{"id":7973,"date":"2015-11-12T23:10:44","date_gmt":"2015-11-12T19:10:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonniegarner.com\/en\/?p=7973"},"modified":"2015-11-13T03:05:01","modified_gmt":"2015-11-12T23:05:01","slug":"lelixir-du-marabout-by-garancia-my-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonniegarner.com\/en\/2015\/11\/12\/lelixir-du-marabout-by-garancia-my-review\/","title":{"rendered":"L’Elixir du Marabout by Garancia, my review"},"content":{"rendered":"

On paper,\u00a0L’Elixir du Marabout by Garancia<\/a> has everything I need.<\/h2>\n

A 2-in-1 treatment for both\u00a0acne and anti-ageing<\/strong>, the composition is not bad at all with a lot of natural ingredients<\/strong>, the fact that it’s a French pharmacy<\/em> product<\/strong>, so not too difficult for me to find (well,\u00a0not really in Dubai, but I can find it easily\u00a0when I’m in France on holiday or\u00a0I can also use my good old Shop and Ship<\/a>), all this was\u00a0so tempting!<\/p>\n

But I must admit that I had to ignore the very bizarre brand marketing. This\u00a0“magic and witchcraft<\/strong>” universe is kind of a “hit-or-miss” situation. And for\u00a0me, it has always put me off the brand. Not because of the universe itself, I have nothing against owls or witches, but because\u00a0it doesn’t seem very serious<\/strong> for a cosmetic brand.<\/p>\n

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6 things you should know about Garancia<\/i><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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1. Saveria Coste, the founder of the brand Garancia, is a pharmacist<\/strong> but also a graduate of the HEC School<\/strong>, the most famous French business school.<\/p>\n

2. The name of the brand is inspired by the madder root<\/strong> (in French: Garance), also called the red of dyers, a natural dye<\/strong>. It was used in particular for dyeing fabrics; the madder was used\u00a0to obtain a beautiful red color. The uniforms of the French army have used it a lot until World War II (until they understood that\u00a0red\u00a0was maybe a little too conspicuous; kaki\u00a0is a little\u00a0more discreet for camouflage in most battlefields). It's also a nod to the founder of Garancia for her daughter Garance.<\/p>\n

3. The very special universe<\/strong> of Garancia that mixes magic and witchcraft<\/strong>, is inspired by Saveria Coste's childhood imagination, who sees herself as an alchemist<\/strong> and imagines\u00a0her\u00a0product formulas like\u00a0magical potions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

4. The first product launched by Garancia was the Pschitt Magique<\/a><\/strong>, an enzymatic exfoliating foaming cleanser, which can be used daily because it's very gentle. It's without grains or glycolic acid. It's always a best-seller<\/strong> of the brand and it will turn 10<\/strong> this year.<\/p>\n

5. The incredible\u00a0success of Garancia interested Sephora France<\/strong> they referenced the brand two years after its launch without an exclusivity clause<\/strong>, which is very rare for a niche brand.<\/p>\n

6. Garancia is distributed in 16 countries<\/strong> around the world: Europe, Singapore, and also in the Middle East (but not in Dubai unfortunatelysad ).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Read More...<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

When I heard for the first time of the Pschiit Magique<\/a>, Garancia’s\u00a0first product 10 years ago (I was working in a pharmacy at the time), I wondered WTF it was.\u00a0Yes, a product called “magic” always makes me super doubtful.
\nAnd then very quickly, the product became a bestseller<\/strong> and literally every customer who tried it, would rave about it. Believe me, it was so difficult for me to take the customers away from\u00a0the brand\u00a0(I was working for a competitor’s brand).
\nThe brand continued to\u00a0release products with the strangest names:<\/strong> Abracadabaume<\/a>, (Abaracadabrabalm), Larmes de fant\u00f4me<\/a> (Phantom tears)… but also to deliberately use very unusual cosmetic\u00a0ingredients like\u00a0snake venom or dragon’s blood.
\nAnd it was a massive hit<\/strong>! Garancia has been so successful\u00a0with its products that they leave no one indifferent. Because it’s not (only)\u00a0magic formulas, the quality<\/strong> is also there! wink<\/span> <\/p>\n

Word of mouth<\/strong> worked really well for Garancia and despite its UFO image and its apple green, red or black packaging, which clashes<\/strong> so much with the traditional pharmacy white (it’s a good strategy to get noticed), the brand has managed to become a real commercial success<\/strong>…<\/p>\n

A few months ago when I went to France for my holidays my dear French pharmacies that I miss so much here were easily accessible. I started looking in pharmacies for a product that could finally overcome my imperfections \/ acne\u00a0(yes, I’ve got high hopes smile<\/span> ) but also have an anti-ageing effect, for that matter.
\nElixir du Marabout was often featured in beauty blogs, but also was frequently mentioned in discussions on beauty forums.
\nThe reviews on this product were generally rather good and I confess that even though I was not attracted by it’s ‘universe’, the Garancia brand intrigued me.<\/p>\n

So I decided to give it a chance and see if this product really has magical powers<\/strong> on my skin! wink<\/span> <\/p>\n

L’Elixir du Marabout by Garancia, presentation:<\/h3>\n
\"L'Elixir<\/a><\/div>\n

What the brand says about it:<\/p>\n

Through stress, pollution and hormonal cycles the skin can become prone to blemishes such as little spots and enlarged pores, and it can suffer from excess sebum. For this reason Laboratoire\u00a0Garancia<\/strong> has developed L’Elixir du Marabout<\/strong>\u00ae<\/sup><\/strong>, a beauty serum that helps purify your skin without drying it out or depriving it of anti-ageing action.<\/span><\/p>\n

When clinically tested under dermatological control, L’Elixir du Marabout<\/strong>\u00ae<\/sup><\/strong> helps purify the skin by up to 24% on average and up to 42% in just 10 days (average taken from the best third out of 22 participants – 2 applications per day). 91% of participants tested noted an improvement within 10 days. 95% of participants tested decided they wanted to buy the product at the end of the test.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The action of the Elixir du Marabout is very focused on skin<\/strong>\u00a0cell regeneration<\/strong>, which allows it to work both as:
\n– an acne treatment<\/strong>: the exfoliating ingredients help to remove dead skin cells that clog pores but also facilitate the healing of the skin,
\n– an anti-age <\/strong>action: a regenerated\u00a0skin is a skin that looks younger.<\/p>\n

L’Elixir du Marabout by Garancia, my test and thoughts:<\/h3>\n
\"L'Elixir<\/a><\/div>\n

Remember, I am 36<\/strong> (not for long though lol), I have a rather oily\u00a0dehydrated skin<\/strong>, with dilated\u00a0pores<\/strong> that get clogged easily and a persistent hormonal acne<\/strong>, since I stopped my birth control pill about 18 months ago.
\nI don’t\u00a0have a lot of wrinkles yet but I tend to have a tired skin<\/strong>, especially when I don’t sleep enough. I don’t really have a lack of firmness, and not too much hyper-pigmentation (= spots due to the sun) if I protect my skin well enough (and I protect it every day with a high SPF<\/a>\u00a0since I live in Dubai).<\/p>\n

So I was looking for a product that can both:
\n– help me fight against my acne tendency<\/strong>,
\n– and regulate<\/strong> my oily skin.
\nBut also something suitable for my age that would help the skin:
\n– to be protected<\/strong>,
\n– and which helps it to\u00a0regenerate<\/strong>, so it\u00a0looks less tired<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Here’s my 2 cents about\u00a0L’Elixir du Marabout by Garancia:<\/p>\n

– Packaging:<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is a glass bottle with a pipette<\/strong>, which is a very vintage look, like an old vial of a pharmacist or an alchemist, to stay in the theme of the brand! wink<\/span>
\nI am quite a fan of the pipette, which I find convenient to deliver the right amount of product (4-5 drops).
\nHowever, I still don’t understand why the brand had to put a graduation system on the label that covers the bottle because this same label prevents you from seeing how much product remains in the bottle. Totally useless!\u00a0:\/<\/p>\n

– Texture:<\/strong><\/p>\n

It’s a\u00a0watery\u00a0solution<\/strong>, very fluid and penetrates very quickly into the skin. It has an immediate tightening\/ lifting effect<\/strong>\u00a0when you apply it.<\/p>\n

\"L'Elixir<\/a>\"L'Elixir<\/a><\/div>\n

– Perfume:<\/strong><\/p>\n

A very botanical<\/strong> scent rather nice and not overpowering at all.
\nPersonally, I like it. Although I see in the composition that there is some kind of synthetic\u00a0perfume added, I feel like I’m smelling the ingredients with this perfume. And I prefer that to the very artificial scents of some of the other skincare products.<\/p>\n

– Formula:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here is the full list of ingredients:<\/p>\n

AQUA (WATER\/EAU)*, LACTOBACILLUS \/ PUNICA GRANATUM FRUIT FERMENT EXTRACT*, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, MALTODEXTRIN*, POLYSORBATE 20*, SODIUM DEXTRAN SULFFATE, GLYCERIN*, POPULUS TREMULOIDES BARK EXTRACT*, SYRINGA VULGARIS (LILAC) LEAF CELL CULTURE EXTRACT*, ARRABIDAEA CHICA LEAF EXTRACT*, DIMETHYLMETHOXY CHROMANOL, ACETYL DIPEPTIDE-3 AMINOHEXANOATE, PARFUM (FRAGRANCE), XANTHAN GUM*, PHENETHYL ALCOHOL, TOCOPHEROL, ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN<\/p>\n

FYI, it’s formulated without parabens, phenoxyethanol, oils, silicone, it is also non-comedogenic (how fortunate!) and dermatologically tested.<\/p>\n

A rather clean<\/strong> composition,\u00a092% natural<\/strong>, with purifying and anti-age ingredients.
\nThe ingredients\u00a0that the brand highlight are:<\/p>\n