Is It Worth It? Tatcha The Dewy Skin Cream

Does this hydrating cream live up to the hype?

Dropping some serious coin on beauty and skincare products that you know will run out in a matter of months isn’t something we do lightly. That’s why we called in Rob Povey, a makeup artist extraordinaire and product junkie, to try some of our most lusted after luxury purchases to decide, “Is it worth it?”. For the fifth instalment, we asked him to put The Dewy Skin Cream by Tatcha to the test.

What is it? 

The Dewy Skin Cream by Tatcha.

How much does it cost? 

$109 (50ml) at Mecca Cosmetica.

What does it claim to do? 

A delightfully smooth cream that envelops dry skin with rich hydration to replenish and seal in moisture, while nourishing botanical extracts visibly plump skin and impart a dewy glow. Japanese purple rice, a strong antioxidant, boosts skin’s natural defence against environmental stressors, and Tatcha’s signature Hadasei-3 blend, a trio of anti-ageing Japanese superfoods (green tea, algae and rice), delivers essential nutrients to reveal healthy-looking, youthful radiance.

How well does it live up to those claims? 

The cream has the consistency of a lightweight whipped gel with a delicate lilac hue that melts almost instantly upon contact with the skin and leaves behind a soft suppleness and clarity to the complexion. After a month of daily morning usage, my skin feels adequately nourished and generally more even.

It also wears beautifully under sheer makeup to impart an extra layer of subtle glow and aides the application of foundation, owing to the inclusion of silicone in the ingredient list. For my particularly dehydrated skin, however, I don’t find this rich enough to wear as a night cream. But given that the product is called The Dewy Skin Cream, I don’t consider this to be particularly marketed towards night time use anyway (who needs to be dewy while they sleep)?

Any other pros/cons? 

The fact that you’re effectively paying upwards of $100 for a product that only caters to AM use is a bit of a deterrent, as is the lack of any SPF, meaning that you will still need to invest in a separate sunscreen and night moisturiser.

Are there any cheaper dupes out there? 

My absolute holy grail for this type of product, Glossier FutureDew ($24USD for 30ml at glossier.com), is frustratingly difficult to purchase in Australia; with no international shipping offered, you’ll need to employ the use of an additional freight-forwarding service (or a trip to LA or NY, once international travel eventually resumes) to get your hands on this bottle of perfection. But every ounce of extra effort exerted to acquire this oil/serum hybrid is worth its weight in gold. FutureDew delivers a gorgeously glorious glow that’s in a class of its own.

For something much easier to acquire in the homeland, I have to give praise to the iconic Clarins Beauty Flash Balm ($65 for 50ml), an old-school makeup artist kit staple that was a cult fave back when I first started doing makeup in the mid-2000s but has fallen completely off the collective radar in the wake of social media beauty influencing.

In spite of this, the product still delivers a comparably luminous glow to rival The Dewy Face Cream for almost half the price. For those seeking a two-in-one, SPF and glow-getter for daytime hydration and protection, you can’t go past Australian brand Ultra Violette’s Queen Screen SPF50+ ($47 for 50ml).

Is it worth it? 

The product is perfectly lovely and certainly lives up to its name of imbuing the skin with a dewy finish, but sadly it’s not rich enough for me to consider it’s steeper price point justified for any long term skincare benefits. Additionally, when it comes to glow goals, it’s still not my personal favourite option and takes a secondary seat to the aforementioned alternatives.

Check out the first instalment of ‘Is it worth it?’ here, the second instalment here, the third instalment here, and the fourth instalment here.