The famous japanese camellia oil: Oshima Tsubaki Oil

Today I will review for you a very famous Japanese product that was kindly provided for me from Japanstore.

If you are interested in Japanese skin or hair care products you probably already heard the word Tsubaki which is camellia in Japanese. Rich in caring fatty acids and antioxidants, the cold pressed oil from camellia flowers is used in skin and haircare since ancient times.

Oshima Tsubaki Oil it's nothing more, nothing less than a 100% pure camellia oil.

The oil is in simply designed and quite heavy glass bottle with 60ml capacity. Luckily for me (I'm so clumsy =.=) the bottle has special dropper that protects oil from spilling out - even if we turn the bottle upside down it will only release one drop of oil at time.

The bottle is packed in cardboard box, wrapped in foil and sealed with special sticker:

There was leaflet with some free samples attached to the box:

Inside the box there was another leaflet:

The oil itself it clear (slightly yellow) liquid without any scent. Ratzilla says that only the freshest camellia oil will have slight floral scent to it, although that level of freshness is possible only if we would buy it straight from the manufacturer, so usually camellia oil would be just scentless. If it has unpleasant smell, it it would mean it's out and should not be used.

My hair enjoys hair oils, especially since I started to dye, so I tried the product on my hair first. The camellia oil is supposedly light and easily absorbing - and I must say that it indeed is, BUT we you need to be really careful with the amount you apply. Unfortunate I used way too much during my first application and my hair was weighted down and looking greasy. Now I use only 2-3 drops and only on my endings. The effect? My hair is softer and less frizzy, although I don't think it worked as well for my hair as almond oil, so I wasn't that much impressed. But something about this product got me thinking - after applying camellia oil to my hair, my hands weren't greasy, usually I have to wash my hands after applying hair oil, but with this one all I have to do is rub my palms together and the greasiness is gone. Discovering that I decided to take a risk and apply Tsubaki oil to my face.

I have oily skin so I was avoiding any face oils for a long time. Eventually I dared to try cleansing oils and I fell in love with them, because they take make up off so easily, without need to rub and they don't dry my skin out. After falling for cleansing oil one night I decided to give moisturising oil a go as well and applied The Body Shop Beautifying Oil on my face instead of moisturiser - it was one of my worst nights EVER, my face was so greasy and sticky, yuck. Ever since that night even though I have a few universal oil I use them on my hair only. The camellia oil was the first oil from a while that I dared to put on my face and I must say, that the results exceeded my expectations.

Firstly - the camellia oil is absorbing into skin very well. Not straight away, it may take 5-10 minutes, but it does get absorbed eventually (in opposite to my Body Shop Oil that would just sit on my face all nigh long...). It does leave a slight film on skin, but it's not sticky, so I can sleep without worrying that the pillow would stick to my face. Secondly - my skin was looking and feeling great the next day! Soft, moisturised, fresh, pores tighten. Thanks to high Omega-9 content the camellia oil has ability to penetrate deep into skin layers, so my skin was moisturised inside and out. Thanks to the great balance between moisture and oil my skin didn't have to produce it's own sebum and less sebum = tighter pores.

However using camellia oil on my face had one disadvantage: this couple of minutes between application and absorption. You know this feeling when you are trying to suck up a very thick drink through a slim straw? How annoying it could be? The oil creates a similar, slightly frustrating feeling when skin dried out after cleansing needs some moisture NOW and the oil takes it's time to get absorbed. For a moment after application I got an uneasy feeling of skin dry and greasy at the same time. Fortunately, there is an easy solution to this problem: all you have to do is apply the oil to slightly damp skin, which helps the oil to absorb quicker. I like to experiment so I went a step further and applied my oil on the face straight after Hada Labo lotion. My skin seems to really enjoy this duo and I use it every other night.

Another thing that made me really appreciate the camellia oil, is it's skin softening ability. I could feel my face being a bit softer, although I exfoliate it regularly, so the oil didn't have a chance to show it's full potential there. As an experiment I applied camellia oil on the rough skin on my elbows and just after three applications (every night after shower) the magic has happened - rough skin became moisturised, much softer and smoother. Viva la camellia!

Price: from £10 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ a little goes a long way
+ in opposite to some oils I've tried before camellia absorbs quite well into skin, it leaves slight residue on skin, but it's not very oily nor sticky
+ moisturises skin
+ softens and smooths rough skin

Cons:
- you need to be careful with the amount used, as more than just a few drops can easily weight down hair and make it look greasy
- no smell - some people may consider it as a pro, but I would prefer it to have some nice floral scent ;)

Summing up, I'm very pleased with this product and I will continue using it with pleasure. It's definitely worth trying.

Freebies!
As I mentioned before, there were some freebies attached to the product's box. 

It's a a twin sachet of hair cream, which can be used as leave-in hair mask or for styling. The one with green description is called Sara-Sara and it's a lightweight cream, suitable for thin and limp hair (won't weigh them down). The one with red description is a Moist version designated for frizzy and rough hair. In both products camellia oil is the key ingredient, second on the ingredients list, after the water. You can find full list of ingredients here. I only tried the Sara-Sara one so far and it made my hair really nice and smooth, tamed down fizzines after the hair dryer.

Purebess Snail School Recovery Gel Cream Review

Product description: Natural cosmetic science with snail & EGF to moisturise and regenerate your skin. Contains 90% of Snail Secretion Filtrate. No artificial preservatives, artificial colour, alcohol, mineral oil and paraben. Minimum skin irritation while skin tightening and softening, moisturising and regenerating.

Here it goes, I'm about to say the words that will probably appear in many of my reviews: I wasn't planing to buy this BUT... I actually kept my eye on Benton snail line, but then I read Purebess snail gel ingredients analysis on this blog and it made me wanting to try it This budget snail gel, contains not only the secretion filtrate, but also:

• Tremella fuciformis (also known as snow fungus, silver ear fungus or white jelly mushroom) - a species of fungus, one of the most popular fungi in Chinese cuisine and medicine. It provides several skin care benefits: increases moisture retention in skin, prevents senile degradation of micro-blood vessels in the skin, has anti-inflammatory properties, brightens skin. Anti-oxidant. 
• 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.
• Althaea Rosea (common hollyhock) Flower Extract - emollient, antibacterial, and possible anti-inflammatory properties.
• Aloe vera leaf extract - moisturiser and anti-irritant used for it's rejuvenating, healing and soothing properties.

Full ingredients list: Snail Secretion Filtrate 90%, Water, Glycerin, Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp Extract, Sodium Polyacrylate, Betaine , Human Oligopeptide-1, Butylene Glycol, Althaea Rosea, Flower Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Allantoin, Carbomer, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Caprylyl Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance
Ingredients analysis [HERE]

Product arrives in cardboard box, inside we will find soft tube with 50g capacity. Tube is sealed.
Gel is clear and unscented. It spreads easily on the skin and take a few seconds to absorb, bu once it's absorbed it leaves skin matte. It's very light - too light to be used on it's own, I use it on top of Hada Labo Kiwamizu lotion and Secret Key Snail+EGH Essence. I have oily skin and this set is just about right for me - moisturising, but not too heavy. It's a bit too light for the nightime though, I like to give my skin a bit more to absorb while I'm sleeping, so I top up my set with Baviphat Snail Sleeping Pack (review coming soon).

What I like most about this product is how calming and healing it is - during the first few days after I got it I had terrible cold and blocked nose, that I have to blow every five minutes. As you know the skin around nose get's quickly irritated, so normally everyone can tell at the first sight that you're sick, because your nostrils are so red. Well, not with this product! As an experiment I was applying it few times daily around my poor nose and guess what - not a sign of red, irritated and dry skin! I was well impressed.
This is another product (next to Secret Key snail gel) that in my opinion completely beats famous Mizon Snail Recovery Gel Cream. It costs roughly the same, but has more snail secretion filtrate in it (Mizon - 74%, Purebess - 90%) and performs better - my main issue with Mizon's gel is that my skin is really really shiny after using it, while Purebess leaves my skin matte. Overall gel is rather neutral for sebum control.

Price: from £5 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ absorbs completely into skin, no residue left
+ leaves skin matte
+ calming and healing for irritated skin
+ simple ingredients list with high snail secretion content
+ cheap

Cons:
- not enough to be used as only moisturiser - has to be backed up with some other moisturising products, for example essence


Summing up: a good basic skin care product. Definitely worth trying if you are looking for some soothing and light day moisturiser - with that price you can't go wrong ;)

Secret Key Snail+EGF Repairing Essence

I am in love with Secret Key's Snail products. Prestige Snail+EGF Ampoule was good, but the least efficient from all the series, so when I ran out of it I decided to replace it with the essence.

 Product description: Snail Slime Extract together with EGF (Cell Regeneration Factor) act as a skin stain remover, healing and repairing wounds and scars, it also boots your skin's ability to stay hydrated and bright.

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
• Macadamia Seed Oil - contains Palmitoleic acid that is vital for delaying skin and cell ageing, Oleic acid that has regeneration and moisturising properties, Linoleic acid that helps to prevent skin water loss and Plant phytosterols that are calming and healing
• Oryza sativa (rice) extract - increases synthesis of collagen, also provides both short- and long-term hydration to the skin.

Oryza sativa (rice) extractSnow fungus (Tremella Fuciformis) Extract - has anti-aging properties due to allowing the skin to retain more water and helps prevent senile degeneration (the breaking down over time) of micro blood vessels within the skin and keep blood flowing through the skin optimally.

From all the series this product has the most snaily structure. It's gooey and during the application it tends to stretch what is a little annoying, as I like to apply products by first dotting them on the face and then massaging in - this essence creates "strings" between the dots, so it's easy to accidentally apply it in some silly place like eyebrow :P but the good side of this essence is that it doesn't feel sticky on the skin as it absorbs very quickly. It leaves skin slightly moisturised and smooth and it's very lightweight - perfect for oily skin. It has very subtle smell, some floral notes similar to the ones in Snail+EGF Repairing Gel Cream. Product is quite efficient - one pump is enough to cover entire face.

Price: around £6 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ lightweight
+ fast absorbing
+ affordable
+ a little goes a long way

Cons:
- gooey texture

Overall I am quite pleased with this product, I like how light and quickly absorbing it is. I use it twice a day, AM under the snail gel, PM under the Prestige snail cream.

Secret Key Snail + EGF Repairing Gel Cream Review

Review of another Snail Product from Secret Key ^^ Enjoy!

Product description: Take control of your skin, keeping it lightweight, cool and refreshed! Low irritation skin therapy with added hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel) extract.

Contains only natural preservatives: extract from Chinese pepper, pasque flower and usnea are good natural preservatives and have anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.

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
• Witch hazel extract - a strong astringent & antioxidant, has antibacterial & anti-inflammatory properties, effective in acne treatments
• Aloe vera leaf extract - moisturiser and anti-irritant used for it's rejuvenating, healing and soothing properties
• Beta glucan - a natural compound, extracted from plants, that helps to maintain a youthful appearance for skin
• Lemon extract -  a natural source of Vitamin C and antioxidants, protects skin against sun damage and works anti-inflammatory

 Product is a 50ml plastic jar with extra security lid under the plastic screw cap. It comes in cardboard box.

Product is a clear gel with nice floral scent. For me it looks and smell a little bit like a hair styling gel :P The consistency is light, but not runny.

The product is really lightweight on the skin - on the beginning I had problem with finding the right amount to apply and I was using too much , but even generously applied it doesn't make skin feel oily. It's moisturising and refreshing, non sticky. I use it with Secret Key Prestige Snail + EGF Ampoule & Cream (cream at PM and gel for AM) - after two weeks of regular use I noticed a great improvement in my skin elasticity and moisture level. The gel is getting used up a bit quicker than Prestige Cream - I use the series for a month now and I already used up half of my gel and only 1/3 of the cream.
What I like most about this product and what makes me like it much more than Mizon's Snail Gel Cream is that it doesn't leave skin shining. Mizon's gel was well moisturising and took good care of my skin, but after application my skin was madly shining which was soooo annoying. Secret Key's gel absorbs to almost-matte finish:

The other thing that makes Secret Key's snail gel beat Mizon's snail gel is the fact that latter contains silicone (a lightweight one, but still). Secret Key's snail gel has quite impressive no-nonsense ingredient list and contains a few ingredients good for skin. The downside is that in Secret Key's product snail secretion filtrate is not on the first place in the ingredients list and we don't really know how much of a snail there is in a snail product, when Mizon tell us on the label that their gel is made in 74% of snail secretion filtrate.

Price: from £6 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ lightweight
+ well moisturising
+ doesn't leave skin shiny
+ nice smell
+ cheap

Cons:
- the manufacturer doesn't say how much of the snail secretion filtrate actually is in the product

Summing up - I really like this product and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for lightweight moisturising and improvement in skin elasticity :) All the Secret Key's Snail Products are working really well for my skin and I am planing to continue using this series to see what it can do in a long term. Snail secretion filtrate is supposed to be good in scar healing as well, so I hope it will help me beat my acne scars, but it's a ling term process so I just have to continue use and see how it goes.

Ingredients: Water, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Extract, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Snail Secretion Filtrate, Zanthoxylum Piperitum Fruit Extract, Pulsatilla Koreana Extract, Usnea Barbata Extract, Human Oligopeptide-1, Sodium Hyaluronate, Aloe Babadensis Leaf Juice, Panthenol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Fruit Extract, Beta-Glucan, Nonoxynol-12, Disodium EDTA, Arginine, 1,2 -Hexanediol, Fragrance
Ingredients analysis [HERE]

Double Review: Secret Key Snail+EGF Prestige Ampoule & Prestige Repairing Cream

I was looking for some Snail products to help my skin heal my acne scars. While I was browsing my favourite e-Bay seller's shop I came across the Secret Key - it was affordable and I couldn't find any reviews about the cream, so I just decided to try it and make one myself ;)

 Snail+EGF Prestige Ampoule

Product description: Snail muscus filtrate acquired from nature keeps hydration and protects skin from outer harmful substances.
5 free system: no mineral oil, no benzophenone, no coloring, no animal oil, no animal test
 
Major ingredients:

• Arbutin - skin lightening
• 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
• Adenosine - helps prevent wrinkles, reduces UVB sun damage, increases the production of elastin and collagen reducing skin sagginess and improving tone
• Snail Muscus Filtrate -  protects skin from infection, reduces inflammation, effective in treating acne and scarring, anti-wrinkle
• Imperata Cylindrica Root Extract - optimizes and reinforces collagen synthesis, rich in potassium and therefore regulates the intercellular pressure and retain the water content in the skin
• Viscum Album (Mistletoe) Leaf Extract - a powerful antioxidant 

The ampolue comes in a 30ml glass bottle with glass pipette applicator, packed in golden cardboard box. The packaging is quite simple yet elegant, making it look like a high end product.

The ampoule itself is a clear, runny liquid with nice, but very subtle smell, I literally have to stick my nose into the bottle to smell it. It's only a little bit sticky when we try it between two fingers and doesn't feel sticky on the face at all. It is very lightweight and well moisturising, absorbs into skin very quickly. I have an oily skin and this works well both as an only moisturiser and underneath some cream. I use it all over my face, including eye area and I noticed a big improvement in my skin, especially under my eyes. I have problem with bags under my eyes since like always, tear through is very visible. After approx. 3 weeks of using this under my eyes I noticed great improvement in my skin elasticity, skin is firmer, appearance of the tear through improved. Of course my bags didn't completely go away, but there is an improvement :)

Price: from £9 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ lightweight
+ well moisturising
+ helps improve skin elasticity

Cons:
- the manufacturer doesn't say anywhere about how much snail muscus is actually in the product
- very opaque bottle, so we can't see how much of the product we got left

Snail + EGF Prestige Repairing Cream

Product description: Snail muscus filtrate acquired from nature keeps hydration and protects skin from outer harmful substances. Snail beauty ingredient penetrating through dermis, activating cell proliferation, reproducing damaged skin.
5 free system: no mineral oil, no benzophenone, no coloring, no animal oil, no animal test.

Key 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
• Arbutin - skin lightening
• Adenosine - helps prevent wrinkles, reduces UVB sun damage, increases the production of elastin and collagen reducing skin sagginess and improving tone
• Macadamia Seed Oil - contains Palmitoleic acid that is vital for delaying skin and cell aging, Oleic acid that has regeneration and moisturizing properties, Linoleic acid that helps to prevent skin water loss and Plant phytosterols that are calming and healing
• Birch sap - traditional herbal medicine that is antiseptic, anti-parasitic, anti-inflammatory
• Shea butter - helps with dry skin, eczema, skin problems; deep moisturizing, skin regeneration, skin healing properties.

Full ingredients: Purified water, Snail Secretion Filtrate, Macadamia Seed Oil, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Arbutin, Microcrystalline wax, Beeswax, Birch sap, Sodium Hyaluronate, Shea Butter, PEG-100 Stearate, Glyceryl Stearate, C14-22 Alcohol, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Polysorbate 60, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Human Oligopeptide-1, Adenosine, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Carbonate, Sodium Anisate, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance
Ingredients analysis [HERE]

  
 The cream comes in glass 50ml jar, packed in golden cardboard box. Packaging altogether is simple yet elegant, making it look like a high end product. I really like the lid of the jar, that is smooth and glossy on the top and rough and matte on the side, easy to grab and open. I know that a lot of people consider jar packaging as a unsanitary, but I like jars the most - I can always use up the whole product without the struggle. Just make sure you apply the cream with clean hands and you will be fine.

The cream has rich consistency and lovely smell, same like ampoule but much stronger - we can smell it immediately after opening the jar. Smell is hard to describe, it's a combination of floral and herbal notes, a little bit medicinal, but my nose likes it ;)
The cream is super moisturising, rich, but not oily. I have an oily skin and rather use it at nightime, but I used it couple of times in the morning and it was fine, I just had to be careful with amount used. I think people with normal/dry skin could easily use it both AM & PM.
As for the performance - this cream is my cosmetical discovery of the year. The first effects I noticed were after a week of PM use, on my neck & neckline. I have sensitive skin and skin allergy that makes my whole upper body dry and itchy. I am taking antihistamine, that helped a lot, but my neck and neckline were still very dry, after every shower I was literally runing from the bathroom to the bedroom to apply some moisturiser on my itchy skin. After week of using this Repairing Cream my skin calmed down, became well moisturised and smooth again. I honestly can not belive how good my skin is - now I can even ocasionally skip my neck moisturising in the evening and it will be still good in the morning. Miracle! I also notice improvement on my face, skin is smooth and well moisturised, no breakouts at all. My acne scars are still there, but I realize that I will take a long time for them to fade - that's just the nature of the acne scars.

Price: from £8 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ well moisturising
+ rich, but not greasy and not sticky
+ skin is so nice and smooth after it
+ lovely smell
+ a little goes a long way

Cons:
- for AM us on an oily skin I would recommend very little amount or just use some lighter product
- the manufacturer doesn't say how much of the snail secretion filtrate actually is in the product (in opposite to for example Mizon, where we can find percentage on the label)

Summing up: I really liked both of the products. I also use Secret Key Snail + EFG Cleansing Foam (review yet to come) and Secret Key Snail Repairing Gel, so I use ampoule + gel in the morning and foam + ampoule + cream in the evening. After couple of uses I noticed improvement in my skin moisture level, after couple of weeks elasticity of my skin improved. They are definitely good value for money - after I used them up I am planning to buy them again at least once, to see what they can do during long time use. I would strongly recommend them to anyone :)

Mizon All in One Snail Repair Cream & Snail Repair Intensive Ampoule

Snail secretion is known from it's regenerating properties. The story is that people working on snail farms discovered that any scratches or wounds on their hands were healing quicker when they were handling snails and then it ended up in cosmetics. I already reviewed my very first snail product - Mizon Snail Recovery Gel Cream, now I would like to follow it with reviews of two other Mizon's snail cosmetics.

The whole Mizon's snail line.

Mizon All in One Snail Repair Cream

Product description: The original snail mucus takes care of your all kind of skin problems in all in one skin care system on your first skin care step. It repairs tired and ageing skin, leaving it refreshed. It also the first protector of your naked skin.

The product comes in brown glass jar with capacity 75ml.

From the whole line, the All in One Repair Cream has the highest snail secretion content - 92%.
The cream is basically unscented and has kind of jelly-cream consistency. It is not sticky, but it kind of stretches, follows the finger a little bit:

It's the first skin care routine step, so it's very lightweight - absorbs in skin quickly and completely. After use skin is well moisturised, smooth and matte. For oily skin it may do the AM job on it's own, specially under some moisturising BB Cream, but for more thirsty skin it has to be followed with other moisturising product. A little goes a long way - the jar lasted for approx. three month of everyday use.

This cream is a great companion of Snail Recovery Gel. Gel provides more moisture and locks it into skin. For my oily skin this duo worked well, but I had to be careful with amount of gel I used - too much would make my skin feel a little bit heavy. If the right amounts were used creams worked well - didn't make my skin more oily. It also worked well for my acne - helped the skin to heal quicker. The only downside of the duo was that skin was shiny.

Price: from £10 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ very lightweight
+ absorbs quickly and completely
+ matte finish
+ a little goes a long way
+ skin is nice and smooth after use

Cons:
 - may be not moisturising enough used on it's own (but it's supposed to be used with other products, so it's not a real con).
- Recovery Gel on top of All in One is more shiny than on it's own

Ingredients: Snail secretion filtrate, cetearyl olivate, sorbitan olivate, cetearyl alcohol, stearic acid, glyceryl stearate, hydrogenate vegetable oil, dimethicone, triethanolamine, carbomer, butylene glycol, PEG/ppg-17/6 copolymer, polyacrylate-13, polyisobutene, polysorbate 20, sodium polyacrylate, caprylyl glyocol, ethylhexyglycerin, tropolone, adenosine, sodium hyaluronate, portulaca oleracea extract, betula platyphylla japonica juice, amica Montana flower extract, Artemisia absinthium extract, achillea milefolium extract, gentian lutea root extract, alcohol, camellia sinensis leaf extract, centella asiatica extract, copper tripeptide-1, human oligopeptide-1, propylene glycol, rubus idaeus (raspberry) fruit xtract, beta-glucan, palmitoyl pentapeptide-4, disodium edta
Ingredients analysis [HERE] 

Mizon Snail Repair Intensive Ampoule

Product description: High content of snail secretion filtrate and EGF* help skin regeneration and improve skin elasticity while moisturising skin.

*Epidermal Growth Factor -  an age-prevention ingredient that supports cell renewal and wound repair by stimulating cells to produce collagen.

The full size product is a 30ml glass bottle with pipette applicator. I was using set of ten sample sachets. One sachets lasts for two applications.

The product has consistency of very runny gel. It's clear and unscented. It has second biggest content of snail mucus in the line - 80%. During application there is some slimy feeling to it - it absorbs quite well and laves skin a little bit sticky, but this fades away when topped with another product.

I tried to use the ampule in as many combinations as possible, so:
- with All in One Cream - skin is a bit shiny, but well moisturised without heaviness, a little bit sticky but in pleasant way; the application of ampoule is much smoother and efficient on the top of All in One, than on bare skin
- with Snail Recovery Gel Cream - gel reduces the sticky feeling of ampule, skin is well moisturised; skin is very shiny, but not much oilier than usual; skin feel smooth, nourished and elastic; have to be careful with BB Cream - to heavy one on top of this two products will make skin oily
- with All in One Cream and Snail Recovery Gel Cream - skin very well moisturised, but shiny; for oily skin it may be too much for AM use; for PM use very pleasant combination - skin feels smooth and elastic in the morning.

Used on it's own ampule gives nice moisture boost to the skin and it's quite lightweight - it could be easily used with any cream. It also works on it's own, just under BB Cream - but only for not very thirsty skin.

Price: from £8 on e-Bay.

Pros:
+ nice moisture boost for skin
+ quite lightweight
+ can be used with any cream

Cons:
- a little bit sticky (however it goes away when topped with another product) 
- the whole line used together makes skin very shiny

Ingredients: Snail secretion filtrate, sodium, hyaluronate, butylene glycol, glycerin, alcohol, panthenol, glycereth-26, carbomer, triethanolamine, trehalose, copper tripeptide-1, human oligopeptide-1, palmitoyl pentaopeptide-4, cornus officinalis fruit extract, nelumbo  nucifera flower extract, caprylyl glycol, ethylhexylglycerin, tropolone, sodium polyacrylate, adenosine, coptis japonica extract, disodium edta
Ingredients analysis [HERE]

In general I think that Mizon's Snail Line is worth trying. Each product is interesting on it's own, but I think it's really worth to try them together to feel that "snail power" :D You can easily buy samples of All in One Cream and Ampule on e-Bay (sets of 10 for approx. £3) and the Recovery Gel is cheap enough in full size version (from £3) to give it a go.

Mizon Multi Function Formula Snail Recovery Gel Cream

It's time to review "the classic" - a skincare product, that probably everyone interested in Korean cosmetics has tested. It was my first Korean skincare product and it's influence on my skin trigged my interest in Korean cosmetics.

The phenomenon of Mizon's gel is snail secretion filtrate (74%), which has shooting and regenerating properties and can help skin heal. It also contains hialuronic acid, well known for it's moisturising properties and adenosine, which helps to keep skin elasticity. This gel-cream is recommended for people with various skin concerns; irritation, pigmentation, acne. I realise that putting something coming from snail on your face may gross you, but trust me, there is nothing disgusting or snaily about gel's consistency or smell. And it contains snail secretion filtrate, which means that secretion is processed (so it's not like someone squeezes the snail straight into the tube xD).

Product is a pink squeezy tube with 45ml capacity. It comes in pink cardboard box, sealed with Mizon's "genuine product" sticker. Capacity may seem quite small, however a little goes a long way - the amount shown on picture is well enough for the whole face, so one tube easily lasts for two months of everyday use.
The product is much closer to gel, than cream. It's whitish and semi-transparent with gel-like, light texture. It absorbs into skin a bit longer than some creams, but quick enough to not be annoying. It absorbs completely, doesn't leave sticky film on skin.

I used up two tubes of this product and on the beginning I was absolutely delighted, BUT after some time and when I started to test other Korean products I felt that Mizon's gel is missing something. But first I will focus on it's good sides.

It moisturises quite well, however we may feel some lack of moisture - putting two layers of the product helps and doesn't feel too heavy, which is good. The biggest pro of this gel is that it covers any dry patches very well. Currently I am using the second tube of the product and it's hard to tell if it helped with my acne, as I just started antibiotics treatment, but in general my skin condition improved very much and I think it's partly thanks to Mizon. After-spot redness is disappearing quicker and I'm sure it's thanks to this gel, as I haven't been using any other anti-acne, anti-scar or brightening products (now I just started Skin Food Tomato Whitening Serum). I certainly can recommend this product to anyone with acne-prone skin, oily, combination or normal complexion.

Now as it comes to cons of the product. Mizon's gel is supposed to be used with the whole line of products as the last step of skincare. It means, that other products from the line (the ones that we would put before the gel) are supposed to absorb and moisturise the skin, when the gel is supposed to stay on the top and protect the skin. The gel doesn't leave the feeling of film on the skin, however after some time of using it I started to feel that may skin is smooth and good looking on the outside, but underneath still feels a bit dehydrated. So for long term Mizon's gel is not good to be used as the only moisturising product, we need something else to support it. The gel contains silicon, so it's best to use it as a last step of skin care (the way it's supposed to be used). For people sensitive to silicon the good news is that silicone in Mizon's gel is Cyclopentasiloxane, kind of light silicone that evaporates from the skin.
Another downside, that causes my main issue with the product is that it leaves skin really shiny. So even if I decide to have make up free day I cannot bear leaving the house without at least a little dab of mattifying powder on my nose. The gel doesn't make me more oily, just more shiny...

Summing up: Mizon's gel is definitely worth trying, I think it's a great product to start the adventure with Korean cosmetics. It is also worth trying the rest of the line (reviews yet to come), like very popular All-in-one cream, which samples can be easily bought on e-Bay. But it's not perfect, so after using two tubes I am moving on to try some other snail gels :)

Price: from £4 on e-Bay.

The whole Mizon's Snail line.

Ingredients: Snail Secretion Filtrate, Butylene Glycol., Cyclopentasiloxane, Glycerin, Bis-ped-18 Methyl Etherl Dimetyl Silane, Polysorbate 10, Sodium Hyaluronate, Carbomer, Glycolsyl Trehalose, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolustate, Triethanolamine, Dimethicone/vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Dimethicone, Hydroxyethulcellusole, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylexylglyceriunm Sodium Polycarylate, Centellia Sinensis leaf Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Betula Platyphylla Japonica Jucie, Tropolone, Copper Tripeptide-1, Allantoin, Panthenol, Olea Europea (Olive) fruit oil, Heliantus Annus Seed Oil, Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4, Denosine, disodium Edta.