Kanebo Freshel EX Moisture Emulsion

Packaging/Pricing:

 

You can find this product on amazon.com or online asian cosmetics retailers like imomoko.com or sasa.com. 130ml (4.4fl.oz) for ~18-25$. The product has sensible opaque toner style plastic bottle packaging. 

Ingredients:

 

Water, Glycerin, Mineral Oil, Dipropylene Glycol, Glyceryl Stearate, Dimethicone, Petrolatum, Cholesterol, Diphenylsiloxy Phenyl Trimethicone, Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil,  Stearic Acid, Bentonite, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Xanthan Gum, Behenyl Alcohol, Hydrolyzed Prunus Domestica, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Ubiquinonq (Coenzyme Q10), Disodium EDTA, Butylene Glycol, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Solluble Collagen, Tocopherol (Vit E), BHT, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Methylparaben.    

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:

 

First, let me stress for my readers, that when reading ingredient list you should pay the most attention to about first third or first half of the list to find out what ingredients can make that particular product work. Also if you see anything irritating that high on the ingredient list (like fragrance, essential oils or sd alcohol), you should be very careful. But I always look through and analyze the whole list anyways.
The good about this moisturizing emulsion is that it has no irritants in the formula whatsoever. It even doesn't have fragrance, which is rare for cosmetics. The rest of the formula is rather basic moisturizing blend of glycerin, mineral oil, dimethicone, petrolatum and macadamia oil. All of the ingredients will help to retain moisture in the skin, both by binding water and providing occlusive layer to prevent moisture from escaping. By the way, dimethicone is a well researched ingredient, that has great water binding and wound healing properties. So don't be afraid of it in your cosmetics.
The rest of the noteworthy ingredients unfortunately are listed after thickening agents (xanthan gum and behenyl alcohol). So you will not get much benefits from  coenzyme Q10 (which is advertised as an active in this formula), hyaluronic acid or collagen. Actually, regarding the collagen, there are no substantial research that proves that topically applied collagen will help skin produce more of its own collagen. So that is more of a buzzword ingredient.

Consumer Thoughts:

 

This product has a liquid milk-lotion consistency that makes it easy to layer. I use it both before heavier moisturizer as a toner/serum step or as a moisturizer itself. I find that it absorbs quickly, leaving skin moisturized and not greasy. I mostly use it on my neck and chest, since my preference leans toward more anti-aging formulas for my face.

Verdict: 

 

Overall, a nice moisturizing fragrance free formula for most skin types with not much added benefits (like antioxidants or cell communicating ingredients). The only drawback makes me subtract half of a point from a final grade.

4,5 out of 5.