Over the past couple of years, it’s been customary for me to invest in anti-ageing skin care products around my birthday to combat any depressing feelings of getting older!
I was in Los Angeles on my birthday last year and was instantly drawn to the Onsen store due to their clean décor, bright lights and very well groomed, friendly staff! I’d heard about Onsen skincare before, but hadn’t read any reviews or seen any stores in London.
I had a mini consultation with the sales assistant, after which he tried a couple of products on me. I have an unhealthy obsession with exfoliators, and the first product; the Daily Choice Peel completely blew me away! ..I instantly knew I was going to walk out of there with an empty purse!
I ended up buying two sets of the Basic Series; all the products listed below, the Aloe Gel Cleanser for Jass (the husband) and lots of mini hand cream samples, that were great, and non-greasy!
Step 1
The Milk Lotion Cleanser is great, and doubles up as a make-up remover. I love the refreshing, light ‘clean’ scent, and the formula seems to be very concentrated so I only use one and a half pumps of this to cleanse my whole face. It leaves my skin feeling very clean, without feeling tight or dry.
Step 2
The Daily Choice Peel was unlike any other product I’d ever tried before, and has a thin gel-like consistency. After cleansing the face, you apply a thin layer all over, like a mask, and leave it on for 15 – 30 seconds to activate. Once this has been done, you massage your face in circular motions, and you can literally see the dead skin rubbing off! It leaves my skin feeling brand new and refreshed.
Step 3
The Daily Hydration moisturiser has a lightweight formula and doesn’t clog the pores. It leaves my skin feeling really nourished and hydrated, and provides a good base for make-up application. –great for the winter months when my skin needs an extra dose of hydration! I think that this is a good moisturiser, however, I prefer ones that even more lightweight for the summer months, and having seen the price of it in London, I’m not sure that I’d repurchase this.
Step 4
The Soothing Eye Cream is again, very lightweight with a lovely light fresh, ‘clean’ scent to it. It targets puffiness, dark circles and fine lines, wrinkles and uneven texture. I love the silky feeling of this cream, it feels very rich on the skin without being heavy and looking greasy on. It absorbs really fast and feels very soothing, especially in the mornings when my eyes can tend to be quite puffy.
I have extremely dark circles under my eyes, and with regular use of this cream, I can see how it evens them out slightly and leaves my under eye area looking brighter. Although, it won’t diminish dark circles completely -I’m still searching for that magical product! I find that this cream really helps with the appearance of them.
My only grievance is with the packaging, I find it too bulky to travel with, and although this comes with a mini spatula, which is very easy to misplace, I dislike pots that I need to dip my finger into for hygiene reasons, and therefore think it would be perfect as a roll on, or with a pump.
Step 5
The Powder Technology Active Enhancer is supposed to act as a boost for the eye cream and is marketed as the natural alternative to Botox. There are two tubes; AM and PM to use night and day, and I haven’t been using this as regularly as I should. I feel this adds an unnecessary step to my daily routine, and as with all products of this nature, I can’t see any physical difference, and probably won’t for a few years, so I wouldn’t repurchase this.
Overall, I really like the basic series range, and would repurchase most of it again when I travel to America.
Have you tried any of the Onsen range?
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