rinnah’s consumer views|what a consumer really wants and thinks about products and services

Tagline : Enjoy rapid refreshment and a full 12 hours of soothing moisture with an addictive by-a-waterfall feel. Advanced hydration boosters and a new botanical blend hold skin’s moisture in balance through stressful shifts in humidity, indoors and out.

Description : Rapid, long-lasting hydration in a refreshing oil-free gel. Fast-absorbing formula with active aloe delivers a burst of moisture. Smooths, softens, plumps up fine dry lines. Locks in moisture all day with advanced hydration technology. Unique moisture balancing system helps skin better resist dehydration despite drastic shifts in humidity. Use whenever, wherever needed, under or over makeup. Or as a 5-minute moisture mask. For all skin types.

Packaging : 1.7oz/50ml or 2.5oz/75ml

Recommended retail price : USD 34 (online) / MYR 160 (local) or USD 46.50 (online)

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My review :

It’s funny, but I started out my beauty blogging stint (if sporadic posts on beauty products can be thus called) being nicknamed the Clinique lover by Beetrice because nearly every other review post was about Clinique. Truth be told though, while I like Clinique’s stuff, I don’t love it nor rave about it that much. Not until I met Clinique’s Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief formula (referred after this as Moisture Surge).

Do I like it? No, I love it and can’t live without it!

Coming from me, that’s like the highest praise I can give any product due to the nature of my skin. Not only do I have hyper-sensitive skin, I have eczema to go on top of the hyper-sensitivity, which means most products will cause some form of erratic reaction, ranging from redness to spots/zits to even a full-blown eczema rash breakout.

I was gifted a full sized jar of Moisture Surge (50ml) sometime in June last year while I was in the middle of yet another eczema breakout and was initially quite wary about trying out a new skincare product on my face. What if it made the eczema worse?

I am happy to say that all I feared did not occur. In fact, Moisture Surge managed to restore my poor red, flaky skin to normality over the period of 6 weeks. Folks who have seen me at the height of the outbreak can testify to how much improvement has taken place since then till now, and I even get comments asking me what did I do to my skin that its now perfectly smooth. (As a female, you know how good it feels to be praised as having “smooth, supple skin”? Oh yes. And that coming from a guy too!)

I love how the pretty rose-pink lightweight gel formula just disappears into my skin without that sticky and oily feeling that makes me want to wash my face again – which is normally the case for me with other moisturizers (even Clinique’s Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion, which many people swear by). In fact, the first few times I when I had Moisture Surge on, I kept on running my fingers down the side of my cheek (which is not affected by eczema, thankfully) thinking in my head, “Oooh! So smooth!”

For me, this product would be quite budget-friendly as it has taken me more than six months to hit rock-bottom and this is with twice-daily usage. And for what it’s worth, this is the first time ever I have actually finished off an entire jar of any skincare product. I am going to repurchase this soon as I don’t want to be caught without this staple in my beauty closet!

Yes factors : Sensitive skin friendly, good hydration, non-oily light formula
No factors : Nothing I didn’t like about it

Read other blogger reviews here :
Beetrice (previous version)
Kahani (current version)
Ksuan
Nikki (previous version)
Paris B (current version)
Pretty Beautiful (previous version)
Tine (previous version)

Image credit

Tagline : Moisture the way nature intended™

Description : Hypoallergenic. Fragrance and colorant free. Used and recommended by hundreds of dermatologists. Conventional lotions only attempt to replace natural moisture with artificial moisture. The problem is they come off when you wash. For moisture to really do any good it needs to get below the second major layer of skin; only your natural moisture is going to reach that level. Gloves In A Bottle will not wash off, helps keep out moisture-robbing irritants while helping retain natural moisture, resulting in smoother skin that is not dry. Comes off naturally with exfoliated skin cells.

Packaging : 240ml / 8 fl oz

Recommended retail price : USD 12.95

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My review :

Ever heard of a shielding lotion called Gloves In A Bottle?

I didn’t, until I read of this very uniquely named product through a review on Tine’s beauty blog. The name alone was enough to intrigue me and want to try it out and I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle to review.

The reason I delayed so long to write this review was because I had a bad rash outbreak right after I received it so I was rather wary of testing anything new that might further irritate my sensitive skin. So I stashed it away in my beauty drawer and forgot about it for a while, using my skin specialist recommended Balneum lotion.

Then last month, I had a short holiday up to Cameron Highlands and was looking for an effective moisturiser to bring along. I remembered reading on the website that shielding lotions were perfect for use in cold, dry conditions so I promptly dug it out and packed it in my bag.

You could say that I put it to the acid test!

Firstly, the product is in a lotion form, not too heavy or oily. (I personally dislike thick heavy oily lotions/moisturisers on my skin as it makes me want to go take a bath immediately after application!) The lotion spreads easily and is easily absorbed. I like to apply it after a shower while my skin is still slightly damp as it feels even softer and easier to apply.

Does it work? Well, for me it does. You see, I had a very bad patch of dry and reddened skin on my neck – an ezcema rash actually. The skin was so dry it was actually flaking off in big pieces and leaving behind tender raw skin. It sounds bad and believe me, it was. I applied the lotion immediately after my shower and occasionally throughout the day whenever I thought the skin looked (or felt) dry. (You don’t have to slather it on – just a little bit is enough to cover an arm or a leg.) By the second day of my vacation, it was at least 50% improved! But that’s not all. I also used the lotion for the rest of my body as protection against dryness in the colder temperature of the highlands and it worked a charm. In fact, I do think that my skin never felt softer and smoother than those days when I used it exclusively whilst on vacation.

Now that I’m back in the city, I have reverted back to my other lotions, but whenever I see that my skin needs something “more” out comes the Gloves In A Bottle. I have to say that my normal lotions only keep my skin from getting worse but they do not produce results the way Gloves In A Bottle does. The only reason why I’m not using it for everything is because I can’t get it in Malaysia. *sigh*

Yes factors : Works like a charm, only a little bit is needed per application.
No factors : Currently not available in Malaysia. Nothing else.

Read other blogger reviews on Gloves In A Bottle :
Tine
Beetrice

If you have a blog and would like to review Gloves In A Bottle, you can drop Pete Grimaldi a line at petegrimaldi [at] earthlink [dot] net. However, if you live in either US or Canada and only need a sample, you can get some from their website here.