Yves Rocher Daily Exfoliating Cleanser and 24 Hour Intense Hydrating Gel Cream Reviews

This is the time of year when I have to change my facial routine again and go back to my tried and true Ponds Cold Cream.  With oily skin I have 2 skin care routines that I use during the year:  Ponds during the warmer months when I need just an oil based cleanser and no moisturizer and for the colder months when I need a cleanser and a water based cream.

Last winter I used Burt's Bees Sensitive Skin Cleaner and Daily Moisturizing Cream.  I liked the cream but hated the cleanser.  See my review of this duo here.  I am a very loyal Yves Rocher customer and would prefer to give my money to them if they have a similar product.  Plus YR gives rewards and free products.  I switched over to Yves Rocher's 24 Hour Intense Hydrating Gel Cream and Daily Exfoliating Daily Cleanser in Mid-December when the temps started to drop.

Cleanser:

My Review:  YR's Daily Exfoliating Cleanser is a great product that not only cleans but also exfoliates the dead skin cells that are left by the cold and windy weather.  This cleanser does not dry my skin out which is big for me since dry skin equals more oil.  I really hate when i wash my face and it  drys out then over night it becomes oily.  I like a balance where once I leave the bathroom my face is comfortable.  I will be purchasing this again next year when the weather cools down.  I like how it gentle exfoliates my skin and removes the flakes from the wind yet doesn't scrubs off the top layer of skin and makes it raw.  The scent is very pleasing and not over powering like some.  I bought a tube of this for my sister-in-law to use as well for the winter as she was looking for a new cleanser as her's was discontinued after eight years.

Here is some info on the cleanser from Yves Rocher's website:

Daily Exfoliating Cleanser

Purifies skin

The exfoliating cleanser for acne-prone skin with botanical micro-beads:
- Eliminates excess sebum,
- Purifies skin and clears pores, 
- Prevents the reappearance of skin problems with its exfoliating action.

The Plus: Its soap-free formula, which won’t dry skin
Paraben free formula.

4.2 fl.oz. Tube / 125 ml

Gel Cream:

My Review:  I am on the fence about the 24H Intense Hydrating Gel Cream.  It worked fine.  It hydrated my face nicely during the winter and didn't make my face oily.  I don't really know why I am not in love this this product.  I prefer Biotherm's Aquasource Deep Hydration Replenishing Gel to this gel moisturizer.  It's not a bad product.  It does what it says it does.  I think it is just the texture I don't like.  It absorbs quickly but it is thick for a gel product.  I like a more runny gel like product.  I would give this a 4 out of 5 stars but only due to the thickness compared to other gel moisturizers.  I would recommend this to others who have oily skin and at the price it can't be beat.  The Biotherm product is close to $50 and expensive for me at this time.
Here is some info on the Cream from Yves Rocher's Website:

24H Intense Hydrating Gel Cream

Skin is filled with water, essential for lasting hydration!

The 24H Intense Hydrating Gel: 
- Intensely and durably moisturizes skin for 24 hours,
- Leaves skin visibly resplenished, fresh and radiant.

For Normal to Combination Skin
Formula tested under dermatological supervision

Botanical-based ingredients: maple sugar, organic agave sap, betaine, organic witch hazel water.

1.6 fl.oz. Jar / 50 ml

Yves Rocher's Botanical Scrub Review

I have been using Yves Rocher's products for over 10 years.  I got a packet in the mail years ago and had to try them.  I was in search of face care products and was intrigued by their natural skin care lines and had been through the drugstore and mid lines at department stores.  At that point nothing really had worked for my oily skin that made my skin comfortable.  With Yves Rocher, I loved that you got free gifts with your purchases.  Plus you could purchase mystery bags and get a great value of products to try/give away as gifts.  When I moved back to Canada I loved the stores and their free in store skin analysis and sales girls.  I have found some great products I love.  They get new items in often and their products are definitely worth a try.  

This time, I was in the market for a new scrub while I was waiting for my mail order scrubs to come in a few months back and I was tempted by this one.  So I purchased Yves Rocher's Botanical Scrub.  It comes in a 5 oz flip top tube, not a tub so it is very hygienic, more desirable than the tub format most scrubs come in.  Now this was an impulse purchase and sometimes those impulse purchases are downers but not this one!  It has a delightful scent and works great.

The scent is what was the selling point for me.  Oh boy is it delightful.  I want this in a fragrance oil for my home.

This product is said to scrub your skin as you purify it.  YR has used ingredients in it such as naturally exfoliating apricot kernel powder, purifying saro essential oil and Mexican agave sap from organically grown ingredients for its moisturizing properties.  Some find that apricot kernel powder is too hard to use on their skin to exfoliate  especially if they have sensitive skin but the good thing with apricot kernel powder is that it does not dissolve like sugar does and sloughs off dead skin cells longer.  The agave sap moisturizes your skin.  


How I use this product:  What i end up doing is that i stand out of the spray of the shower, apply the scrub an area of the time, scrub then move on to another area.  Then once I have applied the scrub to my whole body I go back and exfoliate my body again and focus on the dry areas.  Once i feel that I have gotten all the dry areas and satisfied I rinse well.  Once I am done I have smooth skin with a nice fresh, invigorating scent on my skin that lingers til the next morning.

I use this often and find that i will need to repurchase this before the end of the month.  This is one of the two scrubs that I keep permanently in my shower.  I highly recommend that you get your hands on this scrub and give it a whirl!


ORGANIC APRICOT KERNEL

The key ingredients of Botanical Scrub are Apricot kernel powder to refine the texture of the skin, the essential oil Saro sheet from Madagascar to purify and Agave sap for its moisturizing properties.

Haus of Gloi Absinthe Sugar Exfolliant Scrub Review

I love when I find a new e-tailer that I just love!  I placed an order from Haus of Gloi and love every item I received.  I am falling in love with sugar scrubs and buying them like crazy.  I ordered from HoG Bubbling Scrubs in Vice, Twice is Nice and Olde Cider Haus.  I also ordered Sugar Exfolliant Scrubs in Lavender and Sugar and Absinthe.  Today I will be reviewing the Sugar Exfolliant Scrub in Absinthe.

I am not a big fan of earthy scents.  When I opened Absinthe I was not pleased with the scent in the jar.  It did not smell like the glycerin soap I received from Summer ScentSations in Absinthe.  Instead this smelled earthy and manly, so not something I want to smell like.  I prefer gourmand, light floral, sweet, citrus or fresh.  This was none of those.

This scrub has sat in my bath and body bin since early December.  I have been using all my other scrubs instead.  The Lavender and Sugar scrub is to die for.  It is great before bed when you want to relax and unwind after a long day.  It has a medicinal lavender to it, not a sweet scent, but I digress.

My Black Friday Summer ScentSations Haul

During Summer ScentSations' Black Friday sale I placed an order.  I had purchased some soaps from her on TopHatter and love how long her scents linger on the skin after you rinse them off.  Plus I wasn't allergic to her glycerin soaps.

My order:
Soaps in French Lavender (3) and Coconut Citrus Sorbet

Lip Balm in Orange Sorbet

Lip Sugar Scrub and Polish in a Tube in Vanilla Icing (2)

Lip Scrub and Balm Set in Black Cherry

Mineral Eye Shadows in Sea Pearl, Smoke, Turquoise, Aquamarine,

Shamrock, Mermaid Sheen and Iris

Solid Perfumes in Oh So Juicy, Simply Delicious and Be Number One

Now on to the reviews!


Coconut Citrus Sorbet Soap - This bright fragrance cleanses your senses with the refreshing notes of soothing lemon, zesty lime, creamy coconut milk and sweet vanilla bean. It's the perfect combination of sweet and citrus that that will make you dream of summer days!
My Review:  Smells like coconut and lemon with a hint of vanilla and twist of lime.  It is the perfect summer soap but at the same time soft enough to use during the cooler months.  Its a pretty soap - white with yellow in it with pretty yellow curls on the top.  I love a great amount of lather as it scents the air.  This soap does just that and makes the shower smell tropical.  In the dead of winter it makes you forget that it's -20c outside.  It has all the scents to brighten your spirit and senses.  A great wake me up soap to use in the morning or throughout the day to lift your spirits.

French Lavender Soap
My Review:  Smells like a beautiful lavender garden.  I have grown to love lavender over the last year and this soap is the precise reason why.  The soap is a pretty white and lavender colour swirl cold press bar of soap with lavender on the top.  It is very pretty and a nice soap to display in your bathroom.  This soap lathers nicely and makes the shower smell like a beautiful spa.  Very relaxing, great before bed.

Orange Sorbet Lip Balm - A juicy burst of orange with a slightly sweet background that will cleanse the palate and refresh the senses.
My Review:  Smells like heaven. Its a great summer scent.

Lip Sugar Scrub and Polish in a Tube in Vanilla Icing
My Review:  I got two of these as my lips get chapped pretty bad in our Canadian winters and love lip scrubs.  The scrubby part is sugar.  Smalls just like vanilla icing.  Very sweet but warm due to the vanilla.  It comes in a tube so it doesn't get messy like some pot scrubs do plus its easier to carry in your purse and apply.  Works good.  I used it last night and did a gentle rub and have very soft lips this morning.

Black Cherry Lip Balm and Lip Scrub - Mmmm, the aroma of ripe black cherries to carry around with you all day. Delicious, smells good enough to eat - but don't, lips only!

My Review:  This is a gift for my mom as she loves black cherries.  The lip scrub came in a container.  The organza bag matches the lip balm and scrub.  Smells good!  The scrub works great and gets rid of chapped lips in 1 or 2 uses.  Gentle enough to use daily if they are rather chapped and it takes more than 1 or 2 uses to get them soft again.

The mineral eye shadows look just as they are pictured.  I love this because then you know what you are getting.  My favs are Shamrock and Mermaid Sheen.  I love bold blues and greens and I wear a lot of silvers and purples so they all are great additions to my loose shadow collection.  The lasting power when applied dry without primer is average, no different than my other loose shadows.  When applied wet or on top of primer you get awesome results.  The colours are so true and last all day.  You get quite a bit in the small clear jar.  The price was great and I would definitely reorder mineral eye shadows from Summer ScentSations.

The solid perfumes are stocking stuffers so I won't be able to opened to smell or test them.  They are the perfect purse size and will get some for myself in my next order.

I am very pleased with my order and look forward to my next one!  I really want to try her solid lotions, shave bars and body scrubs.  She is very good with customer service and will work with you if a product isn't available to ship to your country.  She is located in the Cayman Islands.  Shipping to Canada is about 2 weeks.  She ships the same day.  I would expect shipping to the US to be 1-2 weeks as they receive mail quicker than us Canadians.

Moonalisa September 2012 Sale - Sleepy Hallow & Gypsy Cirkus Collection

I decided to see what all the hype is about and tried out Moonalisa with her Sleepy Hallow & Gypsy Cirkus Collection Sale in September 2012.  I made a single order and was an international.  I placed my order on September 17th.  It was shipped on November 9th and received December 3rd.  It was a long time to wait for goodies to come but opening the package and smelling all the items was well worth it!  Here is my order:

Qty Item Options Price 1 Mini Puff Powders! ~ Sleepy Hallow & Gypsy Cirkus Collection 2012 Item # 23010209 Option: S'mores and Hot Cocoa $5.95 USD 1 Mini Puff Powders! ~ Sleepy Hallow & Gypsy Cirkus Collection 2012 Item # 23010207 Option: Marzipan Corn Cake $5.95 USD 1 Sleepy Hallow Collection Scrub / Bath Cream Parfaits - 9.5 oz Item # 22974775 Option: Pumpkin Batter * Old classic~ $12.95 USD 1 Spray-In Detangler - 4 oz Item # 23010837 Option: Pumpkin Batter $7.95 USD 1 Mini Puff Powders! ~ Sleepy Hallow & Gypsy Cirkus Collection 2012 Item # 23010213 Option: Pumpkin Batter $5.95 USD

I also got extras of Blood Orange Cotton Candy bath brew and Winter Porridge with Apple Strudel cream.  Along with a ball with confetti in it and a Fortune Telling Fish and the usual Moona cards.  The package was filled with tissue paper with stamps on all the items.  It was like a creative birthday gift that smelled like heaven.

Scent Reviews - Extras:

Blood Orange Cotton Candy:
My Take: Smells like an orange creme sickle!! 

Winter Porridge with Apple Strudel 
My Take: Smells like Apple Oatmeal, you can smell an apple juice note to it, sweet and apley but can also detect the oatmeal.  I ordered this in various items in my December order before I smelled this extra.

My Scent Reviews:

Marzipan Corn Cake: sweet creamy corn sugar which is a really rich and sweet creamy scent, and blends beautifully with these oils. Don't let the word corn scare you:)

My Take: It smells like a lightly spiced cream cake, definitely no corn scent to it. Very sweet and creamy! It is great in the body power and reacts well with the heat of my body during the day.  I smell sweet and creamy with a hint of spice.

S'mores & Hot Cocoa Cream: Scrumptious classic crust & ooey, gooey treat , accompanied with a piping hot side of Hot cocoa, sure to satisfy!

My Take:  Just like a night in front of the camp fire with s'mores and hot chocolate.  It is definitely a sweet chocolate scent.  There is a hint of marshmallow but I mostly smell ooey gooey chocolate.  It smells heavenly.

Pumpkin Batter
My Take:  Smells exactly like my Spiced Pumpkin Pie with a hint of batter.  The detangler makes my hair smells so good.  It is the perfect Christmas scent!  Who wouldn't want to smell like pumpkin pie.

Product Reviews:

The scented hair detangler lasts all day unless you put anther product on top of it.  I usually use it to start and then spritz it again when my hair is all done.  It definitely helps with tangles and keeps the fly always to a minimum.  I love it so much that I ordered another one during the December sale.  You don't need much even with long wavy hair.  I use it everyday and not much is missing from the bottle.  The oil is the perfect amount to not make my hair greasy with use.  Most oil products make my scalp oily and dirty looking.  This product even holds style as many don't on my hair after being applied.

The body powders are great.  I have been using them after I shower in the evening and put it on my decolletage area.  All 3 smell so good.  The powder is finely milled and easy to apply.  They help if I sweat any during the night.  Plus they make my bed smell delicious if I roll over any on my pillow.  I used to included puffs for a few days but found that a nice fluffy brush works better.  The powder doesn't stick to the brush as it does the puff.  As I have 3 of these I don't know if I would order more anytime soon but they are cute.  I might repurchase them during her Autumn sale next year if she has them.

I am definitely in love with Moona products.  Many of her scents have elements to them that I can't wear such as Musk and Amber but she always has foody scents that I love to try.  I can't wait to get my next order!