Dermalogica Skin Prep Scrub - Product Review

I'm hard pressed to think of a Dermalogica product I've tried that hasn't been terrific...this Skin Prep Scrub* sample cements that, and I was pleased with how long this 22ml sample tube lasted with regular use. I can't remember if I came across this in a subscription box or through the Dermalogica PR but it has no bearing on my thoughts anyway - this is one of the few manual exfoliators I've really enjoyed! If I had to classify my tastes I'd say I preferred chemical/fruit acid exfoliants, but I do appreciate a scrubby facial scrub and I like to alternate use between the two for optimum results. Goodness knows that this is better than the scratchy formulas out on the market!

"This skin polishing scrub with finely-granulated Corn Cob Meal gently removes dulling surface debris, allowing for improved absorption of moisturizing treatments. Skin is left with a smooth, healthy-looking finish. Formulated without artificial fragrances and colors." Taken from the Dermalogica website. It's also worth noting that Dermalogica are Cruelty Free and PETA Accredited.

Water (Aqua), Disodium Cocoamphodipropionate, Glyceryl Stearate, Zea Mays (Corn) Cob Meal, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Polysorbate 20, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Citric Acid, Malva Slyvestris (Mallow) Extract, Hedera Helix (Ivy) Extract, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract, Sambucus Nigra Flower Extract, Arnica Montana Flower Extract, Parietaria Officinalis Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Tocopheryl Acetate, Potassium Sorbate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Sodium Benzoate, Disodium EDTA, Butylene Glycol, Benzyl Alcohol, Xanthan Gum, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891).

It's quite a thick paste-like texture and you hardly need any to get a good scrub (even on my giant chipmunk cheeks!) and as you would want from a facial scrub, it leaves your skin smooth and soft. I love applying a hydrating mask after using this and find that it allows product to penetrate the skin more deeply. This doesn't leave my skin tight after use which means I look forward to using it when my skin needs rid of all the dead skin cells. I tend to only avoid using this if I have a rare angry spot as I don't like using manual scrubs when my skin is sore, as the abrasive nature aggravates the blemish giving me dramas I don't want to deal with.

Overall a big thumbs up for me, this is a product I'd happily buy once I've worked through my stocks of scrubs. Nothing better than a smooth face, right?

Dermalogica Skin Prep Scrub $49.50 AUD/75ml
Available at Adore Beauty
-Emma

*Provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Skincare Routine

Each time I am in the midst of a ‘good skin’ month, I feel the urge to post a round-up of the products that I’ve been enjoying. Despite suffering through what I believe was an allergic reaction to my hair mask (exacerbated by constant scarf wear!) I have been happy with the texture of my skin and am thankful for a range of products for helping me out in that respect. Since I am consistently rotating my skincare in order to review products on this blog, many are press samples or things that I only use for a 6 week period to keep the reviews coming. Just something to keep in mind!

In terms of my morning routine, I like to keep it quite simple and use cleansing water like Bioderma Crealine h20 to rid my skin of any remnants of my nightly routine. I’ll be honest and say that this isn’t always a step I undertake daily as I can be quite lazy in the mornings! I then pop on a full pump of Cetaphil Derma Control SPF30+ moisturiser*, which is broad spectrum and non comedogenic. This keeps my skin smooth and helps prevent acne whilst providing UVA/UVB sun protection. I find this to be a great moisturiser and I’m glad that the lightweight bottle is pump action and cheap enough when it comes time to repurchase! While this sinks in, I begin applying my eye makeup, then move onto applying primer and the rest of my makeup routine.

At night, I take a lot more time caring for my skin. I begin by removing my eye makeup before I hope into the shower, with Maybelline’s City Rescue makeup remover which I am about to run out of. I then use Dermalogica Precleanse* and Antipodes Grace cleanser* while I shower. I am still having a love affair with Precleanse, and am enjoying the touch of class that Antipodes brings to my bathroom. I find the creamy formula of Grace to still be quite lightweight, and it doesn’t add any oil or shine to my skin as I at first thought it might. I do still prefer my Soap & Glory Fab Pore Hot Clothcleanser* though, as I find it leaves my skin softer and smells a little nicer than this luxe metal tube. I switch up my facial scrubs quite often, and right now I’m using the Dermalogica Skin Prep scrub* (sample tube).

After cleansing, I move onto layering a few treatments and serums depending on how my skin is acting that particular day. I suffer from a little bit of acne, and so without these treatments my skin acts a fool! Mario Badescu is wonderful for acne prone skin, and I rely on the Buffering Lotion to take care of my bumpy forehead and deep pimples, while the Drying Lotion stops the spots about to erupt in their tracks. I also love La Roche Posay Efflacar Duo to keep my skin acne free overall, and will definitely be repurchasing when this tube meets its end. I sometimes use Lacura Hyaluronic Gel to help suck some moisture into my skin, but lately I’ve been favouring my Kosmea Radiance 24/7 Youth Boost*.

To end my skincare routine, I take time massaging in a night cream to moisturise the dry patches of my face. I was using a lightweight lotion during the heat wave we experienced earlier in the year, but now that it is chilly I have cracked open my tub of Aveeno Positively Radiant Intensive Night Cream*. Such a lovely name, isn’t it? I found the texture of this really strange, it is sort of like curdled yoghurt, and at first I doubted how hydrating it would be. Happy to report that I was way off, you need the tiniest bit of this to cover your whole face and it works so well at hydrating without being heavy or breaking me out!

 

 

Phew! That rounds up the skincare loot that has been slapped on my mug lately. Now it is YOUR turn! What products do you swear by for your skin?

 *Items provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

 

 

 

Willow for Dermalogica

There isn’t much I love more than beauty products and dreaming about designer brands, so as you can imagine I get quite excited when the two combine. At a recent launch event I was introduced to the brand new gift with purchase that Dermalogica have set up with fashion house Willow for the month of April, and I was really impressed with the quality of the goods! Usually GWP’s come in a great makeup bag, but this is the first I have come across that include a genuine, buttery leather clutch with some travel sized samples tucked inside. I love structured bags like this one, I definitely prefer it to a long line clutch so I was elated to take one of these designer bags home with me on the day. This clutch is yours with any Dermalogica purchase over $100, and being a fan of a stack of Dermalogica products I thought I would tell you which ones are the best!

First off, you NEED the Precleanse! Originally reviewed here , this is a runny oil substance that whisks away makeup and prepares your face for your cleanser. I am addicted to this and find it super hard to cleanse without it now that I’m hooked. Another product I love is the Skin Prep Scrub and the Daily Microfoliant. If you prefer physical scrubs, Skin Prep is the way to go as it is chunky but still doesn’t aggravate the skin. Those who love chemical/fruit enzyme based exfoliants should go for the microfoliant, which is a powder that you work into a paste and it eats away at the dead skin cells for you. Both are great and I alternate them depending on which I can be bothered reaching for, so they are great options to get you on your way to earning this amazing gift with purchase.


Now mark your diaries, Aussie ladies! To celebrate the exciting collaboration, Dermalogica are holding an event with champagne, canapes and free on-the-spot treatments in the cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. I’ve popped the details and invitation below, and will hopefully be making my way down to the Melbourne launch to play with some new Dermalogica products and perhaps get my face mapped!

 

Let me know what YOUR favourite Dermalogica product is in the comments below, or tell me about a product you’ve tried from the brand. Are you planning on heading down to see the amazing Willow clutch in person?

*I was a guest of PR for the Dermalogica event and was gifted the clutch and travel sized products while there. Honesty, always.

December/January Empties

I had so little to show for December in the way of empties that I decided to roll it all over into the next month. Most of this is my new year empties!

L’Oreal EverPure Moisture Conditioner- this is sulfate free and smells of rosemary and mint. Adored the sample so much and bought a full size, which is waiting in the wings until my current conditioner bites the dust.

Weleda Sea Buckthorn Replenishing Body Lotion- this smelt wonderful, and was thicker and more moisturising than I had originally anticipated. Big thumbs up!

Kiehl’s Orange Flower & Lychee Body Cleanser*- this was insanely good, it really did leave my skin soft and the smell was divine. Looking forward to repurchasing this, or perhaps one of the other scents from this collection.

Korres Guava Little Showergel- I bought this at a discount store in Sydney, and was very excited at the prospect of a new Korres love. Dismally disappointed, this smelt a little bit off, but when I sniffed the tester at Kit to see what it was meant to smell like…it smelt the same. Milky, didn’t get any ‘guava’ and I wouldn’t repurchase.

Haus of Gloi Ghost Puffs Sugar Exfoliant (sample)- love the caramel popcorn smell of this, and while I prefer the soft bubbling scrub formula from this company, this was quite nice as well.

Haus of Gloi Olde Cider Haus Sugar Exfoliant (sample)- this smelt so good, like apples with an edge of something else. The description says “old oak, sweet drying hay fields, apple pulp and vanilla husks.”

Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Queen Soft Bubbling Scrub (sample)- love the formulation of this lathery scrub, and to me it smelt of pumpkin, nutmeg and amber. Really nice, though I do see how the scent wouldn’t appeal to everyone.

Rexona Girl Free Spirit Deodorant- I prefer the Tropical Energy version of this (my very favourite) but this did the job and smelt alright.

Evian Facial Spray- I bought this in Thailand way back when, and it took so long to finish because the spritzer shot such a crappy spray that it ruined my makeup every time I tried to use it. Not sure if mine was faulty, but I’ll be sticking to my beloved Uriage either way.

Kim Kardashian Perfume 30ml- I loved this strong and sexy scent, I am normally not one to go for celebrity scents but this one sat nicely on me. Mum purchased a big bottle of this in duty free on a whim and it gives her headaches, so I think I am going to claim the new bottle as my own.

 

Aesop Reverance Aromatique Hand Balm- Review here (LINK), I am still undecided on my feelings for this. I have another sample sachet to use up, though I don’t know if that will help my decide either. Do you ever feel that way about a product?

Priceline Re-Balance Facial Cleansing Wipes- They changed the packaging and it doesn’t feel as nice as it once did, but the wipes inside are still my favourite.

Beauty Care Co Makeup Remover Pads- Did the job, not as great as the Priceline ones. I feel like these are in every single empties post? I’ve started using other methods of removal, so maybe these will not appear each month now.

Dermalogica Skin Prep Scrub- Not sure why I wasn’t expecting much from this as I have been enjoying some other Dermalogica things lately, but I was pleasantly surprised with this one. I got two uses from this small sachet (and have a sample tube on the go right now) This left my skin really, really smooth, and didn’t make me break out or anything like that. Will be dedicating a whole post to this soon!

Did you get through much in the first month of this year?

*Marked products were provided, and the samples were obviously not purchased but obtained in various ways. Honesty, always.