Ectoin Hydro-Barrier Serum

Whenever I have an allergy flair, my skin becomes very dry and flaky. This product helped me to bounce back. It quickly put moisture and hydration back into my skin. Reading the reviews, I feel like most people did not follow the directions that state to apply this serum to damp skin before any other serums. I have not had any issues with pilling. But I understand that pilling is caused by two products in your routine not being compatible. Not the product by itself. You can always use it at night if it doesn’t work with your makeup. This has been wonderful for my dry sensitive skin. I would highly recommend it.

Tried it on a whim about a year ago, now I love it in my nightly routine. Saves my skin in dry, winter months; at my worst months, I use it in the morning, too. I have subtle bumps on my skin that appear when cleansing, but it's hard to tell if this serum is at all related. Using this serum alone make anything noticeably worse for my combination skin. Love that it's affordable.

I’ve been using this for about a year and feel my skin is very hydrated and bouncy! I’ve bought two bottles and love the plump it gives. Never had any problem with it under makeup or any of my sunscreens

I really like this. It layers super well with my other skincare and really helps my dehydrated but oily skin type. It’s best on damp skin and I’ve really see a difference in my skins bounce after quitting retinal and pivoting to a barrier focused routine.

I'd been on the lookout for ectoin products for a while, as I wanted to give the ingredient a try. I saw this one online and noticed it was affordable and has 2% ectoin, a higher percentage than a lot of other ectoin-containing products in this price range. I swatched it on the back of my hand and liked the texture. Turns out the feeling on your hand doesn't exactly translate to the feeling on the face. I layered this product over likely ten plus layers of the Cosrx Propolis toner and one layer of the Celimax Noni Ampoule. When it dried down, it immediately formed an uncomfortable tacky film on my face. I still feel it 30 minutes later after putting moisturizer on top, which I find usually helps reduce that tackiness. It's like I can feel it around my eyes and cheeks, areas where my face moves. While it didn't pill on my face, strangely enough, it pilled on my hands after I applied it. I had to wash them immediately afterwards. I also don't find this product to be hydrating or soothing. I've had it for a while now and given it numerous shots, but it continues to disappoint. If you're looking to try Ectoin, look elsewhere. This feels like a cheap product that was rushed out the door without enough testing to jump on the Ectoin bandwagon as fast as possible. Considering the owners of the Inkey List started the brand with the proposition of being the "Fast Fashion of Skincare" (see https://fashionista.com/2018/07/be-for-beauty-cosmetic-skincare-brands), this is not surprising. I may try a cleaner, mist or moisturizer in the future, but I don't see myself buying any serums from The Inkey List again.

After using only a couple I realized how bad this creates pilling when using with any other products. It’s honestly so bad, wish I would have read the reviews before purchasing. I’ve tried with a few different moisturizers and still the same awful pilling affect.

It’s okay as a moisturizer, nothing special. But you can’t apply this with literally anything else. I put this on as a light moisturizer in the morning, realized I forgot to apply sunscreen **six hours later** I tried to apply a light sunscreen and it still pilled everywhere.

I love this serum! It works and has helped keep my skin hydrated. It can cause pilling when used under makeup, so I only use this as part of my nighttime routine. I highly recommend it!

Solid barrier serum - ideal if you live in colder dry weather. Adds hydration without being too thick, allowing for layers. I use it in winter mornings, after Vitamin C and before sunscreen

This broke me OUT, and bad! I don’t believe myself to have sensitive skin. I rarely breakout from new products, especially from this line. But this product wreaked havoc on my skin! Terrible, awful, deep breakouts that lasted through usage. Thankfully I found another product to bring my skin back to health but I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone.