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Monday 31 January 2011

Lou's Reviews :: Battle of the Cleansers

Aloha Bloggerinos,

For the past few months, I have become somewhat obsessed with skin care. In my quest for beautiful skin, I have tried a few different cleansers/makeup removers and I thought I'd share my thoughts with you. I have actually already made my YouTube video on this, which you can see HERE.

 

Way back when in about November, I was given a little sample of a Lush Cleanser called 9 to 5, which claims to 'clean the skin thoroughly with a mild antibacterial action'. I totally used all the sample (I don't always do this if I'm not enthused. I was also given an 'UltraBland' sample but didn't really warm to it) and wanted more! Soooo, in the boxing day sale, I bought a bottle for half the original price. I was going to link you to Lush and tell you the rrp but as you may well know, the site has been hacked and is temporarily shut. I *THINK* 9 to 5 Cleanser is around the £6-7 mark for a smaller bottle.


Seeing as 9 to 5 is infused with orchid oil and everlasting flower, it really does have the most soothing yummy effect on the skin.

To achieve this I wet a piece of cotton wool pleat, squish it down so it's damp, not soaking, squib on some cleanser (yes, squid) and gently rub onto my face. A lot of makeup comes off with this step, but then I take another damp cotton wool pleat with no cleanser on and rinse. I can't describe the soothingness, but it feels really calming.

It's great for taking skin makeup off but I found it struggled with my eye makeup. I think if you are a gal that only wears a light dusting of eyeshadow and a slick of mascara, you might be ok, but for my primer, shadow, eyeliner and looooadddsa mascara'd kind of eyes, it's no match. Sad times. Because if this flaw, I only use this in the mornings to kind of pep my skin up and to cleanse it of general impurities, not as a makeup remover. Or sometimes, I just use it for a little skin treat :)


As always with Lush, packaging is spot on. Sleek, unique to Lush, enjoyable to have on display in your bathroom and I enjoy that it has a small opening so you can control the flow of product, preventing mess.

In the absense of the UK site, you can check out the Lush USA site HERE.

Next up on my little quest for cleany clean skin is the MAC Pro Eye Makeup Remover which retails at £13.50 for the big 100ml bottle. I was actually sent a sample with a little postal order I made a few months back and had been saving it.

I used it all, so far so good. I had high hopes for this little number, especially since my opinion of a lot of other MAC Products is uber high, but sadly I was a bit let down. It claims to be a 'mega effective remover that lifts off every look', but as with the Lush Cleanser, I found it didn't really remove all my eyemakeup. I will be fair though and say that the sample was really teensy, so I wasn't overly generous with how much I put on the cotton wool pleat, and also I dampened the cotton wool, thus diluting the remover a bit.


I really liked the fragrance of this, not chemically but just pleasantly clean. This is a really winner for me because I am ultra fussy about smells. I also found it left my sensitive skin calm and happy, which isn't always the case with makeup removers.

I won't really go too far into this one as I don't think I had enough to fully give a fair opinion on it but I would say it's OK, but not something I will be buying soon. It works alright, but unlike the Lush 9 to 5, it doesn't make my skin smile.

On a side note, have you tried the makeup wipes from MAC- wowzas I bloomin' love them! I wish I had some of those to review for you because it would be smiles all round :)

You can check it out for yourself HERE.

Last but by no means least, is the hero of the hour. This is the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser Kit- phewf what a mouthfull!


The idea with this is to squirt a little bit of the product (which comes out as a smooth, rich, white cream) onto your fingers, massage into dry skin, then using a wet with warmed/hot water muslin cloth (2 are provided in the kit), remove (or 'polish off') the massaged in cream and it takes away all makeup and impurities.

At first I was quite sceptical about this product. Yes, I too have read a lot about it on other blogs, but I couldn't see how this white creamy stuff would manage to get off all my eyemakeup/how my eyes wouldn't sting after having something massaged into the lashes. I was wrong. Oh so wrong. This is a remover of kings I tell thee.

I could go on all day about this item but I'll try and just keep it short with what I love about it.

It is uber gentle on my skin. I haven't felt tight/dry/irritated, just fresh as a daisy. I think this may well be down to the fact that it is 'plant based'. Winner.

It has a really refreshing scent to it. As I have said a million times before, I am super fussy about fragrances but this just smells really zingy and fresh. It took me about a week to work out it was the eucalyptus. Love it.

In the kit, which retails for £13.25, you get the 100ml bottle, 2 generous sized muslin clothes and a cute pastel green wash bag to keep it in. I was really glad of the 2 clothes because it means you can have one in the wash and still use your cleanser. Top tip- Don't be a fool and put your cloth in with your jeans...unless you like baby blue. Top Fact- I read somewhere tha Kylie Minogue uses muslins to remove her makeup and look at her skin- Flawless!


The packaging is very bathroom friendly. Pastel green, sophisticated and grown up. The bottle has a pump top, preventing wastage and contamination. I only use one or two pumps a night, so hopefully this will last a while.

It removes ALL my makeup!!!!!!!!! Even dark bases like MAC SharkSkin Shadestick can't fight this.

It's pretty fair to say that I am a convert and will buying this over and over, for richer for poorer, til death us do part.

I urge you to have a look at this little wonder, HERE.

Have you tried any of these products or do you have something that you lovity love? Let me know :)

Toodlepip!

xx

Little Disclaimer- Liz Earle Cleanser was sent to me to review, but as I'm not paid by them or anything serious like that, I give you Bloggerinos my honest opinion and thoughts. Woop woop.

20 comments:

  1. I have been using the No7 version of Liz Earle & I do like it but I will def try out the Liz Earle!!

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  2. Nice post! I also got the sample of the MAC eye makeup remover a lil while back and was let down, it's deffo not something I'd ever bother buying the full size of! Plenty of drugstore products out there do the same thing for much less, and sometimes even better!

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  3. I've tried so many different eye make-up removers and none of them have worked as well as Liz earles cleanse & polish and eye bright :) xxx

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  4. I've been meaning to do a post like this for so long! I have a massive collection of cleansers, and I can tell the outcome is going to be the same as yours as I have recently bought Liz Earle cleanser and I am in love.
    Definitely going to do an entire post dedicated to how amazing the products are. Also, I really want to try the Lush cleanser too. It's so sad about their website! :(
    Awesome post :) http://gh0stparties.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. i haven't tried the liz earle but i have tried the no7 and the soap and glory versions and they are both amazing at removing makeup.

    i got the little mac samples too but i tend to just keep them on my makeup table and use them with a cotton bud to clean up mistakes and it works really well for that

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  6. Great post, im a huge fan of Liz Earle's products I love the cleanse and polish. All the other products are fantastic too xx

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  7. Leave it to M.A.C. huh?
    I am a huge fan of Clinique's cleanser - I've been using it for years. Except on those nights when I can't give a care to do the 'routine' and just need to flop to sleep!

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  8. I love the Liz Earle hot cloth, amazingly good.

    xx

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  9. Oh dammit I keep hearing amazing reviews of Liz Earle and i know I'll have to try and then I know I love it but I'm poor! :P
    9 to 5 sounds great too!
    My favourite cleanser is the Body Shops Passionfruit cleanser from their originals range. it smells AMAZING and leaves my skin feeling really really soft and smooth. I haven't tried it with really really heavy makeup like a shadestick but it removes highly pigmented eyeshadow and thick mascara with no problems!

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  10. I'm bad because I always just use wet wipes! But I'm being really tempted by the liz earle cleanser. It sounds lovely! :)

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  11. i really need to purchase the Liz Earle cleanse & polish. I've seen so many good reviews but still haven't got around to buying it! xx

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  12. great review! love hearing what you think about things you put it so well =) i have just started using liz earle and its love at first cleanse! :P xx

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  13. The only plus point I have for my frankly overpriced mac make-up remover is this: if I clean up a mistake around my eye make-up, I can then go straight on there with more make-up.

    When I used the clinique half oil half liquid mixy-mixy remover (that's clearly it's technical name) this made fixing mistakes more difficult....

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  14. Hey love -

    I've nominated you for a blog award :D

    http://nude-obsession.blogspot.com/2011/02/youre-one-awesome-blog-award.html

    xx

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hiiii.
    Great review, I really wanted to try the Lush Cleansers and Toners for a while, but I might pick one up now.

    Rebecca from http://beautyandshoppingaddict.blogspot.co.uk/

    ReplyDelete
  16. After trying numerous skincare products, I stumbled upon this Ayurvedic face scrub, and it's a game-changer. The Ayurvedic principles infused in this face scrub bring a sense of harmony to my skincare routine.

    ReplyDelete
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    ReplyDelete
  18. As a guy who's always struggled with dull skin, I can't thank Face Scrub for Men enough for the incredible results it's given me. My complexion has never looked better, and I finally feel confident in my skin. Trust me, this product is worth every penny!"

    ReplyDelete
  19. As someone with sensitive skin, finding the best face wash for men was a game-changer for me. Its gentle formula soothes and calms my skin while effectively removing dirt and impurities. I couldn't be happier with the results!

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  20. I've tried a lot of different face washes in the past, but none compare to the best face wash for men. Its gentle yet powerful formula effectively removes impurities and leaves my skin feeling clean, refreshed, and revitalized. I'm beyond impressed with the results!

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Thank you for comment!
Sprinkleofglitter xxx

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