celimax Retinol Shot Tightening Serum

What is this product?

celimax's Retinol Shot Tightening Serum is a wrinkle-improvement registered functional cosmetic built on a disclosed 0.1 percent Retinol at position 15 of 42, Adenosine at 24, and nine named peptides at positions 34 through 42, in an unscented, single-oil formula with a brand-declared pH of 4.8 to 6.8. It is also an abrasive product by design: Hydrolyzed Sponge at position 11 is the A-Shot microparticle the brand sells as a deliberate stinging sensation. celimax cites its own human panels for wrinkles, skin density, pores, lifting, texture, hydration, absorption and irritation, all attributed with institution and date, all run at commissioned testing centres on 20 to 31 participants over two weeks or less with no named control arm, which supports plausible verdicts rather than supported ones; the headline 797.51 percent absorption figure is graded overstated because its comparator is a spicule-free formula rather than untreated skin. Evening use is brand-recommended for photostability rather than forbidden in the morning, sunscreen the next day is a brand instruction, and the brand advises against use in pregnancy and nursing, though for hormonal skin sensitivity rather than the retinoid-exposure reason that actually drives that caution.

What makes it different?

Two things separate it. A Korean wrinkle-improvement registration resting on both Retinol and Adenosine, plus nine named peptides at the tail, is a denser actives combination than a single-active retinol serum carries. And it is a hybrid the category does not usually attempt: a leave-on retinoid that also carries an abrasive microparticle high in the list, at position 11, sold as a stinging sensation rather than hidden. That pairing is what a sensitive-skin reader has to weigh, and it is why the brand's low-irritation patch test and its two-week adjustment guidance both belong in the same picture.

What is in it?

The full ingredient list as the brand publishes it, in the printed order. Each name links to what we know about that ingredient.

This brand publishes its ingredient list in Korean only. Names below are the matching INCI names from the Korean Cosmetic Association ingredient dictionary.

Key ingredient

• Water
• Methylpropanediol
• Glycerin
• 1,2-Hexanediol
• Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
• Panthenol
• Polypropylsilsesquioxane
• C14-22 Alcohols
• Glyceryl Stearate
• Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer
• Hydrolyzed Sponge
• Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil
• Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
• Tocopherol
• Retinol
• Allantoin
• Arginine
• Undecane
• Xanthan Gum
• Ethylhexylglycerin
• C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside
• Lauryl Glucoside
• Polyglyceryl-6 Laurate
• Adenosine
• Tridecane
• Disodium EDTA
• Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Extract
• Myristyl Glucoside
• Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer
• PVM/MA Copolymer
• Butylene Glycol
• Beta-Carotene
• Glucose
• Tripeptide-1
• Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1
• Nonapeptide-1
• Hexapeptide-9
• Dipeptide-2
• Copper Tripeptide-1
• Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5
• Acetyl Hexapeptide-8
• Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4

Ingredients with no mark are ones we found nothing notable about, and when marks overlap on one ingredient we show the caution first.

We could not place these in the list above: 레티놀

Did the ad claims hold up?

We checked 8 lines this product advertises against the ingredient list and public documents. 2 of them hold up. The rest are only partly right or have nothing behind them.

Claims translated from Korean, originals preserved.

Each line is quoted as the brand published it, and each one was read on its own against the ingredient list and the documents the brand publishes.

How we read these lines

What else is worth seeing?

Products we read alongside this one.

• celimax Noni Energy AmpouleAnother product in the same category

Which articles cover it?

Articles on this site that write about this product.

• Pregnancy and Korean skincare: it is mostly the BHA, not the retinolOf the Korean labels we screened, 154 carry a commonly cautioned ingredient. Three fifths of those are salicylates, and most are cleansers and toners.