Tata Harper Daily Essentials skincare set

Where I got it

I got this from Sephora.nz for $87.20 after a 20% discount from their recent sale (Black member). This is usually $109 which is quite expensive (it is still very expensive after discount). I don’t think I have ever bought a set of travel or even trial size products for this amount of money! I often hear beauty gurus on YouTube having something good to say about this brand, but in the back of my mind, I think that this has been raved about, probably more so by dry/more mature skin types. I’m not sure, but let’s find out.

I did some quick maths to see how much value this set is compared to full size items. By working out much much $/ml each product is and times that by the mini sized product, the total value of this set is $188.50. Which means a saving of $101.30. Regardless of the savings, the products are probably still overly expensive.

What I got

This is the Tata Harper Daily Essentials skincare set. It comes with 7 trial-sized items (or travel size or mini sizes, whatever you call it). It is an entire skincare routine including eye cream and a mask. From the Sephora.nz website: A daily essentials kit that includes a complete, travel-friendly regimen of youth-giving treatments. This 100% natural and non-toxic skincare discovery kit is specially curated to give you a healthy, glowing complexion and younger looking skin. This set has a 15ml cleanser, 15ml hydrating essence, 10ml serum, 10ml moisturiser, 7.5ml mask, 1ml eye cream and 4ml face oil.

How I find it

Regenerating Cleanser ($67 for 50ml or $132 for 125ml). A creamy cleanser that provides gentle physical and chemical exfoliation with apricot microspheres and BHA from white willow bark to give you a healthy-looking, radiant glow. Apricot Microspheres provide physical exfoliation to help smoothen the look of the skin’s texture and restore radiance. White Willow Bark, a natural BHA and source of salicylic acid, helps clean and clear buildup to minimise the look of clogged pores. Olive Oil Liquid Crystal Complex, 4 sources of biocompatible liquid crystals — olive oil fatty acids, olive oil lipids, olive oil esters, and olive oil skin softener, provides intense hydration for soft, supple-looking skin.

This cleanser is a rather fluid type of cream cleanser. It has slightly abrasive particles in there for an exfoliating clean. I wouldn’t use this on a daily basis because it is quite scrubby, but it does leave your face feeling smooth and soft. I just slightly dampen my fingers and massage the product onto my skin and rinse off. It leaves my skin clean and soft, but with a slightly dry and tight feeling. This little jar lasted me 12 days using day and night.

Hydrating Floral Essence ($109 for 50ml or $143 for 125ml). A moisture-boosting mist that draws and locks in moisture with hyaluronic acid and humectants to give you youthfully plump, hydrated-looking skin. Dual Weight Hyaluronic Acid creates a double plumping effect for intense hydration. White Willow Bark, a natural BHA and source of salicylic acid, helps remove buildup and refine pores for a smooth surface. while Gotu Kola encourages the skin’s natural regeneration and repair processes to help smoothen and minimise the look of wrinkles.

This floral essence feels almost like a hydrating toner. It has a watery consistency and it comes in a spray bottle. So after cleansing, I spritz my face with this to replenish hydration and it smells really nice of flowers and it does provide light hydration for a short period of time. I will need to apply a serum before the essence is totally absorbed otherwise my face will feel tight. This little bottle lasted me 14 days using this day and night.

Regenerating Serum ($176 for 30ml). An award-winning, youth-preserving serum that minimises the appearance of early wrinkles with natural neuropeptides and hydrates with hyaluronic acid to give you healthy and youthful-looking skin. Spanish Lavender, a natural neuropeptide, helps preserve and maintain moisture to smoothen and minimise the look of lines and wrinkles. Dual Weight Hyaluronic Acid creates a double plumping effect for intense hydration and Larch Tree, a natural sugar polymer, provides a surge of moisture to smoothen roughness and soften the skin.

This may be my favourite product out of this set. It has a rather strong floral scent, which I think is very much like the Darphin 8 Flower Nectar Oil. It smoothes nicely onto the skin while the skin is still damp from the essence. My skin just drinks up the serum quickly and it leaves no sticky residue or slippery feeling on the skin. However, if you are not a big fan of fragrance (natural fragrance in this case), you might need to steer away from this as it will linger on for a long time. This small bottle lasted me 18 days using this day and night.

Reparative Moisturiser ($176 for 50ml). A silky moisturiser for normal to dry skin that locks in hydration with hyaluronic acid and helps minimise the look of early wrinkles to give you dewy, youthful-looking skin. Dual Weight Hyaluronic Acid creates a double plumping effect for intense youth-giving hydration, Estate Grown Beauty Complex, a concentrated blend of Arnica, Borage, Alfalfa, Elderberry, Meadowsweet and Calendula, provides complete skin nourishment with minerals, vitamins, nutrients and essential fatty acids for healthy looking skin and Buckbean Extract helps firm and tone to minimise the visible signs of ageing and promotes an overall youthful appearance.

The moisturiser has a relatively more fluid texture compared to the serum which was a little unexpected. There is also a nice floral scent to this moisturiser but it’s not as strong as the serum. My skin instantly feels soothed and moisturised. This one does take a little longer to absorb as it stays on top of the skin for a while longer than the serum. This bottle lasted me 18 days using it day and night.

Resurfacing Mask ($100 for 30ml). A treatment mask that instantly transforms a dull complexion into a vibrant, glowing one with BHA from white willow bark and pomegranate enzymes.  Pomegranate Enzymes provide gentle chemical exfoliation to loosen dead, dry skin to help clean and clear clogged pores and encourage cell renewal. Pink Clay absorbs oil and buildup to gently clean and clear pores while Beet Root Extract supports the skin’s natural moisturisers to boost hydration and smooth roughness.

This little 4ml pot here would actually last only 3 applications if you do use a thick layer as recommended and on the entire face. This mask has an almost gel-texture that is slightly chunky – almost like jam.  The ingredients in this mask are very interesting – the first ingredient is aloe vera juice but it also has white clay further down the list. This mask is hydrating and cleansing at the same time (clay and BHA)!

So after cleansing, I apply this mask onto my face and wait for 15-20 minutes and then rinse off. Honestly, for the first time, I tried to use just a thin layer but that did not really work as the mask dried up at around the 5 minute mark and started to tighten my skin and starting to try out as a clay mask would. The drying out and tightening on the skin feels exactly like putting pure aloe vera juice onto the skin and let it dry out.

Restorative Eye Cream ($157 for 15ml). A youth-preserving eye treatment minimises the look of early wrinkles to give your eyes a healthy and youthful look and combat the early signs of ageing. Safflower Oleosomes, a natural source of Vitamin E that delivers rich moisture to plump the look of the skin and help smoothen roughness. Daffodil Bulb helps maintain the skin barrier to keep your skin looking elastic and minimises the look of wrinkles. Buckwheat Wax, a natural source of Omega 6 and 9 fatty acids, helps reduce the look of puffiness and under-eye bags.

I use an eye cream day and night, but recently I have been watching Mixed Makeup on YouTube and Susan says that she does not recommend using an eye cream during the night for a number of reasons. Here is a link to her video if you are interested. So I have been using this only during the day so that it hydrates my eye area and plumps it up prior to makeup. The eye cream feels nourishing yet not too thick. It has a soft creamy texture that is easily absorbed into the skin. I couldn’t really see amazing results with that small amount of product to try, but at least I had no allergic reaction or milia forming. Only lasted about 5 days of use day and night.

Retinoic Nutrient Face Oil ($200 for 30ml). A multi-tasking complex that reduces the look of early wrinkles with retinoic acid from rosehip, while vitamins and minerals provide complete skin nourishment for youthful, healthy-looking skin. Biocompatible nutrients restore balance to chapped, irritated skin. Rosehip Seed Oil, a natural source of Vitamin A and Retinoic Acid, helps minimise the look of wrinkles and reduce the visible signs of ageing. Estate Grown Beauty Complex is a concentrated blend of Arnica, Borage, Alfalfa, Elderberry, Meadowsweet, and Calendula that provides complete skin nourishment with minerals, vitamins, nutrients, and essential fatty acids for healthy looking skin. Neroli helps balance oil and smooth roughness and uneven texture for soft, supple looking skin.

A cute little roll-on bottle which is good and bad in a way. The good is that it controls how much is dispensed so that you don’t use too much (this stuff is expensive and potent). The bad is that it is a little unhygienic. I use this face oil as the final step of my skincare routine and I even use this around my eye area. I roll this directly onto my skin and then I massage with my fingertips and with a rose quartz roller. It takes my skin a good 15-30 minutes to fully absorb the oil until I can’t feel it anymore. After 3 weeks of use and there is at least 85% left in the little bottle.

Overall

So in review of the products, this set is great if you want to try out Tata Harper’s products as it contains some of the best selling products and it is an entire skincare routine (simple, but enough for travel). I can feel high-quality ingredients with all of these products, as they feel and smell sophisticated and luxurious. Overall, after using Tara’s products exclusively for at least 2 weeks, my skin looks brighter, hydrated and moisturised. I had no irritations, no flare-ups and no new breakouts. I do think I need to add in a chemical exfoliant to help clear my pores and pesky little under-the-skin bumps. I think I also need to add a hydrating serum as well to provide a little bit more hydration during the day. Of course, I use a sunscreen during the day and there wasn’t one in the set.

Honestly, I can not justify buying these expensive skincare products in full size, at least not with my salary. I think there are Clean beauty brands out there that are as effective and as enjoyable to use. The entire set is really enjoyable to use in terms of aromatherapy, it’s a delight to the senses including the touch. I don’t think I would want to pay that amount of money for those sort of luxury. I want effective skincare that doesn’t break the bank.