Review: The Face Shop Migamsu Brightening Rice Water Cleansing Cream

Another review about cleansing creams...woot! woot!!

2 consecutive reviews about cleansing creams...I guess, I'm catching up.

I really have to catch up since I already have finished up this cleansing cream from The Face Shop 3 months ago!!! hahaha! Yes, I'm currently using the Ponds cleansing cream already. (^_^)v

I bought this during the last months of last year. I remember using this for approximately 6-8 months. It's hard using up a huge tub of cleansing cream ya know! but I'm a trooper and finished it all up anyway.

The Face Shop Migamsu Brightening Rice Water Cleansing Cream

This was in one of my wishlist ever since I became a fan of Asian cosmetics and skincare. I remember wanting this because my younger brother gave me a sample of their Brightening Rice Water Facial Cleanser which I also fell in love with, but I'm a bit scared to try because my skin reacts quickly with soap based cleansers nowadays. ooh! but I would still love to try that! haha!

Again, this comes in a huge tub.

Place bought:

SM North Edsa

Price:

P455.00 still a bit expensive for me, but the amount you get makes up for it.

Ingredients and description of the product: (you can click to enlarge)

as you can see, the tub is really huge (in diameter). Another thing that draws me to this is the packaging. Yeah! I'm a sucker for that too. It's simple, but it's clean and elegant looking. Of course, anything related to rice, tea and other herbal-ly things really draws my attention.

side view

bottom view

open it up and you can see a thin plastic lid that is helpful in keeping the contents from spilling everywhere and making a mess.

Formulation:

- like a light lotion. not too runny, but not too creamy either.

Scent:

- love it. it's does not necessarily have a "rice" scent. I has a very mild powdery scent that is not overpowering while you massage it on your face.

Comment:

- can be bought in The Face Shop stores.

- does not sting my skin.

- removes makeup quite well. This is at par with my Skinfood cleansing cream. You have to massage the product for at least a minute to emulsify it. You'll know that your makeup has been "melted" off when the product feel slippery on your face.

Cons:

- quite expensive

- stings my eyes, not recommended to remove eye makeup.

Comparison:

- Comparing the cleansing ability and the cleansing time, Pond's cold cream still beats all of my other cleansing creams.

Cleansing Time:

Ponds = a few seconds

The Face Ship Migamsu = at least a minute

Cleansing ability:

Ponds = removes everything in one go.

The Face Shop = sometimes, I have to go over for the second time just to be sure that I removed my makeup completely. (in cases where I use too much makeup...hahaha!)

Review: Pond's Deep Cleanser and Makeup Remover

Surprise! surprise! I'm using a product from Pond's?!?! I'm even surprised myself...

I'm not really a fan of Pond's products. It's not that their products are not of good quality. It's just that their products doesn't work on sensitive skin like mine.

I already had 3 mishaps with their products in the past. I guess I got fed up even trying their new ones.

First mishap: Used a Pond's toner (pink one) and it stung mah face like a son of a B!

Second mishap: Used a Pond's toner (yellow one) and mah face went berserk. My face literally immediately broke into hives...it's like I was having measles. It freaked me out. I have to use some anti-histamines just to calm my allergy.

Third mishap: Used their Facial wash (the "carbon"/black one). After washing my face with that, my face went itchy and red.

So yeah, I got fed up...

But why, oh why, am I so stubborn to try another Pond's product again!?!?!

First, I thought that maybe the local Pond's product (manufactured in a neighboring Asian country) do not work for me (FYI, almost all products that is locally available in the Phils. is manufactured in other Asian countries. Maybe because it's cheaper to mass manufacture in those countries? I don't know)...Maybe the imported ones (made in Canada or US) have different formulation...

Second, I'm just stubborn that way.

What is my verdict with this "cold cream"?

Pond's Deep Cleanser and Makeup Remover

This is not the "cold cream" that is usually available in our local supermarket or Watsons. I was right when I guessed that the Pond's products that are available here have different formulations than the ones imported from the US or Canada...the question is why??!?! This formulation is actually hard to find. You can usually purchase this Pond's cold cream (Made in US) from supermarkets that caters more on imported products like S&R, Cash and Carry, etc.

Place I bought this:

S&R

Current Price:

P499.95...in short, it's worth P500. Yep, surprisingly expensive. But I guess, the actual amount that you get  is worth it for the price. Since this is a HUGE tub.

They actually have two variants of this cold cream. I think the other one is their "classic cold cream", but I bought the cucumber one since this smells better (and mild) for me than the "classic one".

Ingredients: 

for people who loves to freak out when they see something like Mineral Oil, Parabens, etc. this is not for you...but seriously, until now, I still don't get why people get scared of this "demonized" ingredients...Do they really understand the chemistry behind these ingredients that they are scared about? "what you don't fully understand is not necessarily bad for you. You just don't understand it. Period."

Simple packaging. Like the simplicity of the packaging.

The actual product. I've been using this for 3 months already and I still haven't gone through half of it!

Formulation Comparison (Local and Imported):

The cold cream that I have feels more like a light lotion compared to the ponds cold creams that are available locally (my mother owns the local version of the Ponds cold cream) which have a creamier consistency. It also has a "fresher", milder scent compared to the local cold cream that has an overpowering perfumey scent.

Comment:

Pros:

- This cold cream does an amazing job in melting away makeup. It actually surpassed the performance of my other cold cream that I have used in the past including my favorite which is the Skinfood Cleansing cream that I reviewed in the past.

- melts away my makeup in just seconds. I don't have to massage for a long time just to feel it working.

- it doesn't sting my face.

- I love the mild, fresh scent. I believe that other people with sensitive skin can use this sparingly.

- comes in a HUGE tub = great amount of product.

Cons:

- not readily available anywhere. Quite hard to find.

- a bit expensive for a drugstore brand, but the amount you get makes up for the price anyway.

- It also melts off eye makeup even waterproof ones, but I don't recommend using it to take off eye makeup because it will sting the heck out of your eyes.

Will I repurchase?

- Yes, I will, but I'd like to try other cleansing creams in the market first before I go back to this. 

Quick Review: BRTC Aqua Clean Massage Cleansing Cream

This is my very first cleansing cream I bought online when I started entering the world of makeup. This was also the time when Korean beauty products wasn't even popular here in the Philippines.

I guess I'm one of the early "enthusiasts" who uses asian beauty products not yet, popular here. I don't even have a blog at that time, but luckily, I took a picture of my early purchases. I guess, I unconsciously plan in creating a blog then?

I only have one blurry picture of this...sorry.

Price: 

I forgot, sorry...I bought it online, by the way.

Smell:

I remember it has a fresh, light scent that I really like. 

Consistency:

quite runny consistency, like a really light lotion.

Color:

very light blue

Comments:

Pros:

- did not cause any breakouts

- doesn't sting

- nice smell

- doesn't feel very oily

Cons:

- not locally available.

- I remember it stings my eyes a bit and it gives me a clouded vision.

- doesn't really melt makeup (especially waterproof) that well.

Overall:

- this product is so-so...honestly, it's quite forgettable.

Battle of the Cleansing Creams: Skinfood vs. Etude House

Since I'm a bit of an old school when it comes to removing my makeup, I'd prefer using cleansing creams a.k.a cold creams or Olive oil (yep, olive oil and it works like a dream!).

It's not that I don't want to try cleansing oils...I do, but it's more expensive than cleansing creams and for the price and the amount of cleansing oil in one bottle...honestly, it's not practical for me...for something just to remove makeup on your face.

Here's my review on cleansing creams that I've tried, so far.

Skinfood Seaweed Cleansing Cream

Where I bought it: SM North Edsa (when they had a secret sale)

When: Dec. 2010

Sale Price: P347.50 (not bad!)

here's the description of the product and direction on how to use this

(click on photos to enlarge)

I actually finished this product early March this year. As you can see, the cream has a subtle green "seaweed" color to it.

Comments:

Packaging: 

simple...quite boring compared to the usual skinfood packaging.

Smell: 

smells like the old school Pond's cold cream. It's not overpowering and it really doesn't bother me.

Consistency:

 it has a thick consistency and rich texture which I prefer.

Performance:

Pros:

- did not cause breakouts which is great!

- doesn't sting my eyes and skin. Actually, the SA told me that this cleansing cream is good for acne prone, sensitive skin...I guess she's right!

- after you massage the thick cream for a few mins. the cream will turn a bit slippery, you can feel that it really melts your makeup off your face. I use a muslin cloth ("lampin" in Filipino) to wipe my face and I can really see all the gunk that the cleansing cream has "melted" off my face.

- the price is reasonable for the amount of product. The packaging itself is huge and when I opened it for the first time, the amount of product inside was full to the brim!

Cons:

-This product is not for lazy people. If you worry about sanitary things like digging the product out with your finger, you can use a plastic spoon to get a small amount of product then just wash the spoon afterwards. This is not a con for me.

After I've finished the Skinfood Seaweed Cleansing Cream, I decided to try the...

Etude House Happy Teatime Milktea Cleansing Cream

Where: SM North Edsa The Block

When: March 2011

Current Price: P198.00

description of the product and directions on how to use this.

(click on photos to enlarge...all of my photos are "clickable" to enlarge, anyway)

ingredients

top view of the plastic casing...even from the plastic covering, Asian cosmetic companies really know how to make cute packaging.

design of the lid

honestly, I only bought this because it says "MILKTEA" on the packaging. I'm a milktea monster...I LOVE milktea!!!!! not the ones in sachets...for me, that's a fake milktea taste, it doesn't even comes close to the milktea family!!! I go to Binondo for that genuine milktea experience!! (here in the Philippines, at least) like what I used to drink when I was little...I miss the Taiwanese who makes and sells milktea in the afternoon...ok, I'm way off topic, but...I can't wait to try the milkteas in Singapore, Japan and Hongkong!!! I know it's gonna be goooood!!!

when you open it, you see a plastic covering on top of the tub

just a plain white cream

Comments:

Packaging:

- cute packaging!

Smell:

- smells like milky, baby powder acc. to Mr. Panda Eyes (hubby) and Mrs. Panda Eyes (I) agree.

Consistency:

- it looks like a fluffy white cream in the tub and it feels like a light lotion than a heavy cream like the skinfood's.

Performance:

Pros:

- nice, subtle smell

- more affordable than the skinfood one.

- did not cause breakouts. 

Cons:

- stings my eyes and my skin. I can't wait to be done with this product.

- in my current experience with this product, I feel that it doesn't really take off all the makeup on my face. I only do light makeup especially this summer and I always double cleanse, but every time I use a toner (just to make sure) I always see makeup residue on my face. I'm very disappointed with this product.

The packaging might be cute, but I need a product that works.

Who won? it's obvious!

Skinfood Seaweed Cleansing Cream WINS!