Just Enough Buff: Liz Earle Gentle Face Exfoliator

As much as I enjoyed my trip to Pennsylvania, it absolutely killed my skin.  In an attempt to pack light, I stuffed an assortment of skincare samples in my sleeping bag, and left it at that.

Big.  Mistake.

I’ve been trying my best to calm it down for the past week-and-a-half, and thankfully there has been progress (thanks to an assortment of supplements, jojoba oil, and you guessed it!  The subject of today’s review).

I know you must be sick to death of hearing me sing the praises of Liz Earle, but their products really are just that good.  Now if there’s one complaint I could make, it’s that they’re not available in the US and the shipping rates make me gnash my teeth.  Gnash.  This is problematic because it’s generally frowned upon when you move to a whole other continent just to get your skincare fix, so Liz Earle…please open some stores across the pond soon?  Maybe one in SoCal?

I’ve already mentioned multiple times that Liz Earle is a favorite for their simple, no-frills products that work miracles on my skin.  Want proof?  My

Going for Gold: LaRocca Skincare Review

I’m going to run out of witty (or call it what you will) titles for gold-inclusive skincare/hair care/makeup soon.  Everyone just has to add gold to their products.  Do they realize how much pressure they’re putting on me?

Today’s culprit is LaRocca, a brand which uses 24K ‘Colloidal Gold’ in the majority of their products.  Wikipedia (oh yes, I do some serious research for these posts) tells me that Colloidal gold = teeny tiny gold particles suspended in liquid.  Correct me if I’m wrong.

According to LaRocca, colloidal gold, when used in conjunction with other ingredients, promotes cell regeneration and smooth, glowy skin.  Now again, I am not a scientist.  In fact, science is quite possibly my worst subject, so I can’t speak for the effectiveness of gold in these products.  And since they don’t seem to be adding extra dollar signs for the gold, I’ll just evaluate these products in terms of effectiveness, like I usually do.

First on the chopping block is their Vitamin Repair Mist SPF 15.  My guess is

A Little TLC With MFW Masks

My love for sheet masks is hardly a secret (although they are a huge pain to shoot if you don’t have the foresight to keep the boxes on hand.  And by ‘you,’ I mean ‘me’).

Sheet masks are basically cloth circles with holes for breathing (and seeing) soaked in ‘essence,’ a gel-like liquid that’s packed with skin-loving ingredients.  These relaxing masks act as single use, ready-to-go spa treatments.  Unlike your usual skincare products, sheet masks are designed to deliver instant results.  These results seldom last more than 24 hours, but you see them right away, rather than having to wait for months.

The idea is so brilliant that I don’t know why it’s taken eons for these things to show up in the US.  But My Face Works is stepping up to the plate, and supplying North America with sheet masks.  Woot!

If you’re new to sheet masks, please refer to the sketch below for application instructions:

Liz Earle Superskin Concentrate: Rollerball Relaxation

Liz Earle’s Superskin Concentrate is a curious product.  It’s a blend of pure plant oils, for some extra skin TLC pre-moisturizer.  I’ve already told you why I love oils here and here, and was equally pleased with how this performed on my skin.

But there is a twist!  Supposedly, this product also clears toxins, reduces puffiness, boosts circulation, encourages cell renewal, and aids lymphatic drainage.  Now, I have no idea how to measure that, so I’m just going to call it relaxation.

Step 1: Warm a small amount in your hands and breathe in the divinely aromatic aroma. Then massage onto your skin with upward and outward movements using firm pressure.
Step 2: With your fingertips, lightly smooth in an outward circular direction along the cheekbones to above the eyebrows.
Step 3: Finish by gently sweeping your hands up the neck and over the décolletage

This smells very strongly of neroli, with a little bit of lavender.  If you like neroli, great.  I’m actually not the biggest fan of neroli.  When I sniffed this, my first thought was

Why Waxelene?

When I heard about this petroleum jelly alternative, I was instantly curious.  Vaseline and Aquaphor are so commonly used that I don’t see all-natural substitutes all that often (or ever, come to think of it).  Personally, I have no problem with petroleum, although I do find that it dries my lips out if I use pure petroleum jelly for over a week.  So given the chance, I was eager to see if Waxelene would beat out Vaseline (notice the clever play on words there.  It makes me chuckle gleefully).

While it is slightly very shallow of me to even note this, I have to say that I was instantly sucked in by its outer appearance, from the rotund little bee to the weighty glass jar.  The one unfortunate downside to the tub is that it’s neither hygienic nor convenient for me to tote this around during the day.  I might let that one pass because the bee is so