Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser review

I am o bit obsessed with cleansing (see my post about importance of cleansing: http://justinabb.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/cleansing-first-step-to-beautiful-skin.html), so I always look to try new cleansers. Liz Earles' Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser is one of those cult products, that a lot of my clients seem to be using. I was very happy to see it as a gift with travel version of Aprils red magazine.

You get 30ml of the Cleanse and Polish with Muslin cloth (worth £5.50) and instructions on how to use it.

What they say:

"We only make one cleanser because this formulation is the ultimate in concentrated yet gentle cleansing power and works on every age and skin type.

Our plant based cleanser has a two-phase action, phase one is the cleansing. Free from mineral oil, it has a rich and creamy texture and swiftly removes all traces of face and eye make up, even stubborn mascara.

Phase two is the polishing. Polish off the cream using the pure muslin cloth to gently dislodge dead skin cells and help reveal clean, soft and radiant skin.

Naturally active ingredients include eucalyptus and cocoa butter for smoother, clearer skin."


My thoughts:
Beautifully creamy, works well at dissolving makeup, including waterproof liner and mascara. The product has almost same texture as Ponds' Cold Cream Cleanser. It feels very rich and doesn't "melt" on contact with warm skin, like most of these types of cleansers do, but stays in a thick cream form. If I massaged it to vigorously, or left too long on the face, I could feel a slight tingling sensation (hello eucalyptus!), so I would recommend to remove the product quite quickly, as it may lead to irritation. It did a great job at melting away my heavy eye makeup, but I preferred to wipe it away with damp cotton pads rather than muslin cloth. This way you won't stain your cloth and it feels much more gentle on the delicate eye area.

Ingredients:
Unlike the other cream cleansers, which are mostly just oil based, cleanse and polish lists water as the first ingredient. Being a water/oil emulsion it would explain why it stays stable as a cream and doesn't "melt". Apart from water, it is mostly cocoa seed extract, glycerin and beeswax. Disappointingly, it contains some irritating plant extracts like hops, eucalyptus and rosemary.

Bottom line:
I liked using it, but will avoid reaching for it everyday to prevent giving my skin irritation. I will keep it as my go to product when wearing a lot of heavy make up, as it did a great job at taking it of.