A pleasant surprise: The Body Shop Facial Washes

I enjoy The Body Shop mostly thanks to the gorgeous smell of their products. I was mostly buying body lotions, as they smell awesome and there was no risk of doing any charm to my skin. I was sceptical about their facial skincare products and wasn't even tempted to try it out, until I have run out of face masks from Poland. In UK the choice of masks is very poor, most of the stuff available in pharmacies, supermarkets and Avon is clay-kind of masks, which I don't really like. I prefer "sink in" type of masks, the ones you apply like cream and leave to absorb, no need to wash off, I like to use them overnight. The only place where I managed to find this type of masks (in reasonable prices, as I wasn't even looking among posh brands) was The Body Shop. I have bought two and since there was "3 for 2" offer I grabbed vitamin E facial wash. My newest Korean face foam from Mizon turned out to be rubbish and postage from Korea takes up to two weeks, so I really needed something to wash my face with until another order from Asia arrives. I didn't really expect much of this product, I just hoped it won't dry me out as badly as Mizon. Surprisingly TBS face wash turned out to be so nice I didn't have to make another order from Korea...

Vitamin E Gentle Facial Wash

Product description: A gentle facial wash that lathers on the skin to leave it feeling clean, soft and refreshed.
INCI: Aqua, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Coco-Glucoside, Triticum Vulgare Germ Oil/Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Acrylates/Steareth-20 Methacrylate Copolymer, Phenoxyethanol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Benzoate, Fragrance, Benzyl Benzoat, Hydroxycitronellal, Disodium EDTA, Limonene, Geraniol, Tocopherol, Linalool, Citronellol, Cinnamyl Alcohol, CI 17200/Red 33, CI 14700/Red 4

In the ingredients list we will find soybean oil, rich in B vitamins, vitamin E and K and Omega-6 fatty acids. Soybean has antioxidant and moisturising properties. There is also wheat germ oil, another source of vitamin E and antioxidants.

The facial wash has pale pink colour, creamy texture and Nivea creme-like scent. The tube is made of soft plastic and contains 100ml of product. It doesn't really leather much, but is a bit slippery, so it's easy to spread on face. It is indeed very mild, doesn't leave skin feeling dry and tight. In comparison to Korean face washes it's not very efficient, the tube lasted only for a bit over month.

But it's not only the mildness that got me into this foam. Primarily thanks to this product I discovered that my skin doesn't like alkaline products. On Snow White and Asian Pear blog I've read negative review of Mizon's foam, that was referring to it's high alkaline pH. Out of curiosity I've bought on e-Bay pH tester strips, which arrived after I've bought TBS wash... So when I was buying TBS wash I didn't know what pH level it has. When I tested both foams it turned out that my Vitamin E wash has slightly acidic pH 6. The immediate effects of using non-alkaline foam was lack of skin dryness and tightness and the long term use effects exceed my expectations - for the whole month during using TBS facial wash I didn't experience a single break out, only during my period one single spot has arrived. One! That's amazing! It's because our skin has naturally acidic pH, which helps to create protective barrier against harmful bacteria. If you use alkaline products, you lower your skin's pH level, weakening it's natural protection system. Thanks to acidic face wash your skin has better ability to protect itself from acne causing germs. I really wish I would have known about it before, it would save my skin so many breakouts...

Price: £8,50 in The Body Shop store.

Pros:
+ creamy texture
+ mildness
+ healthy for skin, slightly acidic pH
+ doesn't dry out skin

Cons:
- doesn't last very long, what makes it a bit expensive
- doesn't leather much

Pomegranate Softening Facial Wash

Product description: The Pomegranate range addresses the signs of ageing. This cleanser softly cleanses and refreshes skin.
INCI: Aqua, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Sorbitol, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Stearic Acid, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Acrylates Copolymer, Coconut Acid, Bertholletia Excelsa Seed Oil, Caprylyl Glycol, Sodium Chloride, Disodium Lauryl Sulfosuccinate, Sodium Isethionate, Zea Mays Starch, Parfum, Bisabolol, Creatine, Butylene Glycol, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, p-Anisic Acid, Punica Granatum Extract, Punica Granatum Seed Oil, Disodium EDTA, Hydroxycitronellal, Citronellol, Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract, Limonene, Geraniol, Ursolic Acid, CI 77891

This face wash contains moisturising Brazil nut oil, which thanks to high selenium content has anti-oxidant properties. There is of course pomegranate - both fruit extract and seed oil. Pomegranate is a powerful antioxidant, has anti-inflammatory and skin brightening properties. Wash contains also apple fruit extract, which is natural preservative and is rich in skin brightening vitamin C. SLS has been replaced with milder detergent - Disodium Lauryl Sulfosuccinate.

The soft plastic tube has 100ml capacity. Wash has pearly colour and creamy consistency, although not as creamy as Vitamin E wash. It's not very clear on the picture but it leathers much better than Vitamin E wash and it's also more efficient. It has fruity smell, but not sweet and temping smell you would expect from Body Shop - it's smell of over ripe fruit, weird, but bearable. Pomegranate face wash is very mild, doesn't sting my eyes, there is no skin dryness and no tight feeling after use. Similarly to it's Vitamin E cousin it has good for skin, slightly acidic pH 6, thanks to which I haven't experienced any major break out. In general I don't believe in anti-ageing properties of product like face wash, because you wash them off and they have only short contact with the skin, although I have impression that my skin is firmer since I use this wash. But it may as well be some placebo effect ;)

Price: £11 - more expensive than Vitamin E wash, but lasts for longer, so the value would be similar.

Pros:
+ leathers up better than vitamin E
+ a little goes a long way, I use it twice a day from over two months and still got 1/5 of the tube
+ mild for skin and doesn't sting my eyes
+ doesn't dry out skin
+ slightly acidic pH 6

Cons:
- weird smell of over ripe fruit

Summary
I am pleased with both products and I'm sure I will re-purchasing them. I did enjoy my foamy Korean washes, but now since I know that my skin doesn't like high pH, I won't buy them without checking pH level first. Cat Catus from Snow White and Asian Pear blog together with other blogers has created on-line index of facial cleansers pH, which is very handy and worth having look at. Not everyone is sensitive to pH level, but I would recommend trying out products with different pH - it may turn out that one simple change in your skin care routine may make huge difference in your skin condition.

Beware Mizon Snail Repairing Foam Cleanser...

I love my snail products, but unfortunately not all of them seem to be oh-so-good...

Product description from packaging:  This cleansing foam with snail's mucus filtrate and its ample and elastic bubble washes the skin cleanly.

In the ingredients, among the famous snail secretion filtrate we will also find:

• Gypsophila paniculata ("Baby's breath" - you know, that bunches of tiny white flower that florists add to bouquets to make the look fuller) root extract, which skin care benefits remain unknown to me
• Papaya fruit extract - source of vitamin A and Papain. Vitamin A acts as an anti-oxidant, while the papain breaks down inactive proteins and removes dead skin cells.
• Ivy extract - It has emollient and itch-relieving properties, as well as anti-inflammatory and pain killing actions. It's also circulatory compound and helps other ingredients to be absorbed by the skin.
• Arnica Montana flower extract - has antiseptic, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties and supports healing process.
• Wormwood Extract - a natural antiseptic and anti inflammatory oil said to help heal bites, cuts, sores, blisters and wounds. It also soothes damaged, red skin.
• Yarrow leaf extract - medicinal herb used topically to speed wound healing and improve other skin conditions such as rashes, abrasions, and calm inflamed skin. Contains i.a. salicylic acid that has anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral properties and flavonoidsthat are vital antioxidants protecting against cell-damaging free radicals.
• Gentian (Bitter Root, Bitterwort) - has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties
• Green Tea Leaf Extract - it's a powerful antioxidant, protecting skin cells from the damage caused by free radicals. It is also known to reduce skin swelling and help soothe and condition sensitive skin. 

Sounds great, but don't get too excited, because cleansing foam doesn't sit on our skin for long enough to let the plant extracts work properly :P

Full list of ingredients: Water, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, Potassium Hydroxide, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Polyacrylate. Myristic acid, Lauric Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Propylene Glycol, Cocoamidopropyl Betaine, PEG-14M, Snail Secretion Filtrate, Polysorbate 20, Polyquaternium-7, Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, Gypsophila Paniculata Root Extract, Carica papaya, Ivy Extract, Arnica Montana Flower Extract, Artemisia Absinthium Extract, Achillea Millefolium Extract, Gentiana Lutea Root Extract, Ethanol, Camellia Sinensis, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance

Ingredients analysis [HERE] 

As you can see on the pictures above, foam comes sealed with foil, there is no extra packaging to it. Under the cap tube is protected with a bit o tin foil. Tube has 60ml capacity.

 

The foam itself is a white, stringy cream with pearly shine to it. As all of the Korean cleansers I tested so far, it behaves like shaving cream - pearly cream with a bit of water and massage turns into rich, thick foam. Product has nice, soapy smell. A little goes a long way - a pea size is well enough to cover the whole face and neck in thick foam.

As for the performance there is nothing special about it. It cleans, leaving the skin squeaky clean, but that's about it. I don't mind squeeky clean, I actually enjoy this feeling as long as it doesn't strip my skin out of all moisture, but unfortunately this foam dries out my skin a little bit. When used on it's own it's bearable, but when used on skin previously cleansed with oil it makes my face really tight and dry. I read couple of other reviews about this product and Cat Cactus in her review said that this cleanser has very high alkaline pH, which is bad for skin. Here you can read her note about importance of using cleansers with right pH for your skin.

Price: from £4 on e-Bay.

Pros:

+ cheap

+ a little goes a long way

+ contains quite a few beneficial plant extracts - even though the foam is not on the skin for long enough to let them work properly, it's nice to know they are there

+ nice smell

Cons:

- dries out skin

- has pH bad for your skin

Summary: I wouldn't recommend this product to anyone. And I'm going to buy myself pH testing litmus papers, so no more harming my skin with alkaline foam cleansers!

Secret Key Snail + EGF Repairing Foam Cleanser

Today review of the foam that was my first Secret Key's product and started my love to the Snail+EGF series. Enjoy!

Product description: Snail foam cleanser for sensitive skin of snail mucus and EGF ingredient. Deeply cleans up sebum and waste without irritation. Excellent in restoring damaged skin and keeping moisture as it contains natural ingredients.

Main ingredients:

• Snail secretion filtrate - protects skin from infection, reduces inflammation, effective in treating acne and scarring, anti-wrinkle
• Human Oilgo Peptide-1 (EGF) - known as a "beauty factor" - eliminating scars and speckles by improving the texture and condition of the skin, anti-wrinkle by rejuvenating skin by stimulating cell proliferation
• Glycerin - Glycerin is a well known humectant in cosmetics and personal care products. Other functions that have been reported for Glycerin include, hair conditioning agent, oral care agent, skin conditioning agent - humectant, skin protectant and viscosity decreasing agents.
• Betaine - An amino acid also known as Trimethylglycine or glycine betaine. Primarily functions as a humectant and anti-irritant in cosmetic products. It's able to give superior hydration to the skin, without the residual stickiness often associated with glycerin based emulsions. When used in skin care products, it can temporarily decrease the depth of wrinkles, giving the face a much smoother appearance.

The product arrives in cardboard box, inside which we will find 100ml squeezy tube, secured with a bit of foil on the bottom. The whole packaging is nice and simple.
Similarly to other Korean foam face washes, this product has a consistency of thick, smooth cream, pearl white in colour. Cream glides easily on slightly wet skin and creates very rich foam. Considering the amount and thickness of foam it actually reminds me old fashioned shaving cream xD Product has a nice, floral scent, the same note that we can come across with other products from Secret Key's Snail + EGF range.

This foam cleans very well, removes all the make up, even mascara. Face feels refreshed and squeaky clean afterwards and all of that without any drying side effects - brilliant! Product is also super efficient, as you only need a pea size amount to clean the whole face and neck. I use it since beginning of May and still got at least 1/3 of the tube.

Price: from £6 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ rich foam
+ skin clean and refreshed, removes make up
+ doesn't dry out skin
+ a little goes a long way = good value for money
+ nice smell

Cons:
- completely opaque tube, so I can't see how much exactly I have used up

Summary: a good product for reasonable price. Highly recommended :)

Enlarged pores problem? Mizon Pore Refine Deep Cleansing Foam & Pore Control Peeling Toner.

A lot of people has problem with enlarged pores. If you are one of them I have a bad news and a good news for you. The bad news is, that the size of your pores is depending on your skin type and there is nothing you can do to change it permanently. For example my forehead has visible pores and no matter what I use, they always look like that - it's just the structure of my skin. The pores on my cheeks near nose are even more visible, BUT I manage to control the size of them. And here is the good news: pores appear bigger because of excessive sebum and waste in them = you can minimise appearance of them by properly cleansing. And here is where this Mizon's products come handy :)

Mizon Pore Refine Deep Cleansing Foam

 

 

Product description: Minty cooling foam containing kaolin and charcoal that effectively absorb excessive waste, sebum and dead skin cell in pores and help keep skin clean while killing bacteria. Shooting botanicals leave skin moisturised and smooth.

Mizon's 'Genuine product' sticker.

The foam has fresh and minty smell, a little bit like a toothpaste :P It has thick and creamy consistency, a little amount easily leathers up in nice, thick foam. As you can see on the pictures, it contains tiny little particles (I suppose it's charcoal related?), but you can hardly feel them, so this is not exfoliating product. It leaves skin refreshed and squeaky clean. As for the cooling effect - I delicately stings skin, but tings not in a painful harsh way, but in a nice refreshing way.

Price: £5-6 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ a little goes a long way
+ cleanse very well, leaves face squeaky clean
+ refreshing feeling
+ nice scent
+ leathers up well into thick foam
+ cheap

Cons:
- can be a little drying/harsh for sensitive skin

I was using this product before I started to double cleanse with oil. It's good to remove all the make up - I'm a hardcore and used it on my eyes as well (takes off mascara), but be careful with that as it stings if it gets into an eye. I don't plan to repurchase so far, as since I use double cleansing I choose more mild foam (oil does the "dirty job"), but I bear in mind this foam as a really good one. If you don't double cleanse and want just one good cleansing product - this is a good choice. It does minimise pores a little, however effect is MUCH better if used with toner.
  It contains Lauric Acid and Pottasium Hydroxide that may be recognised as a potential irritants/acne triggers, however I didn't notice any influence on my acne or irritation while using this product.
  Ingerdients: Aqua, myristic acid, kaolin acid, lauric acid, stearic acid, potassium hydroxide, cocamidopropyl betaine, hydroxyethylcellulose, charcoal powder, sodium hyaluronate, beta glucan, vaccinum myrtillus fruit/leaf extract, saccharium officinarum (sugar cane) extract, acer saccharum (sugar maple) extract, citrus aurantium dulcis (orange) fruit extract, citrus medica limonium (lemon) fruit extract, amica  Montana flower extract, Artemisia absinthium extract, achillea millefolium extract, gentian lutea root extract, carica papaya (papaya) fruit extract, gypsophila paniculata root extract, hedera helix (ivy) extract, hydrolyzed extension, collagen, disodium edta, caprylyl glycol, ethylhexyl glycerin, tropolone, fragrance
Ingredients analysis [HERE]

Pore Control Peeling Toner

 

Product description: Specialised formula removes makeup residue and calms skin after cleansing, while balancing skin pH. It keeps skin oil free and fresh all day long.

First of all I must say that I absolutely LOVE the sleek square bottle design. It's not well visible on the photo, but bottle is coloured in gradient green (darker on the bottom and lighter on the top), and the silver "Pore" word is holographic. It has such a elegant and modern look! The only downside is the size of the bottle - I consider 80ml as quite small for a toner. Gets used up much quicker than foam.

Mizon's 'genuine product' sticker.

The toner has a very handy pump dispenser, which reaches right to the bottom of the bottle, so we can easily use it the the end. I was using six pumps of product on a cotton pad to tone my face. Toner has citrusy smell with a hint of alcohol, but in general smell is quite subtle and not bothering.
When I was using just western products, the toner was qualifying for me as a cleansing product and astringent. I noticed that Asian toners are more on the skincare side, but some of them are still more cleansing (the containing alcohol ones) and some of them are more moisturising and caring. This one is more on the astringent side, which is fair enough as it's supposed to control pores.
The toner gives refreshing feel to the skin. When used on it's own slightly minimise pores and has a bit of moisturising touch to the skin. When used with foam it has great impact on my pores on the cheeks (the ones on the forehead don't react to anything...).

Price: £8-9 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ elegant packaging
+ refreshing feel
+ has impact on pore size

Cons:
- I didn't notice any extra sebum control, my skin was as oily as usual
- small capacity - for that price we can get at least 100ml, or even 210ml like Mizon's Witchhazel toner. I think we are paying for the pretty bottle here :]

It contains Alcohol and Salicylic Acid that may be irritating for some skins. For my skin alcohol is almost neutral and my skin loves Salicylic Acid.

Ingredients: Aqua, alcohol, glycerin, sodium lactate, peg-60 hydrogenated castor oil, glycolic acid, salicylic acid , theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) extract, copper tripeptide-1, collagen, chamomilla recutita (matricaria) flower/ leaf extract, carica papaya ( papaya) fruit extract, camellia sinensis leaf extract, disodium edta, caprylyl glycol, ethylhexyl glycerin, tropolone , fragrance 
Ingredients Analysis [HERE]

In general this two are a great products for pore control. I ordered foam first and then toner and I noticed that used together they have much better influence on pore size. However, as I said on the beginning of my post we can not change our pore size permanently, so the effect won't last after you stop using the products. I also didn't notice any extra sebum control, my skin was as oily as usual while using this products. Unfortunately used together they have a bit more drying effect on the skin than used separately, so if you want to give them a go, make sure you have some good moisturiser handy.

The whole Mizon's Pore Line.

The line contains also Pore Refine Silky Smooth Essence and Pore Tightening Lotion.
Note: On many websites the recommended order of use is Foam > Toner > Essence > Lotion, however Essence contains silicons and sun screen, so I would recommend using it last. If you put silicone first, the ingredients from Lotion won't be able to reach the skin.

Missha Super Aqua Refreshing Cleansing Foam

Good afternoon!
Today I would like to introduce you to Missha's Refreshing Foam.

Product description: Super Aqua gives your skin radiance with a help from three revitalized water from nature. Containing Sweet Flag Extract and Willow Bark Extract which gives a massage effect with its minute and rich bubbles, Super Aqua cleansing foam gently and completely removes makeup and impurities.

 The full size product is a squeezy tube with 200ml capacity, I was testing out a 3ml sample.

The foam is not a foam itself, rather a pearly white cream, which turns into a foam after massaging into skin. It reminds me my dad's old fashioned shaving cream ;) A little goes a long way - it takes only a pea size to create loads of thick foam and the 3ml sample lasted me for three applications, how good is that?! Another great advantage of this product is very pleasant usage - it has nice and fresh smell, doesn't irritate eyes and leaves face sqeaky clean. Morover - the foam doesn't dry out my skin. I absolutly love it!

Price: from £7 on e-Bay

Pros:
+ nice smell
+ a little goes a long way
+ leaves skin sqeeky clean
+ dosn't dry out my skin

Cons:
NONE!

I really, really want a full size version of this product :D

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Myristic Acid, Glycerin, Potassium Hydroxide, Lauric Acid, Butylene Glycol, Stearic Acid, Ceteth -20, PEG -40 Stearate, Glycol Distearate, Lauramide DEA, Sea Water, Salix Nigra (Willow) Bark Extract, Rosa Damascena Flower Water, Amethyst Powder, Pearl Powder, Tourmaline, Acorus Gramineus Root/Stem Extract, Fragance (Parfum), Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylparaben, Butylparaben, Isobutylparaben, Disodium EDTA, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Linalool, Blue 1 (CI 42090)