Review: St. Ives Fresh Skin Makeup Remover & Facial Cleanser

Hi all!

For my second post, I will be reviewing the St. Ives Fresh Skin Makeup Remover & Facial Cleanser. I bought this cleanser last year when I got married for the specific purpose of removing my make up after my wedding day. As most of you know, bridal makeup in Pakistan is usually on the heavier side and my plan was to have a specially formulated make up remover on hand when I needed to remove those layers of concealer and foundation. So was it a hit or a miss? Read on to find out!

Description

Here is how the company describes the makeup remover/cleanser:

“St. Ives Fresh Skin Make-up Remover & Facial Cleanser effortlessly removes even the heaviest make-up while cleaning the skin. A gentle, non-drying cream formula that deep cleans for soft, smooth, visibly healthy skin. Non-irritating, dermatologist tested with calming chamomile.”

St. Ives Fresh Skin Makeup Remover & Facial Cleanser

St. Ives Fresh Skin Makeup Remover & Facial Cleanser

St. Ives Fresh Skin Makeup Remover & Facial Cleanser

St. Ives Fresh Skin Makeup Remover & Facial Cleanser Swatch

My Opinion

Starting with the positives, the St. Ives Fresh Skin Make-up Remover & Facial Cleanser is gentle on the skin and does not leave it dry like most cleansers do. It also smells nice and is quite economically priced.

But for me, this product was a total disappointment. Why you ask? Because it fails to deliver on the brand promise: to remove even the HEAVIEST of makeup EFFORTLESSLY. In fact, it does everything but remove make-up! Forget heavy, it fails even to remove my day time make up which comprises of primer, a thin layer of powder foundation and blusher.

As I mentioned earlier, I purchased this make-up remover specifically to remove my wedding day make up. Now we are talking about concealer, foundation, face powder and blush – the entire works, but when I massaged a generous amount of the makeup remover onto my skin, washed it off and started drying my face with a towel, lo and behold! I found that my face was still covered with foundation - most of which ended up on that poor towel. Being the ever optimist that I am, I rewashed my face with St. Ives hoping that the second time around would be the charm but sadly, my face was still not clean. I even slathered the cleanser sans water all over my face and neck and tried wiping it off with a cotton swab but even that couldn’t remove my foundation completely. I finally had to resort to using my regular facial wash which did the job in the first go.

Apart from this, I feel that as a cleanser this product is not suitable for use during the day. The reason behind this is that though it leaves your skin hydrated, at the same time one feels that the skin cannot breathe and there is a thin film of oil over it. This trait makes this cleanser more suitable for night time use and for people with dry to combination skin. I have oily skin myself and have used this product during the winters as well as the summers and though I would not mind using it before bedtime in winters, I would never use it before stepping out in the sun - no matter what the season.

Alternative Uses

Since I could not leave the cleanser lying about unused, I have been experimenting with it and have discovered a few alternative uses. One, this cleanser is pretty effective when it comes to removing heavy eye makeup. It is very gentle and non-drying. Just apply a coat of the product on your eye lid and remove with a cotton swab. It might take two tries depending on the intensity of the makeup. Another task which this cleanser is excellent at is a facial massage. If you are one of those people who give themselves facials at home or have their own customized regular cleansing routines, you will understand what I mean. Since this cleanser does not lather (at all!), a few dollops of it mixed with a little water go a long way for a relaxing facial massage. 

Hit or miss? Definitely a miss.

Go for it if you:

1. Have dry or combination skin
2. Are looking for a cleanser that can be used to massage the skin
3. Need a gentle eye makeup remover

Don’t go for it if you:

1. Have oily skin
2. Need to remove heavy make up
3. Prefer a cleanser that lathers

My rating for this cleanser / makeup remover is 2/5.

Priced at Rs. 285, St. Ives Fresh Skin Make-up Remover & Facial Cleanser is available at Aghas, Naheed Super Market and Chase up in Karachi.

Have you tried it yet? If yes, share what you think. I am all eyes! ;)

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