Review: Suki Transformative Cleansing Clay

This is a product that I've used for awhile and haven't gotten around to reviewing - Suki Transformative Cleansing Clay. I believe it has been discontinued and replaced with Suki Transformative Purifying Masque. The ingredients are actually really similar, except maybe the placement in the ingredient list changed a bit. Plus, the Cleansing Clay included Resveratrol (not in the Masque), while the Masque includes safflower seed oil (not in the Cleansing Clay). The price remains the same - 30ml for USD48.95 with a 12-month use-by period. 

My review is on the Cleansing Clay, though it's not the same product I hope it will still be useful since the ingredients are really similar. The product can be used in 3 ways -  as cleanser, a rinse-off masque (left on for 20 mins), or spot treatment (apply thin layer and leave on spots or all over the face overnight). I think the company realised that the price of the product was too expensive for it to be used as a cleanser (because you would need a lot of product to cleanse, plus it's not super good at cleansing anyway), which is why the new Masque doesn't mention anything about cleansing. 

I don't use the Cleansing Clay as a cleanser (too wasteful). I've tried using it as a masque and also to spot-treat huge blemishes overnight. The Cleansing Clay has a very watery consistency and impossible to layer thickly, so it doesn't feel as deep-cleansing as other mud masks which can be packed onto the skin densely. However, I do feel it's very soothing and as an overnight treatment, it did help calm my inflamed blemishes down. 

Ingredients for Suki Transformative Cleansing Clay: rosa damascena (rose) flower distillate, kaolin, alcohol, oryza sativa (rice) starch, glycerin (vegetable), salix alba (willow) bark extract, xanthan gum, zinc oxide, calendula officinalis (calendula) flower extract, hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel) distillate, lavendula angustifolia (lavender) oil, polygonum cuspidatum (resveratrol) root extract, ascophyllum nodosum (seaweed) extract, melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf oil.

Ingredients for Suki Transformative Purifying Masque: rosa centifolia (provence rose) concentrate†, kaolin, alcohol (from sugar cane denatured with lavender oil)†, glycerin, salix alba (willow) bark extract, oryza sativa (rice) starch†, zinc oxide, hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel) water, calendula officinalis (calendula) flower extract, carthamus tinctorius (safflower) seed oil, ascophyllum nodosum (seaweed) extract†, melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf oil, resveratrol, xanthan gum, fragrance (parfum), limonene, linalool

To be honest, I won't repurchase this - it's too expensive for such a small amount. Plus, other than the zinc oxide, most of the active ingredients in the mask (willow bark extract, witch hazel, calendula extract, tea tree oil) are found in most of my other skincare products too, so it isn't exactly value-adding to my skincare routine, and I can easily find other masks that contain kaolin clay that do the job at a lower price. I would recommend this only if you have had a good experience with zinc oxide and you have cash to spare. :)

Rating: Nice to have

Review: Suki Spa Bio-active Purifying Face Serum

Wow. I realized I haven't posted anything in almost 9 months. >_< Life's been hectic. So what made me decide to restart my blogging? I was organizing my skincare, cosmetics, and bath and body stuff, and I realized, I need to record my reviews of all these awesome products I've tried so that I don't forget them. So here I go with the first one - Suki Spa Bio-active Purifying Face Serum. 

"I formulate my concentrated & lightweight purifying serum to target blemishes, visibly control oil & bacteria production, purify pores & dramatically improve skin clarity. a sukispa® exclusive & part of any balancing regimen for problem skin, my bio-active serum shows blemish reduction action up to 80% in clinical tests & leaves skin fresh, luminous, renewed & clear." - from Suki's website.

This is a yellow, slightly opaque serum with a texture that is slightly thicker than Eminence Willow Bark Serum. It has a slightly soapy scent which I love! It absorbs very easily into my skin. It doesn't spread as easily as Eminence's. Because of this, I have a tendency to use more than required, so a bottle doesn't last me very long! (It's only 15ml, which is sooo tiny!) I really tried to use it sparingly - one tip I can give is that if you use a spray toner, use this serum on your damp face and it'll spread better using less product. I like the cute little dropper - usually droppers have a little ball tip but this one doesn't. Like most products in glass bottles, it does get hard to get the remaining serum at the bottom so I just use a Q-tip.

It costs US$82.95 for 15ml. I purchased this from Dermstore at 20% off but it's no longer available. I can still see it on Suki's website though, so I'm not sure whether it's been discontinued. I like this quite a lot. It gets absorbed into my skin easily and exfoliates my skin - when I use toner, I can see my dead skin cells coming off on the cotton pad and my skin feels a lot smoother. However, it is very very expensive. I will only purchase it when it's on sale, and even then I find it expensive. 

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Malus Domestica/Pyrus Malus (Apple) Fruit Extract, Xanthan Gum, Vanillosmopsis Erythropappa (Candeia), Echinacea Purpurea (Echinacea) Extract, Hydrastis Canadensis (Goldenseal) Root Extract, Sodium Citrate (Citric Acid), Vigna Acontifolia (Moth Bean) Extract, Lavendula Angustifolia (Lavender) Extract, Rosa Canina (Rose Hip) Fruit Extract, Calendula Officinalis (Calendula) Flower Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Glycerin (Vegetable)

Rating: 9/10 (-1 just cos it's too pricey, but I love it)

Review: Suki Balancing Day Lotion

My sister passed me a sample of Suki Balancing Day Lotion a couple of months ago. Using it alone, I noticed that it really helps to control oil and keep my face matte during the day! (It doesn't really give a matte finish per se; I still need to follow up with loose powder, but it keeps my skin matte under the loose powder and prevents oil breakthrough.) So I purchased the full-sized bottle. It's a white, runny lotion with a heavenly floral scent that evokes ~luxury~. The beeswax gives it a bit of slip but it feels a wee bit heavy on my skin. 

After using it for a while (before starting on YULI), I noticed that it doesn't really moisturize very well - it would leave my skin dry at the end of the day, after working in an air-conditioned office. When in Hong Kong (winter), I tried layering it on top of YULI's M.E. Skin Fuel during the day, but it felt a little too heavy for me. 

I think this lotion would work better for oily skintypes, and I would use it in Singapore (summer weather), if I wasn't in air-conditioning (like maybe on a weekend). I realise I haven't said anything really good about the Balancing Day Lotion, but it keeps my face matte for a long time and that is exceptional! If you have an oily complexion - give it a try! Maybe try layering a hyaluronic acid serum underneath it? 

It contains willow bark extract (salicylic acid) and natural retinol, so it's good for oily, acne-prone skin!

Ingredients: (rosa centifiolia distillate), alcohol (sugar cane denatured with lavender), cera alba (beeswax), simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil, rosa centifolia (rose) flower distillate, vitis vinifera (grape) seed oil, helianthus anuus (sunflower) seed oil, oryza sativa (rice) bran oil, cetearyl (coconut) alcohol, anthemis nobilis (roman chamomille) flower oil, acacia (arabic gum), glycerin, vigna acontifolia (moth bean-vitamin a) seed extract, sodium citrate, borago officinalis (borage) seed oil, corylus avellana (hazelnut) seed oil, salix alba (willow) bark extract, butyrospermum parkii (shea) seed butter, tocopherol (vitamin e), calendula officinalis (calendula) flower extract, chamomilla recutita (matricaria) extract, aloe barbadensis (aloe) leaf, squalane & chamomilla recutita (matricaria) flower/leaf extract, echinacea purpurea (echinacea) flower extract, lavandula angustifolia (lavender) flower extract, matricaria chamomilla (german chamomile) flower oil, lecithin, xanthan gum, *aroma/fragrance, linalool, citronellol, geraniol, citral, eugenol, farnesol

Review: Suki Concentrated Balancing Toner

Initially, I wanted to purchase the Suki Bio-active Purifying Face Serum (a serum for oily, congested skin) but at US$82.95 for 15ml, it was wayyyy too expensive. The second ingredient in the Suki Bio-active Purifying Face Serum was white willow bark extract (salicylic acid), so I decided to look for something else that has a high concentration of natural salicylic acid, to unclog my pores. White willow bark extract (salicylic acid) is the 4th on the list for Suki Concentrated Balancing Toner, and it was more affordable at US$32.95 for 120ml, so I decided to give it a try. 

It comes in a heavy glass spray bottle - the spray pump dispenses just the right amount of mist, very nicely done. The toner has a light, refreshing citrus-floral scent and it feels very soothing on my skin. It provides a calming and healing base for oily, acne-prone skin before moisturizer is applied. This definitely helped in making my skin less inflamed. 

How I use it - I go over my face with Simple toner on a cotton pad, then I follow up with a spritz of Suki Concentrated Balancing Toner all over. Then I apply tea tree oil to my break-out-prone areas and finish with facial oil.

The only con is that the glass bottle is very travel-unfriendly. I didn't pack this along with me to Hong Kong and I broke out a little bit then. 

Ingredients: rosa damascena flower distillate, lavender distillate (alcohol), lavandula angustifolia (lavender) oil, salix alba (white willow salicins) bark extract, anthemis nobilis flower oil, aloe barbadensis leaf, phospholipids (vitamin c), melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf oil, ascophyllum nodosum extract, calendula officinalis flower extract, matricaria recutita (chamomilla) flower extract, rosa canina fruit extract, mentha piperita (peppermint) oil, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, *aroma/fragrance, citral, linalool