Spotlight | Godiva Natural Skincare.

If my memory serves me right, it was back in college when I first came across the brand Godiva. I was staying overnight at my best friend's house, and chanced upon his Mom doing her bedtime skincare ritual. I was quite surprised to see a 'Godiva' facial cream, since the only Godiva I knew of back then were the edible kind (ergo, chocolates).

Fast forward to twelve years later (gosh, has it really been that long since I've graduated from the University?!), I received a package of Godiva skincare products. And a generous one at that, as it contained full-sized bottles plus sample sachets of their entire product line.

Godiva Natural Skincare.

I believe Godiva disappeared from the market for a few years, as I don't remember seeing them in supermarkets or at Watson's for quite awhile. Now, the brand is making a comeback with a new and improved formulation together with a more eye-catching look. If I remember correctly, 'Godiva' used to be written with a cursive font, and they had this pink and white, girly-girly packaging.

As for the formulation, the all-new Godiva Natural Skincare line contains licorice, a plant commonly used as a sweetening agent. Its roots, on the other hand, are known to have several medicinal properties.

Licorice root extract contains an active ingredient called 'glabridin', a potent, naturally-derived ingredient, known around the world for its whitening properties. It works by inhibiting the production of melanin as it nourishes and protects the skin with its antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. However, despite of its known skin benefits, glabridin is uncommon to commercial beauty products because of its steep price.

This is where Godiva Natural Skincare stands out. It uses licorice extract that not only has passed various clinical trials, but is also guaranteed safe and effective for use in skin whitening - at an affordable price, at that. Best of all, their products are all paraben-free!

Now let me walk you through each of the products that I've received. I'll give you my first impressions and initial thoughts about the products (not the usual, full-blown product review), as I've only started using them this month. I need more than four weeks (and perhaps bigger bottles, haha!) to properly gauge its whitening effect on my skin.

Read more about my experience with Godiva Natural Skincare products after the jump!