Review: The Body Shop Aloe Calming Facial Cleanser

As promised I am back with a review. Did you miss me? I bet you did(n't)... Anyhow it's Friday and it's time to PARTAAAY! I'll just get right to it before I lose your focus.
It's not short and to the point but you can find a shorter less detailed review below (right above the ingredients list!) 

Here's what you want to know and should know about the Aloe Calming Facial Cleanser by The Body Shop.

Best if you want to:
Soothe your sensitive skin with a mild, soap-free cleansing lotion that gently, but thoroughly, removes make-up and impurities.

How it works:
Preservative-, fragrance-, and dye-free aloe vera hydrates and calms sensitive skin.
Organic Community Trade babassu oil softens skin and helps it retain moisture.
Dermatologist-approved and clinically proven as suitable for sensitive skin.

A little break down on the ingredients by TBS:
Aloe vera gel has excellent soothing and calming properties.

Babassu Oil (Organic Babassu oil) - nature's best - is a wonderfully light and non-greasy skin moisturizer extracted from the wild-growing babassu palm trees only found in certain area of Brazil and South America.

Sorbital is a water soluble moisturizer that enriches foam and lather.

Panthenol is proven to improve flexibility of the nails, helping to reduce flaking and breakage.

Glycerin is an effective moisturizer which helps improve softness and maximize hydration.

On MakeupAlley (one of the best places to find an overall rating on beauty products) I found The Body Shop Aloe Calming Facial Cleanser had an average rating of 3.2 out of 5 and only 30% of the reviewers would repurchase the cleanser again.
My rating is 4 out of 5 & would I repurchase this cleanser? Yes... As soon as I finish all of my OTHER cleansers but also, not for the full price ($14CAD).
Back in May I went to TBS with a list of things to buy during the 50% off sale with a purchase of a $5 donation basket. This cleanser happened to be on the list so yes, I had intentions to purchase this cleanser.
I chose this specifically because the ingredients in this aloe cleanser were safer than that of the aloe foaming cleanser. After two and a half months, I have finally finished the cleanser! For $14, this doesn't last long and will become cost effective granted I buy it often! I used this every morning and night because it was extremely gentle and I had absolutely no bad side effects. I guess a lot of people find it useless to wash their face with a cleanser in the morning since they technically don't have much on their face during the night but because this was so gentle, it was more satisfying than splashing my face with cold water! The Body Shop may say you can remove make-up with this cleanser but because it is soapless don't expect it to remove waterproof eye make-up or heavy foundation and concealer because it won't. On the days I wore make-up I would use the Cucumber Cleansing Milk (also by The Body Shop) and followed with the Aloe Calming Facial Cleanser to ensure my skin was thoroughly cleansed! Since this cleanser is soapless, it is also residue- and lather-free. If you're a foaming freak or love that rich creamy lather, get out of here! I enjoyed the fact that it was a lotion cleanser because I knew it would not strip my skin of its oils. I have extremely dry skin (because I don't drink my 8 cups of water a day!) and even jojoba oil alone cannot cure my dry patches and flaking. With this cleanser, my skin was actually a bit moisturized after washing. You can call that a benefit for sure! My skin is less red & irritated too and I thank Aloe for that.
The downside is that it's not a pump bottle but rather a flip-cap bottle. I find it tedious to flip a cap & then the bottle to get product, don't you?? Anyhow I curbed that issue by transferring all of the cleanser into an empty pump bottle I had laying around. Again, the price isn't budget friendly since it lasts for almost 3 months. If I buy four bottles a year the total cost is $56 not including tax. I suppose it isn't that bad considering some cleansers are in the $20-$100 range... I'm picky! I would still purchase this over a drugstore cleanser anyday, okay??

A shorter less detailed pro's & con's review:
It's gentle enough to use twice daily not to mention moisturizing. Although it's not anti-aging it isn't a damaging product that causes aging! It may not prevent acne or cure it but it doesn't cause break outs (for me atleast). It works just as it promises but it doesn't promise too much. Or maybe that's a good thing... With no pump, this may bug a few people but don't forget that the product is much harder to get once you reach the bottom of  the bottle. With a capped bottle, you can always leave the bottle flipped upside down so the cleanser is easier to get to! Although I do have a list of ingredients I tend to stay away from, I'm not 100% familiar with any ingredient. Paraben haters can rejoice as this cleanser is paraben-free.

Overall, I'm a happy customer! If you decide to try this cleanser, tell me how it goes. If you've tried or are trying the cleanser, tell me how it went or is going. I love comments & it brings me so much joy to know someone is reading!

Thanks for reading,
Ashley.

Ingredients:
Water, Aloe Barbadensis Gel, Pentylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil, Butylene Glycol, Cyclomethicone, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitol, Glyceryl Stearate, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Oil, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Xanthan Gum, Disodium Phosphate.

P.S. I bought this myself and I'm not being paid for this review. Neither am I affiliated with the company.

Project 10 Pan - Facial Cleansers (& Masks/Exfoliators)

Uuuhh so I haven't been posting a lot lately. I'm terrible but atleast I'll apologize... I'm sorry!
So I'm back for the night with another P10P (Project 10 Pan) post. This time, I'm doing a mash up of Facial Cleansers and Exfoliators. I know a lot of guys n' gals hate P10P but I LOVE IT!! While I enjoy using 10 of my most cherished and hated products, others can't stand it & give up! I won't give up this fight, oh no I won't! When I do P10P I notice how much I have and how little I need in actuality. It keeps me from buying "back-up's", "spares", "extras" and things just for the heck of it!
Anddd because of of my No-Buy Oath, it's really boosting my resistance in shopping! I feel it is reaaaally helping my addiction but my friends just laugh it off..

With no further introduction, here is my list for Project 10 Pan Facial Cleanser (& masks/exfoliators).

1) The Body Shop Aloe Calming Facial Cleanser

2) The Body Shop The Body Shop Cucumber Cleansing Milk

3) L'Oreal Go 360 Clean Deep Cream Cleanser

5) Clinique Liquid Facial Soap

6) Vichy Normaderm Deep Cleansing Gel

7) Freeman Beauty Good Stuff Organics Smoothing Facial Scrub

8) Freeman Beauty Good Stuff Organics Revitalizing Facial Mask

9) St. Ives Mineral Clay Firming Masque

10) Soap & Glory Scrub Your Nose In It

It will take a fair amount of time to finish this project but I'm going to be dedicated as H***!!

I'm also thinking of doing reviews after I finish each product... but since I feel I have no readers, I'll wait for comments asking for them. Or I could just do a review for the heck of it & maybe someone will find my blog unexpectedly! I believe in destiny hence (makeupkismet) so instead of advertising myself 100%, I'll wait & see how many people eventually find me.
I'll confess, I did something bad! A few weeks ago I passed by The Body Shop to pick up their new deodorant and also grabbed the Passion Fruit Facial Cleansing Gel from their Originals line. While that goes against my No-Buy Oath, I'll have you know... I am shameless! The consequences of my actions are NO STARBUCKS FOR A MONTH. That's right, all of July I will NOT be sippin' on a delicious iced caffeinated beverage :(
I can still have my Tim Horton's Ice Cappucino but it's not the same as a Caramel Frappucino, which makes me want some Starbucks even more (sighhhh)!
The bright side is that balance IS restored because I am super close to finishing 1) The Body Shop Aloe Calming Facial Cleanser and 3) L'Oreal Go 360 Clean Deep Cream Cleanser! Please note that I use the L'Oreal Go 360 Clean Deep Cream Cleanser to wash my make-up brushes aswell as my face. I need to get rid of the product & I don't have a brush cleanser at this moment, so sue me! It's not cheating.. it's a loophole ;)

I think I've covered everything I had to for this post. I'll do a review for Aloe cleanser in my next post because it kind of excites me (even though the product itself is boring...). HA!

Bye-bye for now,
Ashley.

Underarm Woes: Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Wild Rose Anti-Perspirant Deodorant Review

When is "too much info," too much? If you're the type of person to be easily sickened by armpit stories, do not continue reading this post!
I'm only human and I do have b.o. (body odor)! If you don't, I'm extremely jealous annnnd I kind of hate you. For those who share the same curse as me, let's find our Prince or Princess in stick or roll-on formula to save us from the Evil Witch's black magic!

I'm on the search for a deodorant or antiperspirant that WORKS. I still haven't found either that work well for me but if you have any recommendations DO SHARE!
Before I start the review I'd like to share my knowledge on the difference between deodorants and antipersipirants. Yes, there is a difference.

Deodorants are nifty. Like antiperspirants, deodorants contain active ingredients which help fight the bacteria that grow under your pits but doesn't keep you from sweating! The bacteria is the source of armpit odor and if you rid yourself or prevent bacteria from growing, you won't suffer body odor. It is as simple as that. While most deodorants are more natural than antiperspirants the downfall is the sweat!
Antiperspirants like deodorants contain active ingredients that prevent you from sweating! My take on antiperspirants is that they plug your armpit pores to keep you from sweating and keep the bacteria from growing. Antiperspirants aren't as natural as deodorants but they work better (sometimes). I prefer deodorants over antiperspirants because I like natural over chemical. If you want to know a bit more, visit The Beauty Brains! (P.S. Antiperspirants have a bad rep for being cancerous but I'm no scientist or doctor so I won't get into that controversial schtuff!)

At last, onto the review. For the past 6 months or so, I've been using the Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Wild Rose Anti-Perspirant Deodorant.

*Stock Photo*

The Details: This unique anti-perspirant/deodorant formula contains a Pro-Epil Complex with natural extracts and Dove 1/4 translucent moisturizers. From first use, it smoothes and conditions your underarm skin. Within weeks, you'll start to notice that your underarm hair feels soft, fine and easy to remove. Overtime, your underarm hair will look and feel less noticeable. Feel stubble free for longer.

First off, I can certainly say that the Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Wild Rose Anti-Perspirant Deodorant does not work. I think this stuff is complete crap! Personally, I shave my underarms only for special occassion where sleeveless dresses are to be worn or tank tops during the summer and I occassionally pluck. It may sound nasty but a lot of girls do it and I am not ashamed. Although I already have fairly thin armpit hair, for the some hairs that are thicker, I like to pluck those. You can still see a fair bit of darkness on my underarm area & I usually use lemons to whiten it but it isn't enough. The entire time that I used this antiperspirant I found that it didn't help remove underarm hair easily like it promised or make my underarm hair feel finer than it already is. I still noticed underarm hair and felt the stubble!
As a anti-perspirant, I kept the wet pits away. (Woooo!) As a deodorant, it did not conceal my body odor. (Booo!) I was also left with a fair bit of white marks on my shirts too! In conclusion, it didn't work for me! I'm fine with wetness but I am not okay with body odor. I only have one good thing to say about the Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Wild Rose Anti-Perspirant Deodorant and it is that Wild Rose smells lovely. Wild Rose is very light, rose-ish and clean; feminine. While I said rose-ish, it isn't floral like a bouqet of flowers but like one simple rose!

I would not recommend this to anyone. If I weigh the pro's and con's, the scent does not beat the white marks & lack of deodorizing power!
Have you tried it? Did you like your results or hate them like I did?

*Update, July 17 : I was watching Because I Said So on the Women's Network when the Dove commercial for the Ultimately Smooth came on. Apparently 99% of the women who used the deodorant would recommend it. I guess I'm the minority here...
I still wouldn't recommend it!*
Active Ingredient(s): Aluminum Zirconium Tetrachlorohydrex GLY (14.8%)
Other Ingredient(s): Cyclopentasiloxanem Stearyl Alcohol, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, PPG-14 Butyl Ether, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, PEG-8, Fragrance (Parfum)m Dimethicone, Polyethylene, Silica, Helianthus Annus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Steareth-100, Nylon-12, Sorbitan Laurate, BHT, Palmatine, Red 40 Lake (CI 16035).

P.S. I bought this myself and I'm not being paid for this review. Neither am I affiliated with the company.