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It's that time again: time to post about the products that let us down in one way or another. Was your lipstick too sheer? Post here! Did you hair oil make you cry? Hit reply! Was your serum too thin? Weigh in! Here we go...
I had two major misses this month. One was philosophy Nature in a Jar Warming Exfoliator with Jojoba. I love the diamtoaceous earth from philosophy The Microdelivery Exfoliating Facial Wash but haven't been able to buy it off the shelves for years since they changed the formula and added irritants. I gave the ingredient list for the Nature in the Jar one a quick scan, and it seemed all right enough. The bottom line is that it was too abrasive - even for me! (I complain all the time about scrubs being too wimpy.) I wound up with micro-tears on my cheeks that became red bumps, and took at least a week to heal. Now, I could just be less zealous with my scrubbing, but I don't do things that way. And as for the warming effect, I didn't really feel it.
My second fail was also a scrub. After my bad experience with philosophy, I tried VERSED Day Maker Microcrystal Exfoliator. I read a good review on Beautypedia, which mentioned that the microcrystals were cellulose beads that were gentle. Well, I found them to be sandy and not gentle. Again, I wound up with micro-tears on my cheeks with unsightly red bumps. (Thank goodness for face mask wearing due to the pandemic!) I should mention that it contains lemongrass oil, which I conveniently forgot about...hello, irritant!
Spoiler
Versed’s Daymaker Microcrystal Exfoliator aims to be a gentler take on face scrubs that gets it right… mostly (we’ll get to that in a bit).
Housed in an opaque squeeze bottle, this creamy product’s scrub action comes from the “microcrystals” mentioned in its name. While at first this sounds like it could be harsh, the crystals in question are actually tiny, gentle cellulose beads. They feel ultra-fine rather than overly abrasive, and provide manual exfoliation that makes skin feel softer and smoother.
Added to the skin-smoothing abilities of this product are moisturizing sunflower and jojoba oils. This also contains black currant and raspberry leaf extracts, which Versed claims can keep oil production in check. They can’t do that, but their antioxidant abilities can help reduce inflammation as claimed. Though they’re in a rinse-off product, they’re still thoughtful inclusions.
The only drawback here is that this also has fragrant lemongrass leaf oil, listed by its Latin name Cymbopogon citratus. It’s not here in a great amount (you can’t even really smell it), but fragrance – even in small amounts, in a rinse-off product – still has the potential to irritate skin and eyes.
That aside, this is still a good, mostly gentle option for physical exfoliation.
One final note: Versed says this can detox pores, but skin care products simply cannot do that; your pores don’t need detoxing in the first place, and the work of removing any toxins from the body is done by the kidneys and the liver, not anything you would place on your skin.
PROS:
- Small cellulose particles provide gentle physical exfoliation.
- Includes hydrating sunflower and jojoba oils.
- Contains antioxidant black currant leaf and raspberry leaf extracts.
CONS:
- Contains fragrant lemongrass oil, which has the potential to irritate skin
