The Face Shop, Mango Seed Cleanser and 3 sheet masks...

About five weeks ago a branch of The Face Shop opened at the Eaton Centre in Montréal and I was pretty excited about it, why you ask? Simply because it was new to discover, I knew nothing about the brand! A beauty junkie just had to do what a beauty junky does... try a few offerings!

I purchased a cleanser (I needed a new one) and three sheet masks, these I was really curious about.

Mango Seed Cleansing Foam...

This cleanser was about $12.00 if I remember correctly. In need of a new one I figured why not give it a shot plus, it smelt soooo good in the store.

How does it perform? Ordinary.

This is a weird foaming cleanser. Going from Vichy to this one gave me the opportunity to compare the textures and The Face Shop is kind of gooey and somewhat harder to rinse off than Vichy. On it's own with only my fingers it's not that effective. With a small manual brush it does an ok job but wow does it lather! I barely use a pea size and have to rinse and rinse and rinse... Then there's the tightness! I have combination skin which means my t-zone can be pretty oily and it gets worse when it's hot. The Mango Seed Cleansing Foam made my face feel dry like no other even on my t-zone!

Do I recommend The Face Shop Mango Seed Cleansing Foam? Depends entirely on your tastes and skin type.

On the tube it's described as "A moisturizing cleansing foam that helps eliminate impurities without drying the skin"... One would think it would be good for normal to combination skin but not so if you ask me. In fact I'm not sure I would recommend it for someone with oily skin. Over drying could only mean overproduction of oil. When stripped, the skin overcompensates and this cleanser just might have adverse effects but that's just my opinion based on my experience.

One more note, used on a daily basis this tube will start looking horrible in no time since the information is not printed directly on the plastic but on stickers glued on it.

The Face Shop Mango Seed Cleansing foam will end up in either the shower or in a pump for hands in the kitchen. Sadly it's a no go for me.

The Face Shop Sheet Masks...

As mentioned I purchased three, two of which were $2.00 and the third $4.00. Now I don't remember which one was the most expensive but let's just say, it's not that important.

So far I've used two and I'm not sure I'll be trying the third anytime soon. I didn't like either the "wetness" nor the fact that I had to lie down 12 to 20 minutes with a cold dripping cloth on my face. Now I know why The Face Shop sells extra sheets because it's clear that in each packet you have enough product for two sheet masks.

The Face Shop Blueberry Face Mask...

"This nourishing mask sheet contains blueberry extract with softening properties for younger-looking skin."

Here goes for my first experience... I removed the mask from the pouch quite surprised at how much product/serum was on it. A few seconds after placing it on my face it started dripping in my hair and down my neck. A weird feeling came over me and I realised after a few minutes that I didn't like it. I didn't like the the cold wet sensation, there I said it!

I kept it on as directed, 12 minutes and was I glad to remove it! Then I proceeded to gently massage my skin to get the last of the serum to help it penetrate but after what seemed like too many minutes I went for a tissue. I left my skin as is, not applying any moisturizer over it since I figured it must have gotten enough of that. My face felt slightly sticky and it did so in the morning as well due to the glycerin which is way too high on the ingredients' list if you ask me and then there's the castor oil and yes you do feel it's thickness on the skin, even the next morning!

The Face Shop Firming Mask Sheet...

"Contains black malt extract to improve skin elasticity and clarity"

My second experience... Not much different than the first except maybe it felt a little more greasy and I had to keep it on 20 minutes! This one had less serum in the pouch so it is a one use deal and I didn't like it much either. It felt pretty similar to the Blueberry mask but with a more herbal fragrance.

The Face Shop Red Ginseng...

"This mask sheet contains red ginseng extract to energize and nourish tired skin."

This one I haven't tried! I don't feel like it, not one bit! I used the first two in the same week, the first on Monday and the second on Friday if I remember correctly and by Sunday I had two clog pores and a little pimple on my right upper cheek close to my nose stuck around for days! I almost never break out and as for clog pores, they are a rare occurrence. I still have those two pesky clog pores and they don't seem to want to go away two weeks after using them. Since these masks were the only new thing in my routine I know where these imperfections are coming from.

My skin doesn't like glycerin when it's high on an ingredients' list and as for castor oil, well, given the fact it's highly clogging for many let's just say I tend to stay away from it. Then there's the algae extract in the Firming Mask... Not the best either for some.

The Red Ginseng sheet mask also contains glycerin which comes second and again with the castor oil... Not gonna try it anytime soon. One thing is sure I'll wait for my skin to be completely clear and even then I'm not sure I'll risk it.

With these few purchases I wasn't wowed by The Face Shop which reminds me in a way of Yves Rochers boutiques but with a fewer offerings. I may eventually try other items but for now my curiosity's been satisfied.


Have you tried any skin care or makeup from The Face Shop, if so, what did you think and/or liked?