Forget eight hours of beauty sleep a night, this radiance-boosting serum is all I need

If there’s one area of my skincare routine that tends to be a little excessive, it’s my face serums. Some people collect designer handbags, others might treasure high-fashion perfumes, but it’s my stash of carefully curated serums that bring me beauty joy. The fact is, if you want a really efficacious skincare routine that’s going to have visible results then using a serum is a non-negotiable. They usually have active formulations that target specific skincare issues—whether that’s acne, dullness or pigmentation—and deliver potent ingredients that will get to work improving them. And now that I’m 35, I have really struggled to find a one-formula-fits-all approach to serums. Hence the vast collection.

That was until I started using the Beauty Pie Youthbomb 360° Radiance Concentrate Serum, and realised that four weeks later all of my other serums had been left to gather dust. A collaboration between world-renowned dermatologist Dr Andrew Markey and a leading skincare lab in Switzerland, it’s a luxury, science-led serum that takes a full circle approach to skincare—aiming to firm, brighten, resurface, tighten, hydrate and boost glow. And the fact that I’m already onto my second bottle, having only very recently discovered it, is testament to the fact that this serum really does deliver on its mission.

First Impressions

I’m already a big fan of Beauty Pie—the products are always well-formulated, feel high-end and deliver results—but one of its biggest draws is the fact that it works on a membership model, so once you’ve signed up all of the products are incredibly affordable. The traditional retail price of the Beauty Pie Youthbomb 360° Radiance Concentrate Serum is £185 (yikes), and while the membership price is a much more reasonable £44 it’s still one of the more expensive products that they retail and significantly pricier than some of my favourite high-street serums. As such, I had incredibly high expectations and was dubious about whether it could deliver on so many promises.

However, the bottle itself does feel incredibly luxurious—a heavyweight glass with a pipette to dispense the serum. And I love the added detail of the button at the top of the lid which you press to pull the product into the dropper. It feels much more high-end than a classic squeezy pipette. And as for the juice inside? Well, it didn’t disappoint.

The Formula

As you’d expect from the retail price, the Beauty Pie Youthbomb 360° Radiance Concentrate Serum has a complex and potent ingredients list that aims to restore glow and luminosity to all skin types. There’s a special Hexapeptide which aims to brighten skin and offer antioxidant protection, an exclusive Biolog-Elastic Complex made up of 15 active ingredients to boost radiance, marine actives to plump, firm and smooth skin, and an oat-derived molecule which improves skin elasticity. Quite the line up.

While fine lines and wrinkles aren’t really a concern of mine right now, Beauty Pie do position this serum as being particularly good for mature skin, so I was actually expecting quite a viscous texture from this product. However, it is almost watery in feel—a runny, featherlight liquid that absorbs instantly into skin. Yet, despite how incredibly lightweight it is, it offers impressive hydration and left my combination skin feeling quenched and juicy.

The Results

Before using the Beauty Pie Youthbomb 360° Radiance Concentrate Serum

The first night that I tried this serum I went to bed not expecting much, but I woke the following morning to skin that was undeniably brighter and more plump than it would usually look. And considering I often only get about six hours of sleep a night—including a wake up or two from my children—this was instantly impressive to me. Over the next few weeks I found myself reaching for this serum both morning and night as the results are almost addictive. Beauty Pie describe this as a “habit forming” serum and I can truly see why. Once you start noticing how much more luminous, fresh and healthy your skin looks, you truly don’t want to reach for another serum.

After using the Beauty Pie Youthbomb 360° Radiance Concentrate Serum

One of my major concerns about this product, as someone that is prone to acne, is that its focus on glow, elasticity and texture would exacerbate my breakouts. In the past, serums targeted towards more mature or dry skin types have often had this unwanted side effect. However, not only have I not really broken out since I’ve been using this, it’s actually had a positive effect on areas of scarring and redness from old breakouts—evening the tone and texture on my cheeks and around my nose to leave my skin looking more clear and clarified.

Yes, it’s one of the more expensive Beauty Pie products, but I can’t imagine myself being without a bottle of this now. If you’re looking for something that will transform tired-looking, uneven and dull skin, then this is a remarkable product. In fact, I’ve tried some of the most expensive serums on the market and none have impressed me as much as this one. It's so good that I've turned my back on the rest of my serum collection.