HYDRA3 by Valmont – hydration that works deeper than it seems.

In Dubai, hydration quickly stops being a cosmetic question. Air conditioning, dry indoor air, flights, the sun, temperature changes between the street and the car – the skin lives in a mode of constant adaptation. And at some point the usual products stop giving the effect you are used to: the cream feels pleasant, but the feeling of tightness comes back.

The problem is usually that dehydration is perceived too straightforwardly: as “not enough water – you need to add water”. But the skin holds moisture not by force of desire and not by the number of skincare layers, but by how well its own protective mechanisms are functioning. Moisture continually migrates toward the surface, and if the skin barriers are weakened, it evaporates faster than you manage to “add it back” with a serum or a cream. That is why sometimes it feels like you have tried everything, and the comfort lasts for a couple of hours.

The new HYDRA3 line by Valmont is built around this idea. It is presented as a system that helps the skin retain moisture longer and more steadily. Fewer promises about glow and more about barrier recovery and the skin’s ability to function normally under load.

At the center of the formulas is a fermented gentian extract, obtained using green biotechnologies and working in a pair with “rare aerobic bacterium”. Gentian is an alpine plant that is used to living in harsh conditions. According to the brand, this complex helps balance the skin microbiome, supports lipid synthesis – the lipids that form the protective film, and helps restore the structure of the upper layer of the skin. This is an important detail, because lipids and surface integrity are most often the first to break down.

The second pillar of the line is what Valmont has always made its signature: working with molecules that hold water. In HYDRA3 they place two directions side by side. On the one hand, a complex of hyaluronic acids of different molecular weights, so that hydration is not only “on the surface”. On the other hand, their signature ingredient Triple DNA, which the brand traditionally describes as a molecule with a very high ability to hold moisture.

The line consists of five products, and it looks like a classic system where each step supports the next. There is a mist – a light haze for the face and body, there is a booster – a serum-gel that is logical to see as the central product: it is the one that should give the main hydration effect. Then comes the charging cream – a cream that “seals” the hydration and adds protection, and for many in Dubai’s climate this is the key: when the barrier is weak, you can add “watery” textures as much as you want, but without the right finishing layer the skin will still lose moisture. Separately there is a contour product for the eye area and a mask.

From a practical point of view, HYDRA3 looks like a line that will be especially clear to those who live in a climate of constant “dry air”: the skin sometimes looks fine, then suddenly dries out, then starts reacting to products that used to be safe. If you have the feeling that you are constantly catching up with comfort and it still keeps slipping away, the point of such a system is to stabilize the skin’s condition and reduce these swings.

In the UAE, the line is available at Bloomingdale’s Dubai Mall, Harvey Nichols at Mall of the Emirates, and Galeries Lafayette at Dubai Mall, and online – on Ounass and on the Bloomingdale’s website.