Whenever someone is riding with me and there's a bus or a jeepney in front, I always joke and say that you shouldn't smile otherwise the soot from the fumes would probably turn your teeth black.
So for obvious reasons I tried a few facial cleansers and facial scrubs. Facial cleansers are milder than soap (because facial skin is more sensitive), while facial scrubs provide deeper cleaning by scraping off (or exfoliating) dead skin cells. It also removes dirt clogging the pores of your skin. It's like using a milder loofah for your face.
This review is about two facial scrubs that I have tried for the past two months: Human Nature Purifying Facial Scrub and St. Ives Invigorating Apricot Scrub. I chose these two simply because both of these products are paraben-free.
Cost:
The 28 g St. Ives Apricot scrub costs around P65 when I bought it, while the 50mL facial scrub from Human Nature costs around P105. Since they use different measurements for content (one is by volume, another by weight), it's hardly fair to compare.
Suffice it to say that they're almost the same size. So if you're living on a meager weekly or bi-weekly allowance, then it's better to go for the cheaper tube. But as for which one will you get your money's worth, read on.
Availability:
You can buy St. Ives in almost any major grocery chain in the Philippines while HN is only available either online or through direct selling. If you run out of facial scrub, you can just go out and buy a tube of St. Ives along with your other toiletries. But if you want to try Human Nature's facial scrub you have to wait unless you live near a Human Nature branch. You need to contact your nearest dealer or order online for the HN facial scrub.
Ingredients:
Human Nature's Purifying Facial Scrub contains strawberry seeds and fine bamboo granules while St. Ives Apricot Scrub contains corn and walnut shell powder in addition to apricot extracts.
Consistency:
When you squeeze the St. Ives Apricot Scrub out of the tube it retains it's shape. It's firm while Human Nature's facial scrub looks and feels more gooey.
Apply it on your face and you can feel the St. Ives "beads" gently scrubbing your skin from such a small amount. With Human Nature, you can only feel the few strawberry seeds rubbing your skin. You can hardly feel the bamboo powder at all, so it feels just like any ordinary facial wash, but with a sprinkling of strawberry seeds.
Because I'm looking for a rougher feel in scrubs, I tend use more of the HN scrub than I should probably have to. But with St. Ives, just a little goes a long way.
Scent:
When you first use it, HN facial scrub smells of strawberries with just a slightly bitter background smell. The smell goes away when you rinse, but it gets worse if you accidentally leave the tube in water for some time. Anyway just squeeze out a little of the product and it's like new again.
St. Ives facial scrub smells crisp and clear.
Packaging:
One has a flip top cap and St. Ives has a screw-on top. They both have advantages and disadvantages. The flip top cap has a tendency to retain water if you're not careful, and it can be a bit messy after some use. But it's more convenient to open and close. They have new packaging now, it's red, but still uses the same flip top cap.
St. Ives' screw-on cap on the other hand is a lot cleaner. But this can be annoying too because you need two hands to screw it back on and off. And smaller caps have a tendency to slip through your fingers and roll all over the place. (Solution: buy a bigger tube?)
Verdict:
St. Ives Invigorating Apricot Scrub gives you more value for money in terms of the exfoliating qualities. It's also not messy to use and has a more pleasant smell. Its availability is a huge bonus too because if I had to wait for something, I'd expect that product to be worth waiting for, and in this case, Human Nature's Facial Scrub wasn't much to cheer for.
