Bath Junkies: Return To Innocence

Good evening bellas!

I recently bought my very first Bath Junkies product from BeautyMNL. I've been using this product for about 2 weeks now and here are my thoughts on it.

Before I go on about their product, here's a little information on the brand as described in BeautyMNL.

Bath Junkies is the first local bath and body brand to compete globally! Their line of soaps, scrubs, bath gels, colognes, cleansers, toners, sanitizers, and sunscreens contain both mood-lifting essential oils and skin-nourishing actives. And you won’t find toxic ingredients here—Bath Junkies is a natural brand. The best part? Each of its products are bundled up in pretty, pretty packaging with a bohemian beach vibe.

Packaging:

I can't really agree with the Bohemian vibe description since the first time I saw the product online I immediately remembered babies. To me, the design of the labels was more an appeal to my more innocent days and memories.

The pump bottle design is also good however, since this company claims to be an all-natural brand, you'd think they'd proudly announce the lack of chemicals in their products by listing them down and giving more details on their product. Nowadays, a lot of people have different things that they are allergic to and it'd be risky for them to just go ahead and believe a certain brands' claim of being organic. I think they should provide the list of their ingredients so consumers can be guided.

Product:

The facial wash is a clear transparent light amber colored fluid. Not too viscous, and non-sticky. It lathers quickly but does not lather too much. It's non-drying on the face nor is it itchy after use. The product smells like peppermint which is reminiscent of candy canes (Christmas feels). The peppermint adds a cooling sensation when the product is being applied/rubbed on your face and during rinse.

I wouldn't really recommend this for individuals with sensitive skin. As I said earlier, there is a lack in disclosure of the ingredients so there's a fair warning that it may contain some of the chemicals or organic materials that you are allergic. Also, as convention would state, gentle, hypoallergenic washes usually do not have any smell and are very bland looking to minimize adding more chemicals to these products.

Skin Changes during use:

So far, I haven't seen any break outs from using this product. My dermatitis also did not flare up. The cooling effect of the product leaves a feeling of an uplifted and refreshed face though I don't really see it when I look in the mirror.

Price and Availability:

It's a great purchase though one I wouldn't do again. It's Php 220 pesos for a 114 ml bottle which for me is a little expensive. For now the product is only available online through BeautyMNL and their facebook page. I have not found any other sites though but if you know any, then please don't hesitate to share with me and others in the comments.

Well those are my thoughts on this product. I want our local products to gain a larger attention so I hope I have helped in their improvement. 

Cheers,

LIZ

The Body Shop Seaweed Deep Cleansing Facial Wash

Good day ladies,

I just want to share with you a brief review on The Body Shop Seaweed Deep Cleansing Facial Wash.

According to TBS's site, this product is:

A mild, oil-free and soap-free highly foaming cleansing gel that effectively deep cleanses to clear open pores and rinse away excess oils, make-up, impurities and daily grime. Leaves the skin feeling cleansed and purified.

I really like how clean this product is packaged. It looks so chic and refreshing.

The same goes to the product itself. It's a clear, syrup-y liquid that smells similar to aloe vera (for me that is). It lathers up quick but not as foamy as other standard facial wash, and since the product has menthol in it, it has a cooling effect on the face, especially around the eyes.

My sister and I have been using this product for about a month and so far, it's done a good job. My sister's face look smoother now, and her break outs are less. Sorry that I had not been able to take a picture of her face.

As for it's cleaning ability, it does the job of removing dirt and make-up residue on my face. Do know that I usually wipe off the bulk of my make-up with a good make-up remover before washing it with this. I use toner afterwards and there's no dirt or make-up residue left on the cotton. So I'm fairly happy about the product's performance. Also, what I love about this product is that your face does not feel dried out after washing.

I do believe it's a great facial wash for this summer. It's a little pricey at around 600-700 a bottle but if you use it wisely and save up for it, you'd be able to have enough before you even finish a bottle.

The Body Shop's Sale is still ongoing until June 3. Hope you can catch up on their great deals.

Cheers,

LIZ

Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Cream Cleanser

Hello loves!

The weather is dryer than usual so I bet some of you are concerned with their skin condition. I have oily skin so the dry air isn't much of a problem for me but some of my friends with dry skin are experiencing some flaking on skin so as much as possible, they need to use stronger moisturizers for better hydration. Some would add more products like serums in their skincare regimen. But there are some skincare products than can cause your skin further dryness. Some cleansers can dry the skin up because it takes away the natural oils of the skin, but we can't help but wash our face because we expose our skin to the pollutions of Manila.

That's why I'm thankful that there are products like the...

Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Cream Cleanser

You can get this for Php 795.00 at Beauty Bar. This product was sent to me last Christmas from the brand. I wasn't familiar with this particular product before I received it so I was excited to try this out.

It's housed in a tube which makes it easy to squeeze the product out. I like cleansers in tubes so I won't have a hard time shaking the product out, gravity will just do that for you. Design-wise, it looks very clean which is very apparent in Burt's Bees product package design.

Here are the labels on the packaging:

And more info from the Burt's Bees website:

Our cream cleanser proves nature can create the most remarkable of things. Inspired by the Clary Sage plant's ability to trap and retain moisture in its harsh environment, our natural cleanser hydrates your skin while leaving it super soft and oh-so supple. Clinically proven to provide intense hydration* your skin will not only drink in all the good but keep it in. How's that for a beautiful clean?

• Intensely hydrates dry skin

• Removes dirt, oil and make-up. 

• Enhanced with probiotic technology . 

• Dermatologist Tested and Noncomedogenic. 

• When used as part of the 5-step Burt's Bees Intense Hydration regimen.

How to Use:

Wet face and apply cleanser with fingertips or a wet washcloth, massaging gently and avoiding contact with the eye area. Rinse thoroughly. Pat skin dry. For best results, follow with Intense Hydration Day Lotion or Intense Hydration Night Cream.

Ingredients:

Featured Ingredient

Clary Sage — Clary Sage thrives in its harsh Mediterranean environment due to its ability to trap and retain moisture. This remarkable botanical inspired Burt's Bees Intense Hydration, our natural ode to soft, supple skin.

aqua (water, eau), stearic acid, glycerin, sodium lauroyl glutamate, zea mays (corn) starch, ricinus communis (castor) seed oil, parfum (fragrance)*, citrus aurantium dulcis (orange) oil, salvia sclarea (clary) extract, lactobacillustheobroma grandiflorum seed butter, cera alba (beeswax, cire d'abeille), cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, olea europaea (olive) fruit oil, jojoba esters,hydrolyzed jojoba esters, citrus medica limonum (lemon) peel oil citrus aurantium amara (bitter orange) peel, polymnia sonchifolia root juice, zinc oxide, alpha-glucan oligosaccharide, propanediol, maltodextrin, tocopherol, xanthan gum, glycine soja (soybean) oil, arginine sodium lauroyl lactylate, potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate, phenoxyethanol, amyl cinnamal, citral, eugenol, hydroxycitronellal, limonene, linalool. _x000D_*natural fragrance_x000D_

It has a fruity scent and the consistency of this product is thick and creamy that doesn't lather. It sorta reminds me of a light lotion or a moisturizer actually. Haha! I don't find the experience of rubbing this cleanser on my face pleasant because I'm used to having my cleansers foam up. I feel like the product is thick and that it didn't remove all the excess oil and dirt off my face. But once I use toner, the cotton wasn't dirty at all, meaning it took care of most of the dirt and makeup on my face (I still use a makeup remover prior cleansing but this can actually act as a makeup remover too). So it's actually a good and gentle facial cleanser! And my face doesn't have any dry feeling at all and it feels softer.

I do recommend this cleanser, especially if you have dry skin. The performance is really good and it smells great too (if you don't mind scented facial products)! But if you're used to foaming cleansers than cream ones, then you might feel a bit annoyed because of the heavy feeling while using it (at least that's how I felt). I hope you can try it before you buy it just to be safe. :)

And that's my short review! If you've tried the Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Cream Cleanser, let me know what you think of it! :D

Cheers,

DAWN

A Month with The Body Shop's Tea Tree Skincare Range

Hey lovelies!

It's skincare talk again. I have mentioned before my fixation on taking care of my skin better. I began focusing on skincare last year because I have been dealing with my troubled skin for more than a decade now and I just want to clear my skin as much as I can (afford) because I am very tired of using concealer and hiding my skin. I have experimented with different brands and products and I have shared the good ones and some bad ones. Even though I have tried good ones, I'm still looking for those that suit my skin better. I am still willing to try products that look promising.

I was approached by someone from The Body Shop and asked me if I was willing to try and review their Tea Tree range. This line is catered for those with blemished skin like me so I immediately agreed to do it. I have tried almost all of the products from the line but not at the same time. I have mostly good reviews on them so what more if I use them altogether right?

So for the past month, I have been using these products from The Body Shop...

What you can expect from these six products are the cooling sensation that feels so refreshing on skin. The tea tree scent also gives you that very clean feeling (I dunno if you like the tea tree scent but I'm just a fan of it). Anyway, I will show you later what my bare face looked like every week, but before that, here are the products and my quick thoughts about them:

 Tea Tree Squeaky-Clean Scrub (review here)

Tea Tree Cool and Creamy Wash (review here)

These are the products I use to cleanse my face. I use the scrub twice-thrice a week every morning while for other days, I use the cool and creamy wash.

Tea Tree Skin Clearing Toner

I use this twice a day, every morning and evening. I love this toner because it feels so refreshing! Whenever I use this, I feel like my skin is super clean. After cleansing and then applying this, when I look at my cotton pad, it shows how well the products clean your face after a long day of wearing makeup. 

For those pesky zits, I use the Tea Tree Oil to help tame the inflammation and quickly get rid of the pimples. Even though it's categorized as oil, it doesn't feel oily. It has a very thin consistency, it gets absorbed by skin fast, and it has a cooling sensation! I use this every night.

Of course we can't forget about moisturization. Even if I have oily skin, it's important to hydrate the skin, especially at night. This Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion feels so light on skin and it feels so cool! I use this twice a day, morning and night.

 For my makeup, my base is the Tea Tree Flawless BB Cream (review here) then I just add some concealer and powder on top (I prefer a mineral powder for extra coverage).

And now, for the best part of the post, the pictures of my face after every week of using the products. Here you'll see how effective the products are on my skin...

Excuse my horrible makeup-less makeup. I am doing this for the honest-to-goodness review (you better appreciate this because it took all my courage to post these). Haha!

WEEK 1:

Dark spots are very visible and you can also see new pimples and their redness. :P

 WEEK 2:

 Barely any difference but less redness on the pimples.

WEEK 3:

Barely any redness and dark spots are starting to clear. I still get some small zits here and there though.

WEEK 4:

Dark spots are significantly lighter! Yay!

For the whole month I used these, my skin felt very hydrated even if I was focusing on getting rid of my blemishes. From the pictures, you can see how my skin got better. It didn't improve in an instant. It took time to see the difference but I am happy that it looks better now, especially since I have been stressed lately and lack sleep. I actually feel better when it's skincare time because after a long day, I can refresh my face with the products... I really love the cooling factor!!

And that is my report regarding the one month progress of my skin using The Body Shop Tea Tree Range.

What are your thoughts about the products?

Cheers,

DAWN

Etude House Every Month Cleansing Foam (Tea Tree) No. 6

Hey loves!

Every single one of us has skin issues that we have to address. That's why many brands create different skincare products for us to use to take care of those problems. To tell you the truth, I used to have a hard time picking which product to use. I was shy to ask for instructions from beauty assistants back then and it took me a while before I learned the basics to skincare.

But good news to all my fellow Etude House lovers for Etude House has came up with a products that has 12 variants that address different skin concerns.

A few weeks ago, I was received this cleanser that is made for troubled skin. I was thrilled to know that because I do have troubled skin and this cleanser, equipped with Tea Tree, can help me with that problem.

Cleansers are important for proper skincare. We have to make sure that we clean our face especially before going to sleep. We use this daily so it's better that we use something that suits our skin and Etude House is bringing us just that. Check out their 12 Every Month Cleansing Foams:

(The photos below were from Etude House PH's Facebook Page)

So take your pick of which one is best for your skin. I'm sure there's one waiting for you from the 12 variants! And what's even better is that these 100ml cleansing foams are only  Php 198.00!

As for the one I got, the No. 6 Tea Tree, it works pretty good in making my face clean after a whole day at work with makeup on. I still use makeup removers, especially for the waterproof eye makeup. After that, this cleansing foam does the trick on cleaning up the rest of the makeup I have on.

The scent is the usual tea tree scent. Very herb-y smell that is quite refreshing in my opinion. I believe that each variant has a different scent. Now I'm curious to check each of them out!

This foams up pretty well too. Just a small amount can cover your whole face. Awesome!

This is how the product looks but I believe each cleansing foam looks different from the other depending on what skin type it caters to. Some are gel-like while some are cream type like the one I have.

So why not check out these cleansing foams from Etude House? I'm sure there is one to your liking. They are very affordable and they also effectively clean your face without causing any dryness to your skin! :)


Cheers,

DAWN

Review: Physiogel Cleanser

Good evening ladies,

It's been exactly 5 months since I started using Physiogel Hypoallergenic Cleanser as my facial wash and make-up remover so I am more or less able to give you an extensive review on my experience with the product.

At first, I really thought the bottle won't last me very long. This very slim 300 ml, at first glance made me think that this bottle would be finished in 2 months. But here we are, 5 months after and there's still about 1/5 left, enough to last for at least the next month I hope.

I will not contest Physiogel's medical claims as far as being hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic is concerned because of two reasons:

1. My dermatology rotation proved it to me

2. I never had any pimple outbreaks attributable to the product (I'm not saying I never had outbreaks, but most of my pimple problems were stress related).

The cleanser has a light white/cloudy white color with a semi-viscous consistency and like the lotion, leaves a thin film-like feel over the skin. The skin feels very smooth immediately after use as a  cleanser. As a make-up remover, it works well when removing my daily make-up but since I don't usually use very heavy formulated make-up, nor do I use a lot of waterproof make-up, so I cannot comment on how good it takes those off. Personally, I prefer using it over the oil type removers on the face simply because it's non greasy but  prefer the water-based removers for the eyes over this.

But the thing I love the most about it is that it helps retain a lot of moisture on my face. I say this because my face has this automatic moisture meter. A few years before, whenever I forget to put moisturizer on my face or it's winter, or it's just plain dry, my dermatitis act up and my face gets itchy in certain parts then red then they start to scale. However, from the time I started using this, I haven't had any of those problems. Sure, because of the stress one or two areas may start getting red and itchy, but as compared to the ones I used to have, they weren't as itchy, they weren't as big, they weren't as many and they did not last longer than 2 days. I used to need to put steroids over the affected area for 7-10 days but now, I've never once used it. Even when I get lazy in putting moisturizer on my face everyday or even if I've missed putting for about 2 weeks, I've never had to deal with my dermatitis acting up.

Sorry that I could not upload any pictures of my face before and of the current state of my skin since I have been too busy to take pictures of my not so very glamorous face. I hope you guys try Physiogel though, especially for those with sensitive skin. It is a little more expensive than the usual soaps but the way it takes care of your skin makes up for it's cost.

Well, that's it for this short review. Hope I was informative and you found this helpful.

Cheers,

LIZ

The Body Shop Tea Tree Cool and Creamy Wash

Hey loves!

The Body Shop has a new product coming up! Lucky for me, I got the pleasure of trying it out even before its release date! :)

The Body Shop Tea Tree Cool and Creamy Wash

I received mine last Thursday and been using it to keep my skin clean and fresh!

I was excited to try this out since my skin is blemish-prone. I think this suits me so well. I've tried quite a few products from their Tea Tree line and they have performed well on me.

Read the description below if you would like to learn more on this new product:

(Just click the image to enlarge)

Here's the front and back of the product:

I prefer my facial washes in tube form since it's easier to get the product out and you can make sure that you get to finish up all everything inside.

 And of course, it contains ingredients that are included in The Body Shop's Community Fair Trade which helps different communities in various parts of the world.

On to my thoughts on this product:

It is thick and white with a slight tint of mint green but barely noticeable in my pic...

Here's a shot from the Press Release:

The scents is very... herby! If you have smelled any item from their Tea Tree Line, then that's exactly how it smells. LOL 

It doesn't foam up when you use it. You just massage it on your face and you will begin to feel the cooling sensation which is totally awesome! I love it since it makes me feel so refreshed! It's just perfect for the crazy weather in the Philippines nowadays.

After washing it off, you feel so clean and refreshed. Even when I use my toner, you don't see dirt on my cotton pad anymore. It does the job of cleaning my face after a long day!

For the 5 days I have been using it, I didn't encounter breakouts nor skin irritations. It didn't dry my skin too. I love it! I just wonder if it would work so much better if my skin care composed of more tea tree line from The Body Shop! Hmmm...

Anyway, that's all for my quick review!

The Body Shop's Tea Tree Cool and Creamy Wash will be available in stores in July 5, 2013. It's RRP is Php 395.00 only so hurry and grab one!!

Cheers,

DAWN

The Face Shop Herb Day 365 Aloe Cleansing Foam

Happy Friday, guys!

The days are dropping by so fast. I can't believe it's been almost 6 weeks since my sister arrived from AU for a vacation. I've also been unemployed for 2 months now! Haha! But I still do some extra work here and there. :P

Oh well. Such is life. 

Still, we have to live our days as productive and fulfilling as possible.

Also, make it fun and and exciting, right?

Anyway, why am I saying such things... being mellow dramatic perhaps?

Let me just give you a quick review of a product I use daily, which even if the days go by fast, it will not get empty so soon.

The Face Shop Herb Day 365 Aloe Cleansing Foam

I'm not sure how much I bought it. I apologize for that.

This is a 170ml tube. 

Here are product details from the website:

Description:

A mild, natural cleanser, which contains nine herbs and fresh aloe ingredients providing moisture after cleansing

Application:

Get adequate amount for foam. Gently place it all over the face and rinse it off with clean water

Here's the list of ingredients:

And has a lifespan of a year.

The appearance of the product is milky white.

Smells good too. 

When you wash your face with it, it gets really foamy. I like that feeling when I wash my face. :P

When I rinse it off, I really feel like my face is so clean. It really gets rid of the oil and dirt on my face. 

 I remove my makeup with my usual makeup remover and wash my face with this cleansing foam once and when I use my toner to test if there are a some makeup left, I get a clean cotton ball!

This cleansing foam never made me feel that my skin is dry! It's safe for everyday use, probably why it's called "365" so that you use it 365 days every year.

I think The Face Shop has 5 more flavours of cleansing foam we could still try out.

Have you tried those yet?

Cheers!

DAWN