The product: Graydon Berry Rich Probiotic Face + Eye Cream
Hi. My name is Rae, and I’m a probiotic convert. I didn’t used to believe in them—internally, yes; topically, no—but after trying the Graydon Berry Rich Face + Eye Cream, I think I have to take it back.
I’ve had dry skin my entire life. Heck, I even have a series on theNotice dedicated to living with extremely dry skin. I’m used to applying an essence, an oil-based serum, and a moisturizer… and then still having dry flakes by noon. But ever since I started using Graydon’s Berry Rich, it’s like I’m living in a whole new world.
Do you need a probiotic face cream?
If you have skin issues? Then: quite possibly. This beauty features Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate, which the brand says works by “bacterial interference.” It more or less puts so much good bacteria on your skin that the bad bacteria has nowhere to thrive, and if it works—the scientific community is still coming around to the suggestion that it does, although most recent studies are strongly in support—your skin will naturally spend less time working against itself, which should result in better skin texture, moisture, you name it.
In my case, it did. My dryness, as I’ve always suspected, is likely autoimmune. Much like how my body’s natural state is to stress out and attack my joints, my skin gets stressed and attacks itself, resulting in mild eczema symptoms. (You should see me when I haven’t moisturized in a few days; my skin flakes off in a scale pattern and I get bumpy eczema patches in all the folds of my joints. It’s not a pretty picture!)
Graydon’s probiotics are vegan, and they help “optimize healthy bacteria and [strengthen] the skin barrier.” It’s noted as being ideal for mature skin, which always draws me to a product: you always get the best moisture out of anti-ageing products. Along with probiotics, you’ll find a delicious mix of antioxidant-rich blueberry seed oil, blue-green algae, and cacao butter in this moisturizer. The website describes it as bright blue, but mine is more of a white cream touched with avocado green.
It’s a little unexpected, but very pleasing!
What’s the Graydon Berry Rich experience like?
God, you guys. It’s so good.
The Graydon Berry Rich experience is indulgent. It works well, and it feels expensive: the almost clinical, white, airless pump seems dermatological, and the rich, greenish moisturizer is lush and opulent. I had this pegged as a $90 moisturizer for months, and only found out while researching for this post that it retails for a very reasonable $49 CAD.
(Dear reader, I was ready to shell out $90 for a tube when I ran out. Please don’t tell Graydon.)
Berry Rich is vegan, cruelty-free, and free of essential oils, with a skin-friendly pHh of 4.5-5.5. It doesn’t contain any sulphates, petroleum, or silicones. The brand’s website cites the Graydon Skincare Berry Rich ingredients as the origin of its scent, but I’ve never noticed a strong one; it contains blueberry seed oil, bergamot fruit extract, apricot fruit extract, coffee extract, and more. (Jasmine! Banana! Cantaloupe! Cinnamon!)
The best part of this probiotic skincare experience is its do-it-all nature. Berry Rich is a phenomenal moisturizer, but it’s a damn fine eye cream, too. I love being able to tap the same cocoa-buttery moisturizer into my lids and undereyes as I’m applying all over my face; it keeps them perky, but at the price point of a regular moisturizer.
(Huzzah!)
My probiotic moisturizer review: The verdict on Graydon Berry Rich
When I started testing Berry Rich, I used it exclusively for about 2 1/2 weeks. By the second week, I found that I no longer needed to use my oil-based serum; by the third, I found that I only needed to use it at night, and could use up my Lavido moisturizer during the day.
Now, I use it a couple of times a week, and… well, that’s really all I need. I don’t know how to explain it: when I started using Berry Rich, I had relied on a serum + a moisturizer two times a day to keep my flakiness at a reasonable level. After a little less than three weeks, I had no flaking. Anywhere. For the first time in years. And I found myself able to go days on other moisturizers, too — I could use something cheaper, or at least less precious, and my skin condition would be maintained.
It feels like magic, but I think it might have just been probiotics. This moisturizer balanced my skin in a way that nothing else has been able to for the entire lifespan of theNotice.
Availability: $49 USD/CAD at Graydon Skincare, The Detox Market CA, and The Detox Market US. Permanent, and if they ever discontinue it, I’m going to throw a royal fit.
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Disclaimer: Products mentioned in this post were submitted by PR for editorial consideration only, and posted with affiliate links where applicable. I was definitely on board with this being twice the price, but now that I know it isn’t, I’m going to make my over-exuberant partner try it out as well — his skin is ageing, but by god, I’m not sacrificing $100 manna so he can moisturize his face, neck, beard, and hair with it!
