

Doesn't smell like anything (unlike some oils like jojoba)
Doesn't feel oily or greasy after application. 

Suitable for most skin types (though personally I wouldn't recommend it for oily skin.) 

Works miracles as a nail oil. 

Cons: Not great for oily skin/oily t-zones 

Not super cheap - at around $20 AUD for 10ml, and $49 for 30ml. Cheaper alternatives are available. 

Conclusion: I wouldn't repurchase this, and it doesn't really work well for my skin at all. I do like that this has introduced me to squalane oil, and I love the bottle, but there are plenty of cheaper alternatives I can use for non-face use.

Brightening Cleanser - A cleanser, makeup remover and mask in one that features vitamin C, potent antioxidants and plant extracts to protect and enhance the skin's natural luminosity, clarity and beauty.

  Brightening Cleanser's signature mixed berry blend delights the senses as the gel formula lightly foams to gently wash away makeup and impurities. In addition to helping achieve more luminous skin, Strawberry Seed Oil, Hydrolized Wheat Proteins and Tomato extracts help firm and protect, leaving the skin hydrated and silky. Due to the unique combination of plant extracts, when left on for five minutes before rinsing, this remarkable cleanser doubles as an exfoliating mask to help smoothen the skin's uneven texture and minimise the appearance of enlarged pores.

My thoughts: When I first used this, I totally fell in love with the scent, which is sweet and fruity but not cloying or too notable that it overwhelms you, because this cleanser includes strawberry seed oil. The gel formula has minimal foaming, so you don't necessarily have to lather it with water either. I usually switch between Skinstitut's glycolic cleanser or Jurlique's rose foam cleanser, but this is a pleasant change with the slippy texture, but with the nice scent and exfoliation, it's perfect for my travel purposes as well. 

Pros: It smells amazing. 

Doubles as an exfoliator - two in one! (Good for travel!)

Eye friendly. 

A nice gentle every day cleanser. 

Cons: Not effective when it comes to actual make up removal. You're better off using an actual remover for this.

Isn't as effective as chemical cleansers/exfoliators.  

Not budget friendly. 

Conclusion: Despite it not being great at makeup removal, I don't typically expect my cleansers to be super effective anyway, and I like using this as a 'pre' cleanser/makeup remover. Additionally, despite it not being as effective as chemical cleansers, I think this is a good product to use when I want to use AHAs or BHAs after cleansing and don't want to irritate it too much. I love the smell when I use it, I like that it doubles as an exfoliant because a lot of the times I like bringing too much with me when I travel, and that it's eye friendly. I really liked how well it seems to clean my skin as well, although it's not great for long term use. Having upsized this, I haven't noticed any big difference in my skin when using this as a cleaner.

Final thoughts:
I would recommend this - the discovery set in general is definitely something I reckon is worth checking out if you've not tried Squalane oil before and you're looking for some natural alternatives.
If you're not looking for a toner, and you've tried squalane oil before, I'd encourage you to try the 15ml version of the Brightening Cleanser, as all of the smaller sizes are available for purchase as well. 

My order: 

I bought this from Sephora Australia - and most orders over $55 dollars ship free. The order took a while to process due to the sale period, and took around a week and a half to arrive - around a week to ship and two to three days to arrive. 

You can also buy this on the indie lee website directly, and the have a few other products you might not be able to get from Sephora alone!