An Exciting PR Gift from Dr. Brandt
I’m so delinquent on writing this post! I know, I’ve been saying that a lot lately…cringe. 😛 I’m finally here to share my thoughts on a lovely PR gift that I received from Dr. Brandt Skincare: the Needles No More® Neck Sculpting Cream with Gua Sha Technique. Thank you so much, Dr. Brandt! I don’t receive many PR packages, but it’s always THE BEST surprise when I do get one.
First, let’s take a moment to admire this beautiful package:
A Little Neck History
Prior to receiving this product, I had never used any neck-specific skin care. Over the past few years, though, I’ve been applying moisturizer or cream to my neck morning and night as part of my skin care routine. And I do always apply SPF to my neck in the morning. I’m currently 40 years old (41 next month!) and my age is starting to show on my neck. I have a couple pretty prominent horizontal lines on my neck, as well as lots of dark spots. I’m fortunate that I don’t have a double chin, but I have noticed my jawline beginning to sag over the past few years. And I’ve begun to notice a little crepiness under my chin when I turn my head. So I’m definitely a good candidate for a neck cream!
Cream Your Neck
According to Dr. Brandt’s website, the cream “provides a non-surgical solution to one of the most loathsome signs of aging: the double chin. With continued use, results are dramatic, giving a sagging neck and droopy jawline a significantly more sculpted and lifted look.”
Key ingredients, per drbrandtskincare.com:
- Slim Sculpt Complex: Caffeine, Soy Isoflavones, Spirulina and Guarana extract work together to help reduce a fatty appearance below the chin and improve skin firmness.
- Pea Extract: A plant-derived protein that provides an instant tightening sensation and moisturization.
- Hydra-Firm Complex: A combination of Hyaluronic Acid, Glycerin and Panthenol that provides deep, long-term hydration and prevents moisture loss.
The cream, which costs $95 and comes with a rose quartz Gua Sha tool, is medium-weight. It’s not as heavy as something like Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream, but it has a thicker consistency than The Water Cream from Tatcha. The cream is fragrance-free, but it does have a very pleasant, clean scent. My guess is the scent partly comes from the orange fruit extract and the lavender flower extract, though I don’t recall specifically picking up on either of those scents. I say that in the past tense because I’ve already emptied my jar!
The gua sha tool is something I’ve seen making the rounds on Skinstagram. The technique, which translates as “scraping,” is used in East Asian medicine to move energy around the body. Moving the tool along the skin increases blood flow and stimulates the lymphatic system to help detox, firm skin, and tone muscles. The rose quartz stone itself is said to be a healing stone that represents love and kindness. Seeing as how I’m currently taking a mindfulness class that involves practicing kindness and compassion, this stone feels very appropriate for where I am currently in my life.
Neck Sculpting Time
I used the cream and gua sha every morning and evening until I emptied the jar. It took me less than two months to finish the product! I felt like I used quite a bit of cream with each application because if I didn’t use enough, the gua sha would drag on my skin. The cream has a nice slippery texture, absorbs well, and as I mentioned, smells lovely.
I forgot to do a video demo using the gua sha, but basically I would apply the cream with my fingers and then use the longer outside part of the gua sha to gently scrape upward on my neck. Then I would turn the tool and use the top ridged part to gently scrape along my jawline. My skin would get a little bit red at times from the scraping, but it would go away quickly. You can use as much or as little pressure as is comfortable for you. Then I would massage the remaining cream into my neck and rinse and dry the gua sha to keep it clean.
Before // After
How about some before and after photos? I don’t love sharing pics of my neck, but here we are. It’s always super hard to get the exact same lighting at different times, even indoors, but the lighting in these two pics isn’t drastically different. And the photos aren’t great quality…it’s hard to take good photos of your own neck!
Below is the before photo, taken February 21, 2019…I may have begun using the cream before I took this photo, but I can’t remember when exactly. We moved into our new home at the end of January so my life was a little chaotic for awhile.
And the after photo, taken April 1, 2019.
The lines on my neck do appear less pronounced in the after photo, but I feel like it’s hard to tell how accurate the photos are because they’re not great quality and don’t have the same lighting. When I look in the mirror I definitely still see lines, so I don’t feel like the cream and gua sha worked any miracles (if they had after such a short period of time, that would have been unbelievable).
I failed to take comparison photos of my jawline, but I don’t really see any difference there after using this set. I also failed to notice how well moisturized my neck felt while using this cream, but it’s not an area that usually feels particularly dry to begin with. Because I didn’t notice dryness, I think that indicates the cream was doing its job, hydration-wise.
To Sum It Up
Overall I think this neck cream is pretty good when used with the gua sha tool. There’s something very pleasing about the ritual of scraping your neck and jawline with the beautiful stone; it made for a nice addition to my daily skin care routine. I’ve continued using the gua sha occasionally even though I’ve run out of the cream. It also doesn’t hurt to display this pretty pink stone on my vanity.
I’m curious how visibly effective the cream-and-tool combo would be when used for a longer period of time. At $95, the set is expensive, so it’s not something I would currently choose to buy on my own. The cream doesn’t seem to be available for purchase without the gua sha. So one bit of feedback I would give the brand is to offer the cream on its own. Once you have the gua sha there’s no need for a new one every time you buy more cream. I would consider purchasing the cream if I could buy it individually, assuming it would cost less without the tool.
One final thing to note is that Dr. Brandt is not a cruelty-free brand because the products are sold in mainland China, where animal testing is currently required (though China is taking steps to end the practice). So if you’ve gone fully cruelty-free products, this one is not for you.
I’d like to say a big thank you again to Dr. Brandt for giving me the opportunity to try this set! It’s so wonderful to be recognized by brands when you have as small of a blog as I do. 🙂
Have you tried the Dr. Brandt Needles No More® Neck Sculpting Cream? If so, what do you think of it?
**The brand gifted me the products in this post for consideration.**
