The Omorovicza Copper Peel came into my life in 2013. I had read a review (on MostlySunny), and was sold – big time. But then, the Copper Peel is incredibly pricey, so a friend and I waited for a discount, and then split a box. After trying it, I wasn’t disappointed. My skin seemed more even, glowy, and fine lines? Disappeared. It was one of my first ‘wow’- skincare products. But today, with a lot of good, affordable skincare around, is the super high-end Omorovicza Copper Peel worth it?
A lot of beauty products came into my life in the meantime, and last week, two tubes of the Omorovicza Copper Peel fell into my hands. I’m a lot more skincare-savvy than I was five years ago, so I was curious if I’d still like it with that background.
What is it?
The Omorovicza Copper Peel is basically a two-step peel. The first step, the greenish, mint-scented Copper paste is a mechanical peeling, while the second step, the ‘activator’, includes lactic acid, which is an alpha hydroxy acid, a chemical exfoliant.
Here’s what Omorovicza says:
This foaming two-phase peel, combining a blue copper paste and a lactic acid activator, polishes and smoothes complexion and visibly reduces pore size for a brighter, more even skin tone. Quick and easy, an application feels like a facial at home!
Detoxify skin and regulate sebum with copper gluconate. Refine and smooth the micro-relief of the skin to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles with deeply cleansing sodium bicarbonate and lactic acid (of vegetal, not animal origin). Leave skin firmer, more supple and younger-looking as Hydro Mineral Transference™ delivers minerals deep into the skin.
Copper Paste ingredient low-down
The copper paste is said to ‘detoxify’ and ‘regulate sebum’. While copper gluconate (an antioxidant) definitely has been around the block now for some time as a new, exciting anti-aging ingredient, there hasn’t been any conclusive studies of that. The slightly scrubby feeling you get from the sodium bicarbonate – which you might know as baking soda.
If you’ve got sensitive skin, there are a lot of ingredients in the copper paste that are possibly irritating. First, there’s camphor, which is responsible for the cooling feeling upon contact, and the minty smell. Auntie Paula would throw a fit because of its possible skin irritating properties! Then, there’s A LOT of fragrance, among others linalool, citranol, geraniol – all potential skin sensitizers.
So we have one mechanical peeling that’s nothing to write home about. The little grains in the paste aren’t sharp or particularly abrasive, but in fact quite gentle. The formula of the paste itself isn’t the best for sensitive skin with its possible irritants.
Activator ingredient low-down
The activator is basically water and lactic acid and a thickening agent. After that, we have Phenoxyethanol, which can only be used in a 1% concentration (at most) in Europe, so everything after that is completely negligible. AHAs are generally beloved because they slough off dead skin cells, making your complexion look fresh and bright.
Usually, AHA based products are made with glycolic acid, but lactic acid is generally more gentle and easier for people with sensitive skin (or who aren’t yet used to acids), because its molecules are bigger and can’t penetrate as easily into the skin.
How to
First, you rub the copper paste onto your skin. The rather thick paste feels a bit oily, with some notable scrubbing particles. After that, you add the clear activator gel and see how the baking soda bubbles up when it comes into contact with the watery activator. I let it sit on my skin for a bit, and then rinse it off with a lot of water.
The packaging is the absolute worst: the little tubes contain much more than you’d need for one or even two uses, while you can’t properly close them again.
My recent experience
Here’s the deal: I see a horribly inconvenient, overpriced product with a lot of ingredients I usually stay clear off – and yet, I can’t help myself. I like it.
I like the experience of gently massaging goo onto my face for two minutes and getting instant results. The results I see? I like. In short, I’ve a really hard time to admit publicly that I like a product that I usually wouldn’t recommend. Because, you know, when I used it, I again had all the great results I had when I first used it in 2013. Smooth, bright, and soft skin. We all contain multitudes, is all I can say.
Comparable products
Nevertheless: If your skin is used to acids, I’d recommend The Ordinary’s AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution. (My review is here). It’s definitely the stronger peel, but it doesn’t include possibly sensitizing ingredients into its formula. Plus, it’s incomparably cheaper. Much, much MUCH cheaper. I wouldn’t go and buy Omorovicza’s Copper Peel again when I can get the same results with a better and cheaper product!
Omorovicza online store: The Copper Peel retails for $160 for 16 tubes.
Please note that this review is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods, or money, for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.
