Big Skincare Mystery….Solved!

Last Friday I had the pleasure of attending a fantastic event to reveal the brand behind the Big Skincare Mystery.  We were given a fabulous talk by the uber-glamorous Dr Susan Mayou who discussed the philosophy behind the new range and why she believed it was a reputable and effective product line and during the talk we were shown the facts and figures behind the line; have a look at the best bits below – sorry for the usual rubbish photography.  But before the talk we were asked what we thought the brand might be.  I believe Clinique and Estee Lauder were suggested before the big announcement which revealed that the brand behind the Big Skincare Mystery is…..

Did you guess it?  Are you surprised?!

Ice sculpture with the new products and featured fruit suspended in it.  Had to fight the urge to lick it.

Regular readers will know that I often bang on about the fact that there are not enough product lines aimed at people like me; people who suffer from spots but are also no longer spring chickens and can’t use products that are aimed at stripping the skin of all the good things it needs like oil and moisture.  Thankfully, Clearasil have taken note (I doubt they’ve taken note of what I had to say but you never know….) and have formulated a new line of products called the Vitamins and Extracts range.  No longer is Clearasil the brand of choice limited to spotty teenagers and instead it’s a realistic, appropriate and effective choice for us older sufferers.

The Vitamins and Extracts line consists of five products that are both strong on spots yet kind to skin.  They’ve put together ingredients that are (in my humble opinion) the perfect balance of the goodies that nature provides with a few man-made extras to work on stubborn, spot-prone skin.  If you had a chance to try the sample (which turned out to be the Daily Clear Vitamins & Extracts Wash & Mask) then you’ll know that the ingredients are effective yet surprisingly gentle.

So without further ado, let me introduce you to the newest additions to the Clearasil line:

PerfectaWash is a motion activated dispenser with two cleanser options.  You pass your hand under the arm of the dispenser and out pops the exact amount of facewash you should need to cover your whole face.  There are two refill options; the PerfectaWash with Superfruits Extracts and Vitamin E for non-sensitive skins and PerfectaWash with Soothing Plant Extracts and Vitamin E for those who want a slightly more gentle cleanser.  I haven’t tried the latter, but I’ve tried the former face wash and I can positively report that it’s a great wash that cleanses effectively without stripping the skin.  The dispenser has me completely split on a verdict, as whilst I like the idea of it – it’s hygienic, it gives the exact amount you need so cuts down on wastage and there is a considerable pleasure, albeit maybe a novelty factor, in having a dispenser that you pass your hand under to get to your face wash – but the other side of me wonders if it’s really needed.  However, I do enjoy using it and I look forward to cleansing knowing that I get to use it.

The refills give 100 doses which in my opinion is really good value, especially if you consider that a lot of products are based on a month-by-month usage, so knowing that this will last around 3 months (if used once a day) is great.

The Dispenser is priced at £12.99 and available here, the standard refill is available here and the gentle refill is available here.  Both refills are priced at £4.99.

As mentioned earlier, this was the product that was sent out as a sample.  I used this for the first time as a mask last night and thought it was excellent at soothing a couple of angry red spots I have on my chin (believe everything you read about alcohol and spots, kids, as I’ve been out for a few drinks on a couple of occasions recently and you can really see it on my skin!) and was easy to apply and remove.  It’s a three minute mask, but being the occasional numpty I am, I left it on for 15 minutes.  This is not a good idea as it started to tingle quite a bit and my cheeks (which are prone to dryness, in fairness) were very dry afterwards.  It really was nothing major though and certainly wasn’t apparent the following morning.  Therefore I will definitely use this again as I liked the way my spots looked afterwards, if that doesn’t sound too odd.  I have used this as a wash regularly (up until I got the dispenser in fact) and cannot recommend it enough.  It’s priced at £4.99 and available here.

It’s safe to say that I really like the new Clearasil offerings, but if I was pushed to choose a favourite then this would probably be it.  It’s a very gentle scrub that isn’t scratchy at all, yet it doesn’t feel weak like a lot of ‘gentle’ scrubs often do.  It doesn’t dry out at all and is a comfortable exfoliation experience.  The fact that it’s a product aimed at spot-prone skin, yet contains a lot of ingredients aimed at moisturising the skin (like avocado and vitamin E) makes this an absolute winner for me.  It’s priced at £4.99 and available here.

I’ll start by saying what I always say whenever talking about wipes, which is that they are NOT an acceptable alternative to cleansing in any way, shape or form.  However, what they are great for is time saving when you’re doing a double cleanse (which, if you’re spot-prone, you should definitely be doing!) and these wipes are really well soaked in treatment, gentle and yet very good at removing make-up and oil without stripping the skin.  These are £3.49 for 25 wipes and available here.

So, in conclusion, Clearasil have released a range aimed at my type of skin which makes me a very happy bunny.  It’s so great that a more commercially available range is taking note of the fact that spots isn’t just something that happens to teenagers and their adolescent skin, but is something that happens to all age groups who need to address the fact that their skin no longer has youth on their side.  I was a little disappointed to not see a moisturiser or spot treatment in the new line, but the fact that the range is incredibly affordable means that the products are a lot more accessible, so I commend Clearasil for realising this gap in the market.

I’ll be running a giveaway tomorrow to give my readers a chance to win their own PerfectaWash Dispenser, plus one of each of the refills, so if you fancy trying these then keep an eye out.

Clearasil Facial

Last night, I gave myself a facial using only products in the new line and here’s how it went:

• I started by using the wipes to remove make-up and any build up and make way for the cleanser to do it’s job.
• I then cleansed using the standard refill for the dispenser.  I spent several minutes massaging it in before rinsing with fairly hot water to open my pores and prepare for the next step.
• I used the scrub and worked in circular motions all over my face.
• Lastly, I finished with the Vitamins and Extracts Wash and Mask which I used as a mask. 
• Due to leaving it on for too long, I needed a fairly big boost of moisture so I ensured I spent a few minutes working in my moisturiser to the areas of my face which are prone to dryness, namely my cheeks.