Every so often, as I go along my skincare journey, identifying my must-haves and current skincare loves, I too discard alongside the ones that didn’t make the cut or the ones that just don’t work for me one way or another. Most of the time, I don’t feature them at all. Why feature something I don’t like?
But then, I realised that it’s helpful knowing what doesn’t work for people because you can then avoid it, or if you are still very curious anyway, be aware of their pitfalls. So, unless they stand out as being spectactularly awful, in which case they will get a whole post to their awful selves, I might do some of these little round-ups as I go along, to balance out the raves I’ll have.
I’ll start off with a selection of skincare that I tried a few months ago and for some, I’ve been trying them off and on for months, to see if they truly do not work for me or just do not endear me to them for some reason. If they work for you, it would be helpful to know because it can help other readers make up their minds :)
Pure Paw Paw Papaya Ointment – S$14.90/25g
This was a gift, and while I hate to diss gifts because I know the gifter means well, this just didn’t cut it for me. What this is, is an ointment very much like the Lucas’ Papaw Ointment which is made from fermented papaya or papaw (paw paw) and has a myriad of uses to soothe, moisturise and protect the skin. I am a huge fan of the Lucas’ Papaw Ointment and because it gets a lot of flack for containing petroleum (which doesn’t bother me), I hoped I’d like this one. Sadly, I didn’t. I found the ointment far too runny even after being kept in the fridge, and the strong sweet smell put me off. I might hand it off for my nephew’s use. I don’t think he’ll be as fussy as I am :)
Clinique Moisture Surge Overnight Mask – RM125/100ml *
I love the Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief Gel Cream and I even use that as a mask sometimes. Just layer it on thickly and go to sleep, just as you would a sleeping mask. So, when I was handed a tube of the Moisture Surge Overnight Mask with the suggestion that Clinique had taken note of people using their Moisture Surge gel creams for this purpose, I was really intrigued.
Many months down the road and many uses later trying to fathom what I thought of this, my conclusion was that I didn’t like this. The product itself is rather creamy and it feels sticky on my skin. It also did not absorb very well. The instructions call for you to apply generously to your skin and massage it in until it absorbs. I could do that till the next morning and it would still feel greasy on my skin. When I wake up, I feel like there’s a film over my skin that I want to wash off. I just never got the “Wow, my skin is going toing toing!” factor that I had with the regular Moisture Surge Gel Cream and for that, this ends up here. I’d much rather just get a tub of Moisture Surge cream that I can use as a light moisturiser or as and when I need it, as an overnight mask.
Estee Lauder Take It Away Gentle Cleansing Milk
I’d actually used up a whole bottle of this one years ago without really forming much of an impression about it. It was back in the day when I’d buy random items to make up the amount needed to get a GWP. Ah, yes. Those were the days :P Not long ago, I discovered a bottle of this and decided to give it another go. This was when I was experimenting using cleansing creams and milks and this was right up my alley.
Meh. It stung my skin! I have no idea why but when I apply this cleansing milk on my skin, I get a funny tingling feeling and it doesn’t feel very comfortable at all. Tried it a few times and decided not to chance it further. Also, it didn’t clean off my makeup very well :( I like that it comes with a pump but I don’t like that the pump doesn’t have a cover LOL! You unscrew the gold cap and replace it with a pump. I’d much rather it came readily packaged and with a proper cover. But since it doesn’t work for me, I don’t suppose it matters eh? I know this one has been around a long time and I’m sure many would have tried it at one point or another so I’d be curious to know how it worked for you :)
Talika The Light Essence Cellular Activator – RM349/140ml*
You may remember I featured this the new skincare range from Talika last week. I’d just taken The Light Essence Cellular Activator for a spin for a couple of days and broke out after 2 days. Yeouch! Nothing new in my routine. I’d just run out of my Estee Lauder Nutritious Lotion and thought I’d try this one instead.
I developed a couple of spots on my chin area and my cheek so I stopped. I didn’t like the texture which was was a lotion with a viscous texture and there is a strong scent of fresh roses. The latter is quite refreshing, but I suppose it just wasn’t for me. I haven’t had any breakouts since I established my skincare routine so I can safely point my finger in this direction.
Carole Franck Okana Radiance Complexion Brightening Skincare – RM338/50ml*
Carole Franck is a salon brand and although I now do not randomly try whitening/brightening skincare I was interested because the Okana Radiance Complexion cream not only brightens skin but also has anti-aging and soothing benefits. The product targets 3 major skin disorders – wrinkles, brown spots and redness and is supposed to infuse skin with a pearly radiance. Ah, I had a lot of hope for this one!
The directions call for it to be used on bare skin alone or together with other skincare products. I noticed that the product pumps out in a creamy texture so I started out using it alone. It certainly felt creamy enough. However, I soon realised that it wasn’t enough. My skin felt and looked dehydrated and dull. So, I tried using it like a serum, under a moisturiser. This way, it felt too heavy. And it still made my skin feel dry.
After about 3 weeks, I had to throw in the towel and consider myself defeated. This could be a good product, and it could work as promised and I had no breakouts, but my skin just found it too drying to be comfortable.
Have you used any of the products above? Has anything failed you recently?
I’d love to know if any of you like any one of these because you know, one woman’s secret potion is another’s poison and all that :D It’s just how skincare works! I’m sure there are fans out there so speak up!
Paris B
I’ve never tried any of these other than the EL cleanser and the Clinique mask. I don’t like the cleanser because it doesn’t remove makeup very well, but it didn’t sting me. I’m still having mixed feelings about the Clinique mask, and I haven’t used it enough to really firm up my decision. I liked their moisture surge gel cream though :-)
I think that EL cleanser is pretty much a waste of time :P Took me 6 months to figure out I didn’t like the Clinique mask LOL! Just too “oily” somehow, unlike the gel cream.
Ooooh! I loathe the smell of the Papaya Ointment and yes, it becomes very runny in our humid weather resulting in that I end up with excess ointment being squeezed out. However I found that it is the only thing that works to soothe my itchy skin after dry shaving my legs (yes, I know I shouldn’t but I do :P) and so that is what I use it exclusively for now.
Oh thank God I’m not alone in this Isabel! I don’t mind the smell of Lucas Papaw Ointment. I quite like it in fact but this one kills me.
I’ve never tried any of those products. I generally don’t write bad reviews either, but I did for one product and I got the nastiest comments! Like I insulted their mama or something.
Goodness! I can’t believe people would slate you for writing a bad review. It’s common knowledge that there is no one-size-fits-all product out there and someone somewhere is bound to dislike it! So long as it is helpful criticism, I don’t see why anyone should take umbrange, brands included. They should know better :P
Did the UK guru Caroline Hirons from Beautymouth inspired you to do this post? LOL. Was reading her post recently about products that failed her and also the many comments she received from her readers.
I have not used any of the products mentioned and so far, the products I have tried from quite a number of different brands have not caused me to break out. I am curious about the Clinique’s Moisture Surge Gel Cream though but since I read that Clinique products do cause break outs, I am a bit afraid to try.
Haha actually no, it’s been brewing for a while because I have all these stuff lying around that doesn’t work and I didn’t really want to dedicate a post to each of them so a round up works better :D I recently discovered Beautymouth and I love her! OMG overhauling my skincare routine as we speak haha :D For me, Clinique’s 1-2-3 range breaks me out but their targeted skincare are ok for me. Weird I know. Either way, there are options out there ;)
Hmmm, I remember gettting the EL one as GWP once. I hated it – didn’t remove makeup well, felt oily, and yes, it stings.
Oh good! I’m not alone in feeling the sting of the EL cleanser! :D You’re right about the oily feel too. Feels heavy and doesn’t do anything :P
The clinique mask is tricky.. apply generously they said but I find my skin feels very sticky even the morning after. Like I’ve been sweating profusely and whilst I don’t mind that overnight, the results are still there. Well moisturized skin, too bad it’s not a “sinks in and looks beautiful in the morning” like many other masks I do like.
I like overnight hydrating masks but the ones I love sink in completely and you could just swipe with a lotion or quickly splash with water, light hydration and go. This sucker you need to wash off again :(
I fully agree with your description of the Clinique mask. Just doesn’t work does it? I do wash my face in the mornings anyway, but this didn’t feel comfortable. I’d like to wake up to skin that feels lovely and plumped, not skin that feels like it needs a scrub.
I’ve come to the realization, that all beauty “stuff” is very subjective and relies a great deal on ones perceptions of how a particular product performs for them. Some items people have highly recommended, I personally have disliked. Some of the products I love most, some “gurus” have down played. I always enjoy what others have to say about a product but I take everything with a grain of salt. I haven’t tried any of these particular products.
I couldn’t agree more with you. :)
If a product is developed for all skin type across all regions, that particular company could have monopolize the entire industry.
Absolutely true, Marla! How well products work will vary greatly from one person to another. If we aren’t all made equal, there’s no reason to believe that a product is! ;)
Agree with Clinique overnight mask! Had too high the expectation, and think it’s just a so-so product. (Actually not even sure if it’s so-so! It just feels like another layer of cream!) Shame!
Haha you too, Tammy! I much prefer just using the regular Moisture Surge gel cream. Same purpose without the icky feeling.
There’s one brand that I’ve tried for like 3 days and I gave up.
That has to be Clinelle.
Cleanser, Toner, Moisturizer:
The only good thing i find about it, is it smells good.
Apart from that it gives no benefit of a skin care product.
I’ve never tried their stuff, but I’ve heard some raves for them. Guess you can’t please us all eh? I didn’t feel the urge to try anything from the brand. It feels… for want of a better word, bland :P
Hey Paris, funny how I was thinking about doing a post like this as well! I don’t usually get to write about products that don’t work for me for a reason: I try to stick to every skincare product for two months to see how it works, but sometimes if a product really doesn’t work, I cut the experiment short. A product that recently failed me is Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil Shampoo. It’s strange but it made my scalp grease up so much faster! I’ve tried three cleansing oil shampoos by now (L’Oreal mystic oil, Kerastase, and Shu), and the Kerastase one is the only one that doesn’t make my scalp grease up. It’s strange because cleansing oil is suppose to deep-cleanse!
Do it Sunny! If nothing else, it’s cathartic LOL! I don’t like slating any product but then, I also feel that it’s only fair to take the bad with the good. I get tired of reading raves after raves so I have to also balance things out myself ;) I was curious about the Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil shampoo! I wondered how it worked :P But since the cleansing oil for face didn’t work for me, I didn’t want to risk it with my hair. What if it all falls off?! :O LOL
I’ve just started my skincare journey a while back. So perhaps I’ve not encountered any mishaps for now. Touch wood. Yeah agree that though some products are highly raved, they may not work for some of us. Our beauty is unique. Trial and error I guess.
Oh hey, that’s good not to have mishaps! They can be such pricey (and painful) mistakes!
I had no idea Lucas Paw Paw made a Papaya Ointment! I still need to try the original. I’ve gotten pretty picky with my products lately, so there are a lot of things (especially skincare things that don’t necessarily break me out but also don’t do anything in general) that I feel kind of meh about.
Actually this Pure Papaya Ointment isn’t by Lucas but has the same concept :) I swear by the Lucas Papaw Ointment for keeping my lips chap free but this one really sucked for me LOL! I’m in the same boat as you are. Some things I used to be quite keen on before, now I’m not anymore. I’m just trying to streamline things as best I can :)
One product which I’ve used and discovered that it doesn’t work on me was the La Mer Cream. It was just to rich and too slick for my liking. And all the hype – it doesn’t nothing for my skin!
In a way, I am glad that it doesn’t! Save my purse a whole lotta dent. So I am back to using my cheap Olay moisturiser that I dare say, works better than that overpriced tub!
Ah Olay is one of the better pharmacy brand moisturisers in my book! So far, I’ve had quite good luck with them :) La Mer is hit or miss I believe. I used it once a long time ago and it didn’t work for me then. Skin didn’t look a lot better but it didn’t get worse. I gave up in the end. Not worth my money! Am thinking of trying it again though :P
Yay to Lucas Paw Paw Ointment! :) It really helped with cracked or peeling lips! I have a tub on my bedside table. I use it on my lips and my husband’s occasional itchy dry skin… :p He swears by Eucerin, but I just slap Lucas ones on him. :)
Oh yes! The Lucas Papaw Ointment has cured my dry/flaky lip problems so many times I don’t even want to stray anymore. Plus I don’t mind the smell. This one wasn’t nice :P
yeah the smell!!! I had to check the expiry date first time I got it just to make sure it wasn’t gone rotten! :p