Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish

About 2 weeks ago I was on my own, my fiance was working, I was bored out of my tree, I had far too much time on my hands and there was nothing on TV!   But during my channel hopping I came across the Beauty Day on QVC.

..Yep, the dreaded people there that could sell ice to an Eskimo, suckered me in!

I went for item # 212054 the Cleanse/ Polish and tonic set.  This is priced at £24.52 (and was spread out over 4 payments).  The set comprises of the Cleanse & Polish 100ml and the Skin Tonic 200ml, 2 muslin cloths and a waterproof bag.

Picture taken from QVC.com


(I apologise for the stock photo, but a) no one wants to see my manky muslin cloths.. and b) well, I'll get to that later..)

In my defense I'd been wanting to try the Cleanse and Polish for a long time, probably even before I purchased my Clarisonic, but the 'Easy-pay' option made it seem like a good idea to try it, plus I thought about their 30 day money back guarantee.. I didn't have much to lose!

The first thing I noticed, as do many, was the smell.. notice how I said smell there, rather than scent!  I hated it!  What I do like is that it smells of eucalyptus, that always evokes thought of cleanliness and germ fighting, but I really didn't care for the scent of any of the other ingredients..
The tonic, does that smell any better?  To me, that smells even worse!  I was expecting some uplifting, fresh, Summer scent.. but instead I got something the smelled sort of old fashioned, and ever so slightly musty.  I was really surprised that I didn't love the 'scent' of this, as so many people have raved about how lovely it is.. sadly I didn't find myself agreeing with them at all :0/

Did I see any results?  Nope..  not any positive ones anyway!

I used it each night, I took off the majority of my make up with a Boots Botanics cleanser, then applied the Cleanse & Polish, did the whole hot cloth jobby.. patted my face dry then went ahead with the toner.  Over time, upon waking up I expected to see something.. maybe some brightening of the skin, perhaps fewer blemishes, maybe a more even tone, smaller pores?   Just.. something..  Instead I woke up to more and more spots that got steadily worse over time.  Now I know sometimes your skin will get worse before it gets better, that was certainly the case with the Clarisonic, but what I consistently noticed was that the Cleanse & Polish never got my skin totally clean, this is probably the biggest factor in why I don't want to see it to the end of the bottle.  I switched cleansers in the hopes it would take off more makeup beforehand.. I applied two pumps of the C&P instead of one.. I was more thorough with the muslin cloth.. Nothing I tried got my face as clean as the Clarisonic does.  Each time I go over my skin with a cottol wool ball and toner I see my face is clean, theres no residue or any trace of makeup.. but with the C&P there was always some grime left behind. Ewww!   I hated that, that and the fact it took lots of the toner to remove it.. what a pain!

I also dislike that I feel I have to run the muslin cloth through a wash cycle before each use, thats just something I can't be doing with.  Again, with the Clarisonic I just rinse off the soap after use, then spritz with a dettol solution afterwards, and bam, clean for the next use! :op

I don't like that theres Cocoa Butter in amongst the ingredients either (I believe its the next ingredient after water!), I don't feel that most people with oily, spot prone skin, actually want (or need) something as rich as Cocoa Butter on their face.  I'm not sure of the amount thats inside this, but to me its a pretty heavy moisturizer for oily skins.  It makes me wonder if Liz Earle and her people are working on something lighter, perhaps more deeper cleansing for us oily peeps!?

I don't know if this is a Marmite thing, you either love it or you hate it, but I definitely hate it.. With a passion!

I normally hate QVC too, the rubbish they spout sometimes is truly laughable and Im sure some of them live in La La Land (for example, a £100 set of cotton sheets "Is a good teachers present to say thanks"  Alrighty then..), but on this occasion I'm glad I purchased it via QVC because I will be making full use of their 30 day returns policy on this one!  Which brings me onto the other reason for the stock photo.  Reason b) that I don't have it to show you as its currently packaged up and ready to go back!

So sadly this didn't work for me and I really didn't get the hype about it at all :0/

I still wouldn't advise anyone not to give it a go, as always.. what doesn't work at all for one person, may well work wonders for someone else!

Have you tried it, do you love it or hate it!?

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Decision made..

Decision made..

I've made up my mind on the Clarisonic..

Its a big fat thumbs up!!

I purchased mine from Feel Unique.

After my last post in which I moaned about it and questioned whether I should stick it out, I decided that as I paid so much, and as there was a few other things left to try with it.. tweaking the times I used it, disinfecting it etc, I decided I'd give it more time.

Im sooooo glad I did!

I was using some sterilising fluid on it once a week, I also soaked it in TCP.. which left the brush head with a rather nasty yellow tinge(!), but it felt too much of a faff, so in the end I bought a cheap water spray bottle (49p in Home Bargains!) and I put some Dettol solution inside it (diluted of course, I don't fancy burning my face off!)..

So after each use I rinse off the brush and liberally spray the Dettol on it, I also like to take the extra step of giving it a quick wash before I use it in the evening, it really is a quick wash too as I feel the Dettol has done the work (but I like to be super cautious!).

I stopped using the Clarisonic twice a day too, I now just use it in the evening before bed.  I've kept the timing the same, it is still a 2 minute deep cleanse because I felt 1 minute just wasn't enough for the whole face.

So its either the Dettol'ing(!) or using it less often thats paid off.. or both!

I now go out without foundation, I am using Lancome Flash Bronzer, I apply this before bed.. I would perhaps apply it in the morning but I just hate the tint that it has, it seems to oxidize on me and so by Midday Im a proper Oompa Loompa!
So my make up consists of Rimmel Jet Black eyeliner, Rimmel Flash Mascara, Maybelline Pinky Beige lipstick and some Bourjois blush.. Thats it!  Theres no messing about with foundation anymore, and I like it!

I did feel a little self conscious at first, being seen without foundation in public hasn't happened since I was about 14, but now I dont think anything of it, infact Im quite proud of the fact Im able to do it!

I give the Clarisonic a 10/10, for me its been amazing and Im so glad I stuck out that yucky phase of extra spots (big, sore ones at that), because its been really worth it!  My pores are visibly reduced in size - something I didnt believe was possible, the lines around my mouth have lessened and my skin is much, much clearer and more clarified.  I haven't yet used the products that came with it, I read that a lot of people complained about spots after using the cleanser etc, and as Im happy with my Clearasil Im not too bothered about trying the samples.  I have used the body brush attachment that came with it, I found it was a really good exfoliator and did well at removing the nasty patches of St Moriz build-up!

Would I recommend it?  You bet!

 I know its not something you can just pop out and buy like you would a new lippy, but if you can save for it, or receive it as a generous present, then go for it, you wont regret it!  You do have to change the brush head every 3 months, so thats a further £20 ish every 3-4 months.. But in a way Im now saving money on foundation, Im not wasting money looking for the next H.G cleanser or toner, Im saving money on scrubs etc and I feel Im using less products to cleanse my skin (ie, a smaller pump of cleanser on the brush, less toner after, etc etc).. Next month I will have to replace the brush head, Im not sure whether to purchase the grey brush designed for spot prone skin, or just to go and repurchase the 'normal' one, theres some thinking to do there, but as for the £20, Im not at all bothered about that, I feel that its a small price to pay for my skin looking how I want it to!

My only worry.. is that it might break one day!!  I didnt use it for 3 days and I could really tell the difference in my skin, so I hope it will be kind and give me prior warning if it decides to break!!

If you do think you might purchase this I would recommend holding out for a discount code, or perhaps look around the websites near a Bank Holiday.. I purchased mine with a 15% off code that was emailed to me on the May Bank Holiday, you'll find lots of companies offering B.H discounts, so they could come in handy :)

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So excited, I may just pee my pants!

So excited, I may just pee my pants!

I'm counting down the days for the delivery of this lil delight..

For those of you that dont know what it is, its the Clarisonic!  Oh yeah baby!!

Whoohoo, come on Mr Postie!!

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