Intensive skincare treatments can be tricky.

With the high concentration of ingredients, they could either work magic on the skin, or leave it irritated and prickly.

And it seems Elizabeth Arden’s premium Prevage range may have gotten the formulas of its four-week Progressive Renewal Treatment right.

The genius is in the four-bottles labelled 1 to 4. Each contains an increasing concentration of peeling and rejuvenating ingredients, to minimise irritation of the skin.

This treatment range is made with polyhydroxy acid, and alpha hydroxy acid to exfoliate and encourage cell turnover. It is also blended with the antioxidant idebenone as well as phosphate salts to maintain a low PH level on the skin for more effectiveness.

The active ingredients are kept active and more potent with a push button mechanism that mixes the idebenone only upon the first use. See it in action here (from 2:21).

Each bottle is enough for at least a week’s supply. (Although because I prefer to be conservative when it comes to using intensive treatments, and use only one pipette each time; so my first bottle lasted me three weeks!)

To further prevent irritation when using this product, do a patch test. Then use it on clean and dry skin only in the evenings. For the first night, do not apply anything else on top. After the first night, try layering a moisturising serum or cream after 20 minutes to see how the skin feels. I find that this treatment works wonders with the Advanced Ceramide Capsules Daily Youth Restoring Serum on top. If all feels fine, continue with this routine.

After one use of the Renewal Treatment, my skin looked immediately brighter. After a week, the skin feels smoother with less flakiness around the usually dry areas such as the cheeks. My skin also looked more even in tone.

Check back here for reviews after bottles 2, 3, and 4.

Update after full treatment (with all four bottles) was completed: Overall, skin looked smoother, and fresher; results are more drastic than I would get after using usual skincare products. I would recommend this treatment once a year.