Fancy name for a bottle of stuff that looks pretty much like clear water, eh? ;-)

Well, it's got to be a little bit more than just water, or I wouldn’t be going through this stuff like crazy. (I'm on my fifth bottle already.)

Makeup removers I’ve tried so far, be they creams, milks or lotions, have all had one thing in common, no matter how careful I was. Never mind the occasional burning and stinging in my eyes: every time I tried to remove my makeup with them, I was also bound to keep stumbling around the flat in a half-blind state for a few hours, until by some divine miracle I managed to blink the last remains of the offending stuff out of my poor, tortured eyes. A few liters of tears were also shed in the process, and by the end of the whole ordeal I was ready to swear never to put on makeup again.

Not so with Sensibio H2O: I pour some onto a cotton pad, swipe it on/ my eyes a few times, and my makeup is gone, while aforementioned eyes remain intact.
It also performs perfectly when removing foundation: just one swipe and it’s all gone. I like to use this one first and take most of my foundation off my skin, before going over the rest with some cleansing oil (mine is the Almond-Apple Cleansing Oil from L’Occitane), because in all honesty I don’t exactly fancy rubbing all that grime and powder into my face. (It’s just yucky…) So I take off the foundation with Sensibio H2O, and use the cleansing oil mostly to just remove what remains of it and my sunscreen. Afterwards, I use my favorite cleansing gel to get my skin squeaky clean and I’m set. :)

Bioderma has 3 micellar cleansers, one in each of their skincare line: Sensibio H2O (for sensitive skin), Sebium H2O (for oily, problem skin) and Hydrabio H2O (for normal/dry skin).

So far I’ve only tried the first two, and though the condition of my skin would require me to use the Sebium line, I’ll stick to Sensibio for 2 reasons:

1. Everything in the Sebium line is scented,
2. and its micellar cleanser doesn’t remove makeup as thoroughly as that of the Sensibio line.

(Also, I don’t really buy that stuff about needing to pick all items of my skincare regime from the same brand and line, sooo…)

I admit, in the beginning I was skeptical about this whole not-needing-to-wash-my-face-at-all-after-using-a-micellar-cleanser talk, aaaand… I still am. Sorry, I might be old-fashioned, but I’m never going to adopt a “sans-water” cleansing method if there’s a way to avoid it. My skin just doesn’t feel clean enough that way, no matter how much cleanser and how many cotton pads I use, and I do need that almost squeaky-clean feeling only water can provide.

Nevertheless, Bioderma’s Sensibio H2O micellar cleanser is really one of the best things that have ever happened to me: removing makeup is a cinch now and my eyes have also stopped complaining. Its only shortcoming is that it doesn’t last very long, while at the same time it’s a bit pricey, but it gives me exactly what I need from a cleanser, so I won’t take off points for that. ;-)

Where to get it: in pharmacies and online stores

Price&Amount: ~3600 HUF for 250 ml and ~4500 HUF for 500 ml (I haven't come across the 125 ml size bottle in Hungary yet: as far as I know, it's not available here.)


Sensibio H2O: WATER (AQUA), PEG-6 CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC GLYCERIDES, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, CUCUMIS SATIVUS (CUCUMBER) FRUIT EXTRACT, MANNITOL, XYLITOL, RHAMNOSE, FRUCTOOLIGOSACCHARIDES, DISODIUM EDTA, CETRIMONIUM BROMIDE.

Sebium H2O: WATER (AQUA), PEG-6 CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC GLYCERIDES, SODIUM CITRATE , ZINC GLUCONATE, COPPER SULFATE, GINKGO BILOBA EXTRACT, MANNITOL, XYLITOL, RHAMNOSE, FRUCTOOLIGOSACCHARIDES, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, CITRIC ACID, DISODIUM EDTA, CETRIMONIUM BROMIDE, FRAGRANCE (PARFUM).

My ratings:
Sensibio H2O: 5 out of 5
Sebium H2O: 4 out of 5  

Loath as I am to admit it, there's something exhilarating about finding a face-scrub chock-full of gritty little bits and polishing our complexion to smooth, shiny, almost-glass-like perfection. You see, I am firmly against physical exfoliants. Well, most of the time. I am well aware of the fact that more often than not they drive my skin stir crazy and, depending on my skin's prevailing mood, may double (no, triple!) the amount of acne I sport at a given time.

But.

(I don't think it's only my skin that's gone stir crazy this time...)


Ahemm. So I had the privilege of sampling Bioderma's Gel Gommant (i.e.: Exfoliating Gel) twice already, but the first time it didn't quite seem to agree with my skin. Nowadays, however, we're geting on much better, to the point of me even saying that it might even become a permanent addition to my skincare stash.





There are three things I love about it:

1. The multitude of scrubbly little polyethilene particles in it: all tiny and buffing my skin as if the stuff were some sort of microdermabrasion product. (I haven't had microdermabrasion done on my skin yet, but I imagine this is what it should feel like.) You just have to be gentle with it and sort of caress your face in a circular motion, lest it should cause too much damage.
   
   
2. The added glycolic acid in the formula. Once you feel you've done enough scrubbing, just leave the gel on your face for five minutes or so (you can leave it longer of course if you have the time). The acid does a lovely job of additional exfoliation, and when it's worked its miracle on your face, just massage the stuff into your face a few more times to remove stuff that had been loosened by the acid, and wash it off.
   
   
3. Washing it off is a breeze. No clingy film, no having to rinse for hours, nada. Just a few generous splashes and it's all gone, leaving you with the most amazing, silky-soft and well, there's really no better word for it, glass-like complexion ever.

Can it get any better?

Yeah, it can. ;-)

To achieve all this you need the smallest amount of product, so while it's definitely not a cheap product, it will last you a very long time.

The product is scented, and while I'm not a fan of added perfume in skincare products, it's really not obtrusive and so far hasn't managed to bother my skin.

So, my verdict? Well, next time you walk into a pharmacy don't you dare leave without a tube of Bioderma's Exfoliating Gel. It's well worth every "penny". ;-)

Where to get it: in pharmacies
Price: varies, usually around 3300 HUF
Amount: 100 ml
My rating: 5 out of 5
Ingredients:

WATER (AQUA), POLYETHYLENE, SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE, XANTHAN GUM, LAURYL GLUCOSIDE, GINKGO BILOBA EXTRACT, GLYCOLIC ACID, MANNITOL, RHAMNOSE, XYLITOL, FRUCTOOLIGOSACCHARIDES, PRO PYLENE GLYCOL, TRIDECYL SALICYLATE, SODIUM HYDROXIDE, DISODIUM EDTA, METHYLPARABEN, PROPYLPARABEN, FRAGRANCE (PARFUM)  

I too hopped on the bandwagon that was set in motion by one of the members on the Krémmárka-voks thread, and bought Garnier's PureActive Anti-spot roll-on. It's a simple local treatment for spots, and promises to reduce inflammation and make those much-hated bluish-red scars disappear faster.

Can it live up to those claims? Yes, it can. If you don't expect your hormonal acne to disappear overnight. ;-) If for some reason you overindulged in your favorite junk-food and are now facing the consequences, sure, go ahead and use it. If you've been working out and sweating, and thus have zits here and there, then don't hesitate, buy it. If your only problem is that once every month some zits make your otherwise perfectly acne-free life miserable, then this product is for you. But then so are pure tee-tree oil, cologne, toothpaste and all the other tired, tested and proven methods of getting rid of an occasional zit here and there. (Okay, fine, this one might make them scamper off a bit faster.)

I admit used to be guilty of expecting anti-acne products to Photoshop my face into perfection, but I have long since realized that that won't happen anytime soon. Thanks to the diet and medication I'm on my face has cleared up considerably, but I still suffer from one or two new breakouts that appear every 3 or 4 days, so this stuff is a godsend.

Here, take a look at the INCI list first:




The alcohol and the salycilic acid are responsible both for drying all those dratted zits and making them less inflammed/red and for making the product potent enough to give you a slight hangover upon inhalation. :-D The zinc gluconate at the end of the list is a bit unconvincing, but it must be good for something. There's also some blueberry extract in there, which has strong healing properties and should make scars disappear faster.

Notwithstanding the fact that it reeks of alcohol, the product itself is quite a good one: it manages to accelerate the lifecycle of a spot considerably, at least mine certainly healed faster than on their own.




You might want to be a bit careful though when you first apply it: my skin is used to getting a nice, big dose of salycilic acid every night, but when I first dapped this treatment onto my zits, they got redder than they originally were and the stuff stung a bit too. Nowadays it's fine though, and I don't experience any problems, which might be because I don't just apply the liquid to spots, but to problems areas as well (lower part of my cheeks, chin, area below my lips).

All in all, I think it's definitely worth a try if you don't have that many zits, just the occasional one or two: it's practical, doesn't cost much, lasts long (been using it for 2 weeks and haven't really made a dent), and most importantly, it works. It soothes the inflammation, reduces redness and speeds up the healing process of your skin.

Where to get it: DM, Rossmann, Schlecker stores
Price: Erm, I don't exactly remember, probably around 1300 HUF
Amount: 15 ml
My rating: 5 out of 5  

There’s really not much to say about Silk Naturals’ Oil Control Primer, other than that it’s the best mattifying product I’ve ever tried.

All my life I’ve been trying to regulate my skin’s sebum production and have been dreaming about silky matte skin that stays that way throughout the day.

Back in the days I’m sure I must have used more than one alcohol-laden toner, and my only excuse is that I really didn’t know better. Then I bought every drugstore moisturizer that promised to make my skin matte, and was disappointed with the results every single time. Afterwards I was on the pill for two and a half years, but although it took care of my zits perfectly, to my great chagrin, it didn’t much affect my comedos or the oiliness of my skin. Next I tried applying a micro-thin layer of jojoba oil to fool my skin into thinking it was really not necessary to hide behind thick layers of grease and that the world was a much safer place than it had thought. It worked for a while, but then one day it saw through the ruse and was truly irritated at being treated like such a gullible fool, so it huffed and puffed and made my life a living hell once again.

Half a year ago I started to experiment with mattifying creams and lotions again, but I quickly realized that most of them were chock-full of silicones, and that after having sat dutifully on my skin for an hour or two keeping the oilies at bay, they suddenly got up, dusted off their mantles and sauntered off into oblivion, quickly followed by a swell of sebum and other nasty stuff. (My theory is that somewhere in the world there exists a pub for stray-minded cosmetic ingredients where they come together for a drink or two after having got bored of sitting on our skin and doing their job properly.)

Anyway, back to the product at hand. It’s white, silky and feather-light, and for some reason it possesses a pathologic aversion to makeup brushes. Let me tell you though that it’s a good thing. It made me start using it as if it were some sort of lotion and rub it into the skin on my T-zone with gentle circular motions. This way it disappears completely after a while leaving no trace of that dreaded white cast, and for some reason it makes my skin much smoother and silkier than it could if I applied it with a brush.



Used together with Silk Naturals’ Oil Control Serum, it kept my face nice and matte for at least three hours longer than it would have been without them. Also, it’s the only stuff that successfully battles the greasiness of my sunscreen (Bioderma Photoderm Sensitive) and keeps my complexion relatively oil-free throughout the day. It’s safe to say that I would not be able to use that sunscreen without this primer and that makes this product from Silk Naturals an integral part of my daily routine. (To see why I still insist on using that sunscreen despite its obvious shortcoming, take a look at this post.)




Because of wanting to save on the shipping a bit, I bought the refill baggie and put its content into an old, unused EDM jar. Safe to say is that I'll never do that again. Next time I’m buying this stuff in its original packaging, which I expect to be a lot more practical than that of EDM’s. *grumblegrumble…*

Where to get it: www.silknaturals.com
Price: 8.95$ in jar (7.95$ in refill baggie), and 0.99$ for a sample jar
Amount: 2 teaspoons of product (full size); 1/4 tsp. (sample size)
Ingredients: calcium carbonate, silk powder, silica
My rating: 6 stars out of 5 ;-)