Stages Of Beauty Skincare - The Elegance Treatment Cream and Multi-Peptide Serum - Review

I was approached by the lovely people at Stages Of Beauty to try out some of their skin  You see, they have 4 different skin care lines for different ages.  Instead of having skin care for dry, oily sensitive, anti-aging, etc. they divide it up into STAGES...get it? STAGES of Beauty!  They have a line for your 20's, your 30's, your 40's and your 50's and beyond.

Stages Of Beauty takes the approach that we are dealing with more than just winkles.  They take into consideration skin changes like increased sun sensitivity (causing sun spots and spider veins), dulling complexion, and thinning and skin thirsty for hydration. The 4 lines they carry are:

• The Radiance for your 20's: This line tackles damage caused by sun exposure, a hectic lifestyle, and more.  The Radiance offers products that will address damage control and anti-aging. It also will calms, protects, and restores cells so the 20 somethings skin so it stays fresh and radiant.
• The Harmony for your 30's: This line provides soothing hydration and anti-wrinkle protection while using powerful fruit extracts to support the skin’s regeneration and even tone while hydrating at the same time.
• The Elegance for your 40's: This line provides a hydrating and soothing solution for skin in its 40s. The Elegance line is specifically formulated with firming, hydrating, and restorative ingredients to target thinning skin, as well as fine lines, photo-aging, discoloration, and sensitivity.
• The Grace for your 50's and beyond: Hydrating and restorative solutions are what skin in its 50s+ need. This line improves surface immunity, firmness, and elasticity. It is also formulated to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, and balance the effects of changing hormones.

Stages of Beauty products are formulated without Sulfates, Parabens, Petrochemicals, Synthetic Dyes, Phthalates and GMOs.  In addition all products are Dermatologist Tested for Safety, 100% Fragrance-Free, Formulated for Sensitive Skin, and Not Tested on Animals.

Let me first start with my skin type, although the Stages Of Beauty line goes by age and not type. My skin type is oily, sensitive, showing the first signs of aging with fine lines on the forehead and near the eyes. I also have some hyper pigmentation on my cheeks from sins in my teens when I would lay out in the sun with baby oil hoping to "tan". My skin is not droopy, but it certainly isn't as taut as it was when I was in my 20's. 

I recently turned 40. I don't feel 40, I don't look 40 and I certainly don't act 40 (Not that I know what a 40 y.o. is supposed to feel, look and act, but in my mind I imagine it's much older than what I feel, look and act) After I was over my period of mourning for turning 40 and came to terms that I was sent The Elegance line, for your 40's I gave the product a test for one month.  I will say that in just 4 weeks of use you will not see dramatic results.  You will, however find out if the product causes irritation, breakouts, moisturizes properly, etc, but the disappearance of wrinkles and fine lines may take 8 to 12 weeks of to fully realize. 

I was sent 2 items.  The Elegance Multi-Peptide Serum and The Elegance Treatment Cream.

The Elegance Multi-Peptide Serum is a liquidy gel like formula that instantly hydrates the skin.  It is supposed to contribute to the production of new collagen and elastin and it is supposed to calm sensitivity and reduce redness. By hydrating the skin The Elegance Multi-Peptide Serum  helps diminish and prevent fine lines and wrinkle. My experience was that it instantly plumped up my skin and hydrated it very nicely.  A little went a long way. I just needed a drop or two to cover my entire face and neck.  I did find it to be on the slightly sticky side, but I think that was because I used too much at times.  It absorbed decently but I still felt like there was a sticky residue on my skin at times.  The Elegance Multi-Peptide Serum contains: Seaweed Extract, Hyaluronic Acid, and Peptides. I used this product for 4 weeks and did not experience any irritation, breakouts, milla or any adverse reactions. I did notice that my skin was slightly more hydrated in the morning after applying it at night, but because of my oily skin I was unable to use this product in the morning. It is $74.99 for a 30 ml bottle with dropper.

The Elegance Treatment Cream is the cornerstone of The Elegance line. This intensely hydrating formula uses tetra-peptides and monk’s pepper berry to help stimulate collagen and elastin. It uses amino acids and resveratrol to provide antioxidants, DNA protection, and repair. and is supposed to firm your skin and counteracts the effects of photo-aging.  This unscented cream was medium in texture.  hat means not as heavy as something like Le Mer or Nivea (in the blue tin) but not light like a lotion.  It felt WONDERFUL on my skin. The Elegance Treatment Cream contains: Monk's Pepper Berry Extract (An antioxidant), Amino Acid Complex, Acetyl Tyrosine (Helps speed and promote the repair of free radical damage), Adenosine Triphosphate (An antioxidant), Resveratrol (An antioxidant), Glycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate (A form of Hyaluronic Acid), and Tetrapeptide-17 (Anti-aging peptide that helps stimulate collagen and elastin production). Because my skin is so oily I could only use this product at night.  It felt incredibly calming on my skin and instantly hydrated as well. I used this product for 4 weeks and did not experience any irritation, breakouts, milla or any adverse reactions. My skin was slightly more hydrated in the morning after applying it at night and overall my skin tone and texture seemed better and slightly improved. If my skin was drier I believe I would purchase this product once I run out. $52.99 for 30ml and $74.99 for 50ml

Do you NEED this? - Maybe. If you are primarily concerned with skin protection/prevention etc. one of the lines from Stages Of Beauty might be for you!  I would not, however, recommend that you ONLY consider the line that is targeted for your age group.  Sorry, but I think that people on the cusp of certain age groups may benefit for a "younger" or "older" line depending on their skin type. (For example I might have been better off with The Harmony line for your 30's...and not just because I'm in denial about being 40 thankyouverymuch) I also believe that some lines, while great for certain stages of your skin's natural aging process, don't take into consideration severe oiliness or dryness.  For example. Someone like me with very oily skin may benefit from The elegance line, but the issue of the oily skin is not being addressed properly. And last, but certainly not least, the fact that Stages of Beauty does not offer any products with SPF nor do they offer a separate sunscreen is concerning.  The main tool in preventing premature skin aging is sunscreen and sun avoidance.  The fact that they do not address this issue needs to be noted.  A separate sunscreen and other precautionary measures for avoiding sun exposure need to be used when using the Stages Of Beauty line.

What about you?  Have you ever tried this brand?  What do you think about skincare based on age rather than specific skin condition?