Fail Products - Olay Regenerist Specialty Cleanser

Hello Princesses!

Today I'm going to be talking about the Olay Regenerist Specialty Cleanser! This mechanical cleansing brush is said to be a much more affordable version of the infamous Clarisonic cleansers (which I have not yet trialled!) so why is it in my Fail Products review list?

I purchased this product at the start of 2014 with the intention to use it after I had finished my course of acne medication for a fair review. I (of course) then forgot all about it for a little while since I stashed it away so successfully, and only rediscovered it in October. This set cost me $40NZD when I first purchased it, although I think you can purchase these a lot cheaper now.

The set comes with a brush head, cleansing system, trail tube of cleanser and two disposable batteries. This isn't rechargeable like the Clarisonic is supposed to be, which makes it a little less environmentally friendly.

It's a good size for my small hands and has two pressable buttons. The top button is the power button to turn the device on and off, the lower is to slow the speed of brush rotation.

The brush head rotates like so. I realize that you can't really take much from this photo, but it's here anyway!

So why is this a fail product? Simply because it didn't do anything for my skin that my regular The Body Shop cleansing cloth ($8NZD) doesn't do. In fact, it feels worse for my skin than the cleansing cloth does because it really tugs at my skin, as in I can visually see my skin being tugged and it feels like I'm sandpapering my face. Having said that, I used this brush twice a week for a month and I saw neither positive nor negative results.

What I Love

- Inexpensive (in comparison to the Clarisonic)

- No negative impact on skin

- Easy to use

What I Don't Love

- Not environmentally friendly with disposable batteries

- No positive impact on skin

- Tugs skin excessively, potentially causing loss of skin elasticity (theory only)

Final Thoughts

I really disliked using this cleansing brush, it tugged at my skin and felt really rough and wrong to use. I haven't actually seen many negative reviews on this product so it could be that my skin is too sensitive, or that it just doesn't really work for me. It's a well priced product, so if it works for you then that's great! ^.^

Have you tried this product? Did it work well for you, or like me was it a complete failure?

Review: Olay Essentials Skincare

Hello Princesses!

Today I'm going to be talking about some skincare that I've had for a little while and truly thought nothing of until I tried to clean out my skincare closet (it's pretty full). I trialed this set for a month and rediscovered my love hate relationship with it all over again. I wasn't even initially going to make this post because I thought the products had been discontinued!

I bought this set of four products from an online "deal" website that often brings in products from outside of New Zealand. They were really cheap, I think about $20 for the set (cleansers retail for $20 in NZ) and Olay was a brand that I was very familiar with having had one of their moisturizers since I was 13!

Honestly, I only like two out of the four products, but I really really like them, which is why I'm featuring them here! Lets get the two average products out of the way first.

Gentle Cleanser - Refreshing Face Wash

This cleanser has a pleasant fresh scent and is easy to lather into fluffy bubbles. However it is a really gentle cleanser, so gentle that it doesn't really feel like it's doing anything at all, and my face still feels dirty afterwards. What's the point in using a cleanser that doesn't cleanse? 

Refreshing Toner - Normal/Dry/Combo

This toner isn't bad, and for $5 it's actually quite good. However I have been quite spoilt with a Shiseido toner for too long to look back now. It sounds amazingly elitist, but once you try expensive skincare it's quite hard to go back to the cheaper stuff. I can totally appreciate the gems out of the cheap skincare or cheap Korean Skincare (which is a whole different ball game) but this Toner just didn't cut it for me. 

Conditioning Milk - Normal/Dry/Combo

This is one of the cheap skincare gems. This conditioning milk is the best friend of the campers or lazy girls that can't be bothered cleaning their skin at night, or don't want to take off their makeup, because it cleanses and moisturizes at the same time, all without the need for water. Simply massage the conditioning milk onto your face and remove with a wet or dry cotton pad. If you're using it as a makeup remover I would recommend using a cleanser afterwards (just to be sure) or do the same step twice to get the best cleanse. It leaves the skin looking clean and plump and you can pop straight off to bed after those simple steps. Awesome.

Eye Makeup Remover - Normal/Dry/Combo

This is another awesome product. The main awesome point is that it takes everything off your eyes (including the Benefit They're Real line) gently, doesn't seep into your eyes like oil based cleansers do or leave your eyes feeling greasy like wax based removers (I'm looking at your Ultrabland!) It's one of my favorite makeup removers, I'm just about of the tube and it's not available in New Zealand. :C

If you can get a hold of this line of skincare I would definitely recommend the Conditioning Milk and Eye Makeup Remover, because they are seriously great products for very little money!

I hope you Princesses enjoyed this super short, to the point review! Are these products available in your home countries?