Save vs. Splurge: Facial Scrubs

I’ve been using two facial scrubs alternately the past month. One is a staple, what for me is the better, more cost effective alternative of the overhyped Cure Aqua Gel. And just to be upfront about it, yep, we used to sell Cure Aqua Gel, and I used a whole bottle myself. I still think it is too expensive and overhyped.

My review of the Cure Aqua Gel: http://thelittlecoolshop.multiply.com/recipes/item/3/CURE_NATURAL_AQUA_GEL_Japanese_Product .

Skin79 Crystal Peeling Gel ( Retails at PHP 660.00 at TLCShop) basically works exactly the same as the Cure Aqua Gel. It’s a cellulose based exfoliant. You wash your face, dry it completely, then apply the Peeling Gel ( I use about three squirts for the whole face). Then scrub away, and after few minutes, rinse out with warm water. You’ll notice that as you scrub, little bits of what seems to be dead skin and debris form. Die-hard Cure Aqua Gel users kept yelping about the amazing ability of the gel to remove these “dead skin”. Ermm, it’s 90% cellulose dear, those tiny bits are cellulose mixed with dead skin, not purely dead skin. There’s a mild acid in the gel, super mild you won’t notice it really but when I apply my M2 Skin Refinish after using this as an exfoliant, my face gets a bit red, I think it’s because of the combination of the peels’ apple enzyme and the M2 acids. The Crystal Peeling Gel is supposedly also formulated with Hyaluronic Acid to provide moisture to the skin, though I have not noticed any plumping effect.

Peeling Gels in Korea are actually mislabeled. Or maybe it’s because I am used to associating peeling to really flaky sheets of skin on my face. Peeling Gels here are really just cellulose-based exfoliants which basically scrubs dead cells but will not really cause any noticeable peeling.

What stops me from using the Skin79 Crystal Peeling Gel is the time I have to spend to dry my skin completely before using it. Sometimes I really just want to wash my face and exfoliate in one go.

I got a jar of Dr. Goldfaden Daily Scrub as part of my SkinCareRX Beauty Cache Loot a month ago. And I’ve been using it almost every other day. This scrub is supposed to be formulated for everyday use. The creator, Dr. Goldfaden is supposedly a well-known Florida dermatologist famous for his anti-aging line and this is one of his banner products. The scrub contains ruby crystals which act as exfoliators. For the anti-aging part, the scrub has red tea (anti-oxidant), hyaluronic acid and seaweed extract.

Well, because this is a scrub, I don’t really think the red tea or the anti-aging stuff would do anything exceptional. First because the scrub is washed off after a few minutes, so, in the parlance of my day job, there is not enough residence time for the skin to absorb these.

What I love about it is how fine the crystals are. You can scrub all you want without feeling any redness or irritation. And the smell, to be honest, it’s the smell that’s gotten me hooked. It smells like Yakult, only yummier! It’s like scrubbing a milk based yummy product on your face. You know how some stuff make you feel indulgent and lifts your day just because it smells incredibly delicious? This is one of those. And I love it. Except a full size costs $65. Add tax and shipping fees and hmmmm, I don’t think I can afford to splurge that much on a daily scrub yet. Thankfully, you need very little to use this scrub, a small pea-sized amount is really enough (maybe even less) so I think my tiny jar can last me another month. Plus I will start alternating this with my now-neglected Skin79 Crystal Peeling Gel.

So that’s it. Both the Skin79 Crystal Peeling Gel and the Dr. Goldfaden Daily Scrub are pretty good based on my experience. One is pretty reasonable and straightforward to use (no indulgent, yummy scent though but it doesn’t exactly smell bad) while the other is a good physical (i.e. grain) exfoliator with a yummy scent and a prohibitive price. I am not sure if I will ever splurge enough to buy a facial scrub for $65 dollars. Maybe if I win the lotto? Haha, but as of the moment, while my jar lasts, I shall enjoy scrubbing indulgently each time.