We road tested a face peel - it's not as scary as it sounds. Honest.

When I hear the words ‘acid peel’ instantly my mind imagines women being wheeled out of cosmetic surgeries, their faces fully bandaged to protect the red raw skin hidden from the eye. So I have to admit I was a little bit nervous about trying philosophy’s new microdelivery overnight anti-aging peel.

Having previously looked into microdermabrasion and IPL to tackle dryness, fine lines and enlarged pores it made me think, why was I willing to consider blasting sand into my face at a million miles a second or using a laser, but say the word peel and I panic?

Doing a little more research, I realised I needn’t be worried. It was just a matter of translation, peels are actually the American term for efficient exfoliators and philosophy are the market leaders in at home peels. They are significantly gentler on the skin than microdermabrasion and laser but offer similar results.

philosophy offer a number of peels, including the microdelivery peel, which has vitamin c/peptide crystals and lactic/salicylic acid activating gel. This is as close to microdermabrasion as you can get and tackles sun damage while smoothing and resurfacing the skin.

The microdelivery overnight anti-aging peel which tackles wrinkles, firmness and enlarged pores and the triple acid brightening peel that reduces the appearance of dark spots and discolouration.

It was time to bite the bullet and give it a go. The philosophy overnight anti-aging peel was the best choice for my skin concerns and works in two steps. Firstly, an alpha/beta hydroxy acid leave on solution (which sounds a lot scarier than it is) which is followed by a youth-extending night gel - both of which you leave on overnight. No skin recovery weekend required.

One of the things I really love about this product was everything you need is included in the box. To apply the first step you need to saturate a cotton pad (yep, it’s included) in the alpha/beta hydroxy solution.

After saturating the cotton pad, I carefully wiped the solution all over my face (avoiding my eyes). I sat there and waited for it to sting, burn or my skin to turn tomato red, but nothing - if anything it felt soothing. I waited three minutes as directed (the perfect amount of time to make a cup of tea) before moving on to step two.

The youth-extending night gel is the most amazing turquoise colour and has the consistency of jelly. Following the directions I gently massaged the solution into my skin, which was easily done as it seemed to just melt away. Within half an hour of applying the peel my skin felt firmer - there was no stinging, burning or redness and I was really looking forward to seeing the results in the morning.

Waking up the next morning my first port of call was to see what magic the peel had worked overnight. After washing my face I just couldn’t believe how smooth my skin felt, I noticed the fine lines around my eyes and mouth seemed lessened and my skin just looked clearer and healthier. I’d never gotten these kinds of results using a standard exfoliator before.

Coming into the office, almost immediately my colleagues commented on how nice I looked and that I seemed to have a bit of a “glow.” It was nice knowing that the results were noticeable and yet, no-one would have assumed I had done an acid peel the night before.

I will definitely be adding the philosophy microdelivery overnight anti-aging peel to my skincare regime. It was so easy to use so applying it three times a week before bed isn’t a hassle - plus you can use the youth extending night gel as a mask between peels to keep your skin hydrated and looking its best.

philosophy skincare is available at David Jones, Mecca Maxima, Adore Beauty, Sephora and Skincarestore.com

Have you tried a peel? What was your experience?