Lanoline Manuka Honey Skin Renew Firming Serum

This is an interesting find from a TJMaxx store. I haven't heard of this company before, but I was drawn to this serum. Though it is not perfect ingredients wise, it was still quite appealing. Apparently, Lanoline is one of the brands under umbrella of New Zealand's Natural Collection company (by Pearson and Craig Cosmetics - here). Despite the name, Lanoline products are actually mostly based on rosehip oil, not lanolin. These cosmetics are paraben and mineral oil free. I've expressed opinion regarding those two ingredient before. They are perfectly safe ingredients to use. Unfortunately there is a scare campaign going around, which has no scientific backing to it. 

Packaging/Pricing:

35ml (1.18fl.oz) for 16-19$. I've purchased this serum at TJMaxx for ~8$. Very reasonably priced for what you get. You can find it also on Amazon or some natural cosmetics on-line retailers. The product comes in an air tight glass pump bottle (which feels very well made), which is my preferred type of packaging for serums . Unfortunately the glass is clear, so it wouldn't protect sensitive ingredients from UV exposure. I actually have kept my bottle in the box the whole time I was using this serum (even though my bathroom does not has a source of natural light). So though the packaging is not perfect, there is a way around it.

Ingredients:

Water, Provence Rose, Glycerin, Aloe Vera Gel, Polysorbate 20, Active Manuka Honey, Hydrolized Marine Collagen, Grapeseed Extract, Acetyl Hexapeptide-3, Triethanolamine, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vit E), Ascorbic Acid (Vit C), Acrylate/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Benzyl Alcohol/Salicylic Acid/Glycerin/Sorbic Acid, Green Tea Extract, Fragrance.

Excellent (very beneficial ingredients, proven research)

Good (mostly beneficial ingredients, not extensive research available or just not quite outstanding properties)

OK (mostly thickeners, emulsifiers, mild preservatives, pH adjusters, all that is necessary formulation wise, but not a skincare per se) 
Bad (anything that shouldn't be in skincare, irritants and fragrance)

Ingredients Discussion:

The only, but huge problem with this serum is provence rose as a second ingredient on the list. It is not specified in what form it was used, but whether it was extract or oil, it is still harmful for the skin due to high concentration of irritating fragrant components. It's a pity, since the rest of the serum is very well formulated. However, judging by the mild fragrance, I hope what they actually used was rose water, which has the least amount of fragrance among rose related byproducts.

Otherwise you get a good blend of antioxidants (vitamins C and E, grape seed and green tea extracts, honey) and water-binding agents (glycerin, collagen, aloe gel and peptides). Some of those ingredients will offset irritation caused by rose (but it will be better to avoid it altogether). This serum is marketed as a vitamin C serum, however it is not that high on the list of ingredients (plus clear glass bottle, which is a horrible choice for vitamin C product). But luckily you do get enough of other antioxidants.

Few words about benefits of honey. Honey is an excellent cosmetics ingredient due to is peptide, amino acid and vitamins content. It works as a great anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agent and it also does have some wound healing properties. So having it so high on the list of ingredients is great (and it will be more effective than the minimal amount of vitamin C you get here).

Consumer Thoughts:

Despite the unfortunate presence of rose, I very much enjoyed this serum.  It has moisturizing, but not sticky gel texture. It worked really well under day cream with SPF. I see it working for any skin type. I personally didn't experience any irritation or other negative reaction while using it.

Verdict:

Well, I am not sure how to rate this product. Since the irritating ingredient is so high on the list, I should rate it may be 2 out of 5. However, the rest of the serum is excellent, and can somewhat offset some of the irritation. If not for the presence of rose, I would have given it 5 out of 5, because I liked it so much. Another small drawback is clear packaging, but as I've mentioned before you can keep the bottle in the box, to avoid UV exposure.

3,5 out of 5.