Review: The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil

I’m on the hunt for my Holy Grail of face cleansers, and am simultaneously on a buying ban.
No problem, when I cleaned Miss K’s and my communal bathroom, I hit the jackpot.
We belong on an episode of Hoarders, I swear that I uncovered almost 20 different face cleansers, some of which had not been opened, along with tons of masques, and enough shampoo and conditioner to last the next 6 months.
We have a tiny bathroom, so the fact that this was all stashed in there was impressive; most of it had been “put away” and forgotten about.

But enough about our terrible housekeeping, onto the review.

I am very lucky in that my days of pimples are 98% behind me; on the occasion I do get a pimple, it is just one, and its usually nothing too dramatic.  I’m putting this down to a combination of BC and an actual face care routine (Dear 16y.o me, moisturiser is your friend)
But I need something that is going to keep my face feeling and looking fresh, without upsetting it, or making it oily or dry. Working in food means that I often come home feeling a bit gross, and need something that will make me feel human again.

I tend to opt for gentler cleansers, and the popularity of the Oil Cleansing Method (OCM) has meant a large number of oil cleansers hitting the shelves, one of which is The Body Shop’s Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil.

This product retails for $26.95 for 200mls at The Body Shop; of course my purchasing it O.S on sale meant I only paid about $8 for it.
So would I purchase this at full price?

It smells very vaguely of camomile, as the name would suggest, but it’s not enough fragrance to bother the sensitive. It contains synthetic and natural emollients; whereas the oil cleansers I have used previously have been 100% natural oils, so the texture of this is slightly thinner than I would have expected from an “oil”

Ingredients:

Glycine Soja Oil/Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil , Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil/Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil , Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil/Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil , C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride , Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Isohexadecane , Polysorbate 85 , Sorbitan Trioleate, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil/Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil , Octyldodecanol , Parfum/Fragrance , Linalool , Tocopherol, Limonene, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil, Citric Acid .

It’s easy to use, simply apply to dry skin, and add water to emulsify and cleanse. (I personally prefer putting it on a warm wet facecloth and using that on my face) It’s claim is that it can even remove waterproof makeup, whilst providing a gentle cleanse. Unfortunately, this cleanser struggles to remove any eye makeup; but it is great at gently removing foundation.
As it claims, it provides a gentle clean, keeping the skin free of impurities. My skin has stayed looking clear, but I have felt on some nights that I needed that little bit extra, and used an additional product or a face scrub.
In all honesty, I think that this is a nice way to remove light makeup before a heavy duty cleanser, or as a cleanser for when your skin is very sensitive. If you’re into double cleansing, I think this would be an excellent first cleanser, again to gently remove makeup and residue from your day.
At $26.95 however, I can think of several other similar products that are cheaper, and possibly more effective cleansers. An upside to the price is that you need very little, one pump of this will do your whole face. I’ve been using it for over a month, and haven’t even used up a third of the bottle.
If you can get this at a good price, and you’re looking for a very gentle cleanse, go for it. But this certainly is not making it onto my holy grail product list.

Have you tried this or the OCM? Let me know your favourite oil cleansing products in the comments!

-Miss A

 

 

Review: Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water

Hey!

Apologies for the lack of posts, our planned once a week posting schedule has been interrupted by our university commitments. We will get better!

So, onto today’s post. I want to talk about the latest addition to my skincare routine. Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water is Garnier’s take on the ever popular Bioderma Micellar Water.

This bad boy claims to 1)Remove Makeup 2) Cleanse and 3) Soothe. It also claims to have approximately 200 uses in one bottle. I bought it because I needed a lip friendly makeup remover that wasn’t going to murder my bank account.

First impression: I used this initially to just remove my makeup before cleansing my face at night, and holy heck is it effective. One cotton pad soaked in this stuff will take off my everyday makeup (Foundation, Setting Powder, Blush, Non-Waterproof Mascara)

One month down the track: I use this everyday, usually before I cleanse for the night, but sometimes additionally as a replacement for my toner on sensitive days. I use it to remove my makeup, it does take a little work to remove heavy/waterproof eye makeup, but is a gentle and effective remover.

My skin is reacting super well to the inclusion of this to my routine; it doesn’t mess with my oil production, and allows for a slightly gentler cleanse if I think toner is a bad idea. There is no fragrance, and no nasties that may aggravate sensitive skin.

At $11.99 for 400mls it is certainly friendlier on the wallet than many alternatives; and judging by my usage over the last month, this will get me very close to the advertised 200 uses.

I can highly recommend this if you’re in the market for a new toner, or a super face friendly makeup remover

Have you tried this, or any other cleansing waters? What was your experience?

Until next time

-Miss A