Good Things Manuka Honey Creamy Cleanser

Though I've already found my favourite cleanser, Balance Me is hardly an affordable option, so I have ventured to find something less expensive and Good Things Manuka Honey was first on my list. 

Unlike Balance Me, which is a balm, this one is a cream, so it feels very similar to a light moisturiser. I must admit it is a texture I'm having a hard time adjusting to, though it does clean well and actually can be rinsed off just with water, but I like to wipe it off with a washcloth as recommend, so there is no filter of product remaining. It leaves the skin nicely moisturised, so there is not concern that the dreaded dry patches might appear and the skin is left quite comfortable after cleansing. Since I've started using it (about two months ago), my skin looks nice and I've had almost no spots appearing (those few healed up fast anyway). 

As a honey scented products fan, I was looking forward to the rich honey scent, but in this product it's very gentle in an typical cream products fashion - so nothing exciting.

Ingredients:

I got mine from Boots International for £4.99.

I'm not in love it. I mean it does its job and doesn't dry out my skin, but it's not Balance Me if you get what I mean. Because it's a cream cleanser instead of a balm, it doesn't feel as luxurious. But all in all, it is a nice cleanser, especially if you're on a budget, it just me that's spoiled. 

Have a great day!

More Inell Skincare bits: Mousse Nettoyante Hydratante and Démaquillant Yeux Spécial

I already spoke about the incredibly affordable micelar water by Inell (the house brand of Leclerc), but I have more skincare bits to talk about.

Mousse Nettoyante Hydratante

Hydrating Cleansing Foam
Ingredients
1.51 € in E.Leclerc.

This product was one of those unintended, spur of the moment purchases that turned out pretty bloody brilliant. I have been searching for a nice, quick and gentle cleanser to use in the morning, but I wanted to avoid gels because they tend to dry out my skin. I have mentioned before that I used L'Oreal's Happy Derm mousse in my teens and it was one of my favourite ever cleansers until it disappeared from the shelves. After years I have finally found a dupe for it and this is it.  

I am not impressed by those "mousse" cleansers that produce some pathetic watery foam, but this is a whole other thing. The texture of this cleanser resembles a super light whipped cream, but in a foam way. It cleans well, feels super comfortable, doesn't dry out the skin and is in general a very fun product to use. The packaging is just as one of those whipped creams in a can and it has the same dispenser. It smells amazing to me, pretty much identical to L'Oreal's 15 Second Miracle Cleansing Oil which is one of my favourite scents ever. It's so difficult to describe it, maybe as powdery-floral, but to me it smells like the beach for some reason.

For me this is the perfect morning cleanser and it's so affordable. If you stumble upon it in E. Leclerc, I highly recommend it.

Démaquillant Yeux Spécial Waterproof

Special Eye Makeup Remover Waterproof
Ingredients
2.03 € in E.Leclerc.

I wear a waterproof mascara on a daily basis so my lashes stay curled and I need a good oily remover to get every last scrape of it off at the end of the day. My favourite such remover is from Maybelline, but recently I have been trying some removers from other brands. One was from Nivea, which I don't like, and the other is this one, which didn't quite impress me either.

It looks and it is a regular two phase remover that feels a bit oily on the skin, but it's not as greasy as using an actual oil. Texture-wise it's somewhere between Maybelline's and Nivea's meaning it's not as oily as the first one, but not so light as the second. It removes mascara and other makeup quite well, though it does require a bit of rubbing to get all the mascara off, but what bothers me at this remover is that it leaves me with a strange sensation in the eyes. Not irritated in a sense that my eyes would water or become red, but it's like a strange cooling sensation. I consider myself a very hardy person when it comes to beauty products and none so far (*knocks on wood*) has ever irritated my skin, but this is the product I would not recommend to someone with sensitive eyes. Similarly to Nivea's, it doesn't leave my eyesight foggy, while Maybelline's does.

Despite it's shortcomings, I must praise the packaging. It has the most practical lid I've encountered at these dual phase removers and it's the only one where the product doesn't run everywhere, so I am keeping it to put in other removers.

It is a very affordable remover, but I can't get pass the strange feeling it leaves my in eyes. I'm sticking to Maybelline's for now or I might try L'Oreal's next.

Have a great day!

Garnier Pure Active Fruit Energy Daily Energising Gel Scrub

Is that the longest name of a product, or what? It's been a while since I used a gel cleanser, even though they used to be the predominant version of cleansers I used, however, since I have discovered that they are the cause for my recurring dry patches, I swapped them go for more moisturising, less stripping options. Recently, I did find myself in need of a quick, morning cleanser and since Amelia recommended it in one of the videos as well as mentioned that it's similar to the new Origins Vitazing scrub, I gave it a go.

By the way I have the German version that is called Hautklar Fruit Energy Belebendes Peeling-Gel, but it's the same thing.

Texture: It's a thick gel with micro beads that aren't too scratchy. Most gels I tried were usually thinner, but this one feels nice, almost slightly cushiony.

Performance: Basically it just cleans well, though I wouldn't use it on it's own to remove makeup. The skin is left clean, fresh and matte, the gel washes off completely, so there is no residue left and it doesn't irritate my eyes. The exfoliating beads are very gentle and I wouldn't describe this as a scrub in the real sense of the word.

The first day when I used it as a part of my night routine and then just applied Nuxe oil, I was very pleasantly surprised at how great my skin looked in the morning - radiant, healthy and with a completely clear forehead like someone ironed it. I was like: damn, am I having a good skin day or what? It just looked good and I would sport a no-make up look if it weren't for a few old blemish marks on my chin. Unfortunately, with more uses my skin started to get drier with a dry patch forming on my cheeks as usual any time I use gel cleansers for a longer period of time. So I'm currently using it sporadically to avoid potential dry patches, but it's a great quick refreshing cleanser for the morning. I also think that I might only be able to use it in the warmer months, since in the winter my skin is a lot more prone to drying out.

Scent: It smells fabulous - freshly fruity like pomegranate.

Packaging: A simple squeeze tube that works as it should. I like that it's clear, so I can see how much product is still in.

Price and availability: 5€ and available pretty much everywhere, I've even seen it in smaller supermarkets.

I think it's a nice, simple cleanser for those with oily or combination-oily skin and it does it's job as well as smells delicious. However, I have since found a better morning cleanser (and much cheaper) for my skin that I use daily and I will discuss it in my future New in post.

Have a great day!

Nubian Heritage African Black Soap

African Black Soap has supposedly been used for centuries to treat eczema, blemishes, psoriasis ans oily skin. I don't really suffer from any of those "ailments", but there is a little hype behind this soap and since it's really affordable, I decided to get one for myself and use it as a morning face wash.

It looks like a regular bar soap, but bigger, black and with bits of oats. The scent is fantastic - it smells like fruity bubble gum.  It is the creamiest bar soap I've ever tried, lathers so well and forms a thick, velvety and soft foam that feels so good to massage into the skin. And it's all rainbows and unicorns until you need to wash it off. Then that awful squeaky clean feeling appears - my pet peeve. Also, if the tiniest drop of soap gets in the eye, it hurts like a *insert bad word here*. Though it's black, the foam is not that dark and washes off completely with no residue. Surprisingly, my skin doesn't scream for a moisturiser afterwards. Actually it feels quite comfortable and I had no dry patches since I started using it (Dove sensitive soap caused dry patches with one use). As I said, my skin isn't acne prone, it's more combination dry, but I do get an occasional spot. This soap didn't help prevent any new spots nor treat them or help the skin heal faster. In short, it's just an average non-drying cleanser with no special bonus advantages. Its makeup removing abilities are also limited.

It's a nice bar soap, but maybe more suited as a body wash, mostly because of the eye hurting part. It's not drying, smells great and is quite cheap for a big bar of soap. It's nothing revolutionary, but still worth trying out. I got mine on iHerb for 2.5 € (141 g).

Have a great day! 

Cleansers Comparison: Balance Me, Clarins, L'Occitane, Liz Earle and Dove

It's all about cleansers today. I have a selection of five that I've been using/testing in the past months, so this post was long in the making. You can find a review of another lovely cleanser that didn't include because the post would be too long here -> L'Oreal Skin Perfection 15 Second Miracle Cleansing Oil. 

Clarins Pure Melt Cleansing Gel

Texture: Pure Melt has such a unique texture that starts off as a thick gel which when massaged into the skin turns into a thick oil and when water is added it emulsifies. You can see all three steps on the picture. The concept is a bit similar to the L'Oreal's Skin Perfection 15 Second Miracle Cleansing Oil, but Clarins Pure Melt is much, much thicker.

Performance: It does the best job at removing make up, especially when it comes to waterproof mascara (it is an oil based cleanser after all). There is a slight filter left when just rinsed off with water, so I prefer using a washcloth to completely remove it. As most oil-based cleansers it makes my vision very cloudy.

Scent: A nice pharmacy type of scent and very pleasant.

Price: My 50 ml tube was 12€ on eBay. The price of full size (125 ml) on Clarins' website is 33$ (24€).

Verdict: I like it because it removes makeup very well and has a unique texture, however, my skin didn't look as good as when I used other cleansers and my forehead became bumpy again. The cloudy vision bothers me a bit as well.

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser

Texture: A rich, thick cream that is easy to massage into the skin.

Performance: It removes most of the makeup, even waterproof mascara, but only if I'm not wearing a lot of it. Thicker coats of mascara just pose to much of a challenge for it. The muslin cloth that comes with it is a much better quality than the one with Balance Me cleansers, but I still prefer washcloths.

Scent: Minty and very similar to Airways bubble gums. Not particularly strong, but noticeable.

Price: 100 ml starter kit 17.75€ on Liz Earle site (plus delivery for Europe 7.25€, rest of the world a whooping 22€. Seriously, why? Though, I hear they have excellent service, include generous samples and super pretty bags).

Verdict: This is my second favourite so far. It feels luxurious and removes makeup nicely (I still use a separate eye makeup remover), however, my skin doesn't look as nice as when I use Balance Me. I love the mint green packaging.

L'Occitane Brightening Cleansing Foam

Texture: I generally dislike foams, because they feel so watery and leave my skin dry, but this one was a pleasant surprise. It's so soft and almost creamy, quite a luxury to use. Ingredients here.

Performance: It's quite a gentle and comfortable cleanser. It doesn't take off all of the makeup, but I find it nice for the morning cleanse. It leaves my skin nice and fresh without getting tight after a few minutes.

Scent: Strong floral, like wildflowers. I'm not a massive fan of it, but it's not unpleasant.

Price: 50 ml 9.20€, full size 150 ml about 20€, eco refill 300ml 28.50€

Verdict: Nice for mornings (or nights after you've removed the makeup), but the scent is too strong and even after months I haven't got used to it. Still, it is my favourite foam cleanser and I would consider repurchasing it to continue using it as a morning cleanser.

Dove Pure & Sensitive Beauty Cream Bar 

Texture: The same creamy bar feel of the regular Dove soap. These are my favourite bar soaps.

Performance: This is pretty hyped up on MUA, so when I saw this version in DM I didn't hesitate to buy it. It's so easy to use, gentle, doesn't irritate my eyes and doesn't leave my skin too stripped, however, the next day I noticed a dry patch on my nose. I used it a few more times, but then stopped, because it turned out to be too drying for my skin. I also noticed my skin started getting oilier.

Scent: Unscented, but if I really put my nose to it an almost non-existent typical Dove scent

Price: 1-2€

Verdict: Really easy to use, but too drying for my skin. I like that it's unscented and really cheap. I'll use it for the rest of my body where my skin doesn't tend to get dry.

Balance Me Cleanse and Smooth Face Balm

Full review here.

Texture: A liquidy balm with small oatmeal scrub particles. It's meant to be applied on dry skin, massaging it for 30 seconds, then water is added with makes it smoother, but it doesn't emulsify. The scrub particles aren't abrasive at all. It comes with a muslin cloth, which is absolute rubbish and I use a washcloth to remove it.

Performance: It's similar in performance to the Liz Earle one. It removes most of the makeup, except heavy layers of waterproof mascara. It doesn't sting my eyes and doesn't make my vision cloudy.

Scent: Sweet, similar to Kiki candy. The smell of childhood.

Price: 22-23€ on Look Fantastic and Naturisimo.

Verdict: My favourite cleanser so far. My skin looks and behaves best when I use it.

So Balance Me wins in my books (my skin looks really good since I started using it) and I like the L'Occitane foam for mornings, but I'll still test a few more cleansers. There are still some on my list to try and I already have Nubian Heritage African Black Soap coming my way.

I hope this was helpful and have a great day!