After I finished a bottle of Pixi Rose Toner, I decided to try something new. During Sephora’s 20% off holiday sale, I picked out Innisfree Intensive Hydrating Toner with Green Tea Seed.
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Innisfree Skincare Products
I’ve tried just a few products from Innisfree that I think I received in my Ipsy bags, back when I subscribed to the Ipsy sample size bags. And that was a number of years ago.
Over time, I forgot that Innisfree is a Korean brand, and it is linked to the luxury K-beauty brand AmorePacific. I thought Innisfree was Scottish! Yikes. But then I realized that I confused Innisfree with the town, Inverness, near Point Reyes CA. I believe that Inverness CA was named after Inverness, Scotland in 1889 by James Shafter, a developer of that area in Marin county. I think I was also confused because William Butler Yeats (who was Irish, not Scottish) wrote a poem, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree”, a lyrical poem about longing to live on a beautiful, peaceful island like Inisfree instead of the urban life he actually lived. So much for all my confusion 😉
Anyway, Innisfree is a K-beauty brand that uses natural ingredients responsibly and sustainably sourced from Korea’s pristine Jeju Island, a volcanic area with particularly fertile soil. Innisfree is and has always been a “clean beauty” brand.
Innisfree and the Cultivation of Green Tea
Innisfree has spent years organically cultivating green tea in the black volcanic soil of Jeju Island. Their green tea field is considered one of the best in the world, and it is USDA Certified Organic. The company has also spent years researching the benefits of green tea on skin. They have studied the seed, stem, root, and leaf, and have over 178 patents for green tea including a proprietary extraction process to capture the essences from all parts of the plant. The result of the extraction process is an incredibly concentrated and highly effective green tea extract clinically proven to surpass the hydrating power of purified water, delivering fresh nutrients and amino acids to the skin while enhancing it’s protective barrier.
Innisfree Intensive Hydrating Toner with Green Tea Seed
Green tea extracts are among my favorite ingredients in skincare products. In fact, I use Tony Moly Green Tea Watery Essence every day.
When I noticed that Innisfree made a green tea toner, I thought pairing the two products might help my dry skin retain even more moisture. So I decided to buy Innisfree Intensive Hydrating Toner with Green Tea Seed during the Sephora sale, and I’m glad I did.
Intensive Hydrating Toner with Green Tea Seed has the consistency of water, like most toners. The heavy plastic bottle has a hole at the top to dispense the toner. I either shake out a few drops onto a cotton pad (my nightly process) or onto my hands (my morning process where I use it more as an additional essence). It has a faint green tea scent. In fact, Innisfree recommends layering it on two or three times before proceeding with your skincare routine. But since I follow up during the day with Tony Moly Green Tea Watery Essence, I just press it on my face once. At night, I follow up with oils.
Here are the benefits as Innisfree describes them:
“This lightweight, moisturizing toner is packed with antioxidants and amino acids from a balanced blend of green tea and green tea seed oil grown on innisfree’s USDA-certified organic (Control Union Certifications CUC) fields on Jeju Island, Korea to help prep skin for the rest of your routine while supporting its natural moisture barrier.”
It’s recommended for normal and dry skin to relieve dryness.
The key ingredients include:
- Jeju Green Tea Extract: Replenishes hydration.
- Jeju Green Tea Seed Oil: Nourishes and helps skin retain moisture.
- Panthenol: Helps strengthen skin’s moisture barrier.
Full ingredient list: WATER / AQUA / EAU, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, PROPANEDIOL, PANTHENOL, 1,2-HEXANEDIOL, GLYCERIN, PPG-13-DECY LT-ETRADECETH-24, SODIUM CITRATE, CITRIC ACID, ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN, DISODIUM EDTA, FRAGRANCE / PARFUM, CAMELLIA SINENSIS LEAF EXTRACT, CAMELLIA SINENSIS SEED OIL, LINALOOL, LIMONENE
It is vegan and cruelty-free.
I’m very pleased with Innisfree Intensive Hydrating Toner with Green Tea Seed. The bottle contains 6.76 fl. oz./200 ml. It’s sold on the Innisfree website though I purchased it on Sephora.com. Presently, it is on sale on the Innisfree website for $11.40 marked down from $19. I intend to buy another bottle to keep in my stash.
New Innisfree Hyaluronic Acid Toner with Green Tea Seed
When I started to write my review today, I looked for the product on Sephora.com and a slightly different Innisfree toner with green tea came up during my search: Innisfree Hyaluronic Acid Toner with Green Tea Seed. The new toner that seems to be replacing the one I bought (although for now, the Innisfree website still has both) contains 5 types of hyaluronic acid and comes in a glass bottle. Reading the full ingredient list below, you will see that it contains more hydrating ingredients in addition to the 5 HAs, like Lactobacillus Ferment, Squalane, vitamin E, and Ceramide and other ingredients that I don’t know as well as stabilizers Xanthan Gum and Cellulose Gum that the original product doesn’t have. The price is $3 more at $22 for slightly less product, 5.41 fl. oz./160 ml.
Full ingredient list: Water/Aqua/ Eau, Butylene Glycol, Propanediol, Glycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Trehalose, Panthenol, Polyglycerin-3, Ppg-13-Decyltetradeceth-24, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate, Xanthan Gum, Ethylhexylglycerin, Fragrance/Parfum, Disodium Edta, Cellulose Gum, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Squalane, Camellia Sinensis Seed Oil, Lactic Acid, Linalool, Limonene, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Hyaluronic Acid, Acrylates/Stearyl Methacrylate Copolymer, Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp Extract, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Tocopherol, Ceramide Np.
If you respond well to hyaluronic acid and don’t already have HA in either a serum or moisturizer, then I think it would be worth the higher price to get the new combo product. But I think I will pick up a second bottle of the original toner on the Innisfree website on sale before it disappears!
Do you use any skincare products with green tea?
Sounds like a really great toner!
Hi, Allison – This sounds great, especially because I prefer plant-based products on my sensitive skin. Green tea is so great, isn’t it? I’m trying to drink it more often, too. I especially love how you share sales information with us! Thanks – Angie, http://www.yourtrueselfblog.com
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