rohto mentholatum melano cc serum

this is the description from ratzillacosme.com: this product is a whitening quasi-drug in japan. mentholatum melano cc intensive anti-spot essence is a japanese beauty serum to treat hyperpigmentation and acne. the serum features active vitamins c and vitamin e derivative to fade and prevent dark spots and acne marks. it also contains dipotassium glycyrrhizate and thymol to reduce redness and irritation, while killing acne-causing bacteria to prevent acne. refreshing yuzu fragrance.
how to use: after cleansing and preparing skin with lotion, apply to problem area or entire face. a tube will last 5-6 months if 4-5 drops of product were used daily.

the outer box

the packaging: it comes in a slim rectangular yellow box. at the front you can read "melano cc" and the picture of the serum tube. at the other sides of the box there are some description but everything is in japanese.
the scent: it has that similar acid citrus smell like other product containing vitamin c does. it's very subtle so you don't have to worry about the scent.

left: the tube right: the bulb-tip

the product: it comes in a silver tube with yellow screw cap. the tube is very slim so it's very easy to take it travelling with you. when you unscrew the cap, you can see a bulb-tip to dispose the product. i think it'd very easy and hygienic. with dropper, you can risk spill the serum when you take the dropper out. but with this kind of tip, you can squeeze the tube and dispense the product to your palm or straight to your face easily. plus, it's perfect to squirt a drop to your face if you want to spot treatment using this serum. at the back of the tube there's description in japanese again. the serum is clear or a bit yellow-tinge (if i only use one drop, i can only see clear serum). it's watery like water but when you spread it on your skin, you can feel the slippery feeling that you usually feel from an oil serum.
the result: it takes some time for the serum to be completely absorbed. i have used it several ways since i'm not sure how to use the serum. many review didn't say how the users use the serum in what step, so i'm kind of experimenting with it. i've used it in acid step, but i don't see any result in brightening area and it makes the other steps seem to take ages to be absorbed. then i use it in serum step (oil serum step) both as spot treatment and as overall serum. as overall serum, i don't see the brightening effect nor the plumping effect that i get from the ordinary's ascorbyl serum. but as spot treatment, it works okay. although it takes some time for my acne scars to fade away, this serum definitely helps fading the scars. as for blackhead prevention or acne prevention, i don't seem to get that effect from this serum.

this serum definitely lasts longer than my ordinary ascorbyl serum, mainly because i use it only for spot treatment. sometimes i will use it as overall serum if i have longer time, but when being used as spot treatment, about 5-6 drops for my whole face, it will last for about 6-8 months. compared to ordinary ascorbyl serum, i prefer the ordinary one because i see the effect in plumping my skin as well as a little scar-fading effect. but since i can get this serum easier (thanks to my in-law that seems to love japan so much that we've been to japan 2 years in a row), i will use this serum in exchange of my ordinary one. but i definitely will repurchase the ordinary one if i can. but don't let me discourage you from trying this serum, many people like it, so perhaps it's only me who isn't too fancy about it?