One of the little things in life that makes me very happy is a set of fluffy, white, Downy-scented towels. You can find a set in every bathroom in my house.
This love was tested by crappy facial cleansers. Sick of having my white towels looking like they’d been shot by Homer’s makeup gun, I decided to set out on a difficult quest to find the perfect cleanser that effectively removed all of my makeup without stripping my face of its natural oils. I thought it was high time to start double-cleansing to ensure I’m washing all that makeup off on a daily basis.
After trying several cleansers, I found about three that I really liked: Philosophy Purity Made Simple Facial Cleansing Gel & Eye Makeup Remover (a solid B+ product), Peter Thomas Roth Anti-Aging Cleansing Gel (a tad harsh but excellent), and La Mer The Cleansing Gel (too expensive).
While each of these products are great at removing makeup, I wanted to add an oil cleanser before washing with gel to ensure I was getting everything off with the added bonus of extra moisture and hydration.
While on a little shopping jaunt, I popped into Marshall’s and was surprised to see a bunch of Erno Laszlo products at vastly reduced prices. Erno Laszlo was a brand that I had seen around for years and was anxious to try. Known to be pretty pricey like La Mer, I didn’t give it too much thought as I expected it to be pretty inaccessible.
A quick video of the Erno Laszlo Cleansing Method…
With all of my research on Korean beauty products, I vowed to start “double-cleansing” – an important part of the Korean beauty regime. As I stared excitedly at the Erno Laszlo bounty that Marshall’s provided me, I settled on the Sea Mud Deep Cleansing Bar ($19.99) and Phelityl Pre-Cleansing Oil ($22.99).
Before I go into my review of these two products, a little about “Dr. Ernő László”. Ernő László has been in business since 1927, opening his first institute in Hungary devoted to skin care and “scientific cosmetology”. He became famous after developing a custom foundation for Princess Stéphanie of Belgium which greatly reduced her severe acne. He then successfully treated the facial scars of an actress who had been shot in the face. After these two high profile successes, his list of clients grew enormously and included such notable figures as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Grace Kelly, Ava Gardner and Audrey Hepburn.
Some of Dr. Laszlo’s techniques are controversial, such as his “splashing technique” shown in the video a few paragraphs above. His splashing technique involves using hot water which is drying, irritating and if you are not careful, can cause broken capillaries.
Now, on to the review.
Sea Mud Deep Cleansing Bar
I wouldn’t normally buy a bar of soap to use on my face, but I’d been meaning to try this for years, so I thought I would give it a go. This soap comes with very specific instructions, as follows:
- Fill your sink with comfortably hot water. Red flag right there!
- Dip the bar into the water and massage into your face.
- Set bar aside and massage your face again with your fingers.
- Splash the hot water onto your face 20 times. This is known as the “Dr. Laszlo Splashing Technique”.
- Splash the face another 10 times using clean, hot, running water.
- Blot face with a towel and use the toners, treatments and moisturizers in the Laszlo line.
Pros
- This soap contains Dead Sea mud from the Jordan River, which is reknown for its skin rejuvenating qualities including oil control and brightness. It is also supposed to boost circulation.
- It is free of sulfates (drying irritants), parabens and pthalates (both potentially carcinogenic).
- It smells quite pleasant – softly of flowers.
- Does a wonderful job at removing “day makeup”. Not sure if it would remove heavy makeup or waterproof eye makeup.
- The soap itself is beautiful with its unusual charcoal colour.
- Comes with a handy travel container.
Cons
- It’s expensive. Even at the reduced price of $19.99, I found it expensive. It retails normally for $45. I do not think this bar of soap is worth that at all.
- It’s a bar of soap. Bars of soap are not fun to transport, travel container or not. Most of them become mushy if not allowed to dry. Bars of soap also contain drying, harsh ingredients – most of which are necessary to simply attain the qualities of a “bar of soap” such as tallow, waxes, etc.
- The bar of soap is huge. It’s a little awkward to use and I gave up on massaging that brick into my face. I simply rubbed it into my hands and then massaged my face with the pads of my fingers.
- The whole “Dr. Laszlo Cleansing Method” of splashing your face with hot water is bad, as noted above.
Phelityl Pre-Cleansing Oil
This product was the one I was really after. I had been reading about how great it is for years. I noticed during my hunt for oil cleansers that they are all really expensive! What the hell? I guess it’s because of their new found popularity…
This was EXCELLENT at removing makeup. This oil is very thick and heavy, doesn’t smell great, but doesn’t smell bad either. Smells a tad weird – I can’t describe it, unfortunately. Reminds me slightly of something I’d use to grease hinges. I better hide it from my husband.
Pros
- Left my skin feeling incredibly soft! Used in conjunction with the soap, I think this would be an all-star duo for those with dry to very dry skin. My skin hadn’t felt that soft in a while.
- Contains several plant oils such as kernel oil, kukui nut oil (soothing), safflower, apricot, grapeseed and avocado oils, among others.
- *Contains Vitamin C (boosts collagen production) and Vitamin E (antioxidant – protects against free radical damage).
- Absolutely and completely effective at removing the most stubborn of makeup including waterproof eyeliner and mascara.
- The packaging (of this whole line) despite being around for decades, still looks cool, simplistic and modern. Looks good on the bathroom counter.
*Not sure if either of these are stable in the type of container that this oil is sold in.
Cons
- It contains mineral oil which is VERY heavy and greasy. Mineral oil is in a ton of beauty products and shouldn’t make you break out, but it’s important to wash your face thoroughly to ensure a clean feeling.
- I would not recommend this product for those with oily or acne-prone skin. Consult your dermatologist first, or try an OTC acne treatment at the very least. This product did not make me break out personally, but I’m not sure if that would be the case for others.
- It’s expensive at $55, but definitely worth it at $22.99.
- It smells strange. Again, I cannot quite put my finger on it, but it most certainly does not smell like a field of flowers!
Overall, I would recommend both of these products. I personally feel there are better facial soap options out there that I would recommend over the Sea Mud Deep Cleansing Bar, but I am glad that I bought it. It will serve as a great back up when I run out of my favourite cleanser!
Have any of you tried these two products? Have any oil cleansers to recommend? Please share in the comments!
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Dominique is a Canadian-based fashion and beauty influencer with a strong voice in Ottawa’s black community. Since launching her blog Style Domination in 2015, she has amassed a global fanbase. Dominique shares her life through beautiful imagery and compelling story-telling that speaks to her fans on a personal level. She’s been featured in The Guardian, Flare, The Kit and Cityline. She also hosts events for Dress for Success, the Gem Conference, and has been named a United Way Person 2 Know for the past three years.
Wow the fact that he has such high profile clientele means his products work. I’ll love to give this a go, I’ve never really heard of double cleansing till now so mom looking forward to trying this lut
Author
Awesome! Do your research and get samples of the products beforehand. Some of them are really expensive and I don’t want you to make an expensive mistake! Good luck and thank you so much for reading! xo
Thank you for the tip, I will for sure get some samples before purchasing.
Author
You’re welcome! You are pretty safe with the soap. I think it’s pretty damn good! xo
That’s what I was thinking too lol because my best-friend tried something like this and it worked great for her.
Author
Yes! It has wonderful reviews overall. It left my face feeling very clean too and I’m a sucker for pretty things. I loved its black colour!
Erno Laszlo is one of those brands that sound vaguely familiar but I’ve never tried. So neat you found them at Marshalls!
I do my own version of “double cleansing” – cleansing oil, and then micallar water instead of a soap. It works well at removing makeup but doesn’t strip my skin.
If you’re looking for an inexpensive cleansing oil, look into the Muji Sensitive Skin cleansing oil. It’s only $14.50 and very effective and gentle – it doesn’t smell funky, it smells like olive oil (which is its first ingredient!) I haven’t tried a lot of the drugstore cleansing oils yet, but I plan to investigate – the majority of them seem to be mineral oil based (not that there’s anything terribly wrong with that, but just to note).
Author
Omg – thank you for the tip! I’ve heard great things about Muji! Where did you find it? Yep – Marshall’s has been offering up some great finds lately! They had a bunch of Tom Ford perfumes, Julep polishes, Wet Dry detangling brushes, etc. Treasure trove!
I got the Muji from the Muji store downtown Toronto! I’m not sure if they offer online shopping yet to Canada. I know that they’re looking to expand. Next time you’re in town, you need to visit! The store is right by the Eaton Centre.
And yes, Marshalls has been amazing for me too! Did you see my recent post on my Winners / Marshalls haul?
https://stashmatters.wordpress.com/2016/02/04/winners-tjmaxx-marshalls-haulage/
Author
Muji!!! That’s right! I think there is one on Queen Street W. right? Thank you! I’ll look it up. xo
No, there isn’t one on Queen St W. The one I’m talking about is in the Atrium at Yonge & Dundas! 🙂
Winter is so hard on our skin! I read somewhere that we shouldn’t be using mineral oil at all. I’m going to research it again, but I’ve generally started avoiding all products that contain it. Apparently it’s toxic!
Author
Me too! I’ve actually always read that mineral oil is bad….
I don’t wear makeup very often, so I don’t double cleanse regularly. Right now I am using Softymo cleansing oil. It does have mineral oil, but it doesn’t make me break out.
Author
Excellent! Side note: you don’t need to wear a lot of makeup to double cleanse. It’s just another added layer of cleansing that’s great for the skin. I’ll check out your pick – thanks for sending!!! xoxox
Wow this was so interesting! For someone who only just started washing her face twice a day (eeeep i know), the double cleansing method was very enlightening!
Author
ALYSSA! I’m always amazed when I hear this! I have to wash my face twice a day because I’m such a greaseball. Then there’s you, with such great skin who gets away with washing only once! Tell me your secrets!!
Have you tried the Body Shop camomile cleansing oil? So highly recommended…it’s just brilliant! A true ‘lazy girl’s’ cleanser as your makeup is off before you know it! My second cleanse is any old face wash I have lying around. It works a treat! 🙂
Author
Oooh Traci-Ann! Thanks for this tip! I’m running low on my beloved White Musk perfume, so I will check it out when I go in to restock! xoxoxo
Always glad to enable…I mean help! 😉
Author
Haha!
Asians are obsessed with double cleansing!
Cosmetics 27 have a strong line of gentle plant oil balms & cleansers which are gentle kind & thorough
Author
I’ll have to check it out!
I have used Laszlo for years. Some things I would add to your review…use “comfortably hot” water, so if the water is too hot for your fingertips it is going to be too hot for your face and you tone it down. If your skin is sensitive, you tone it back to comfortably warm. Is your skin combination/oily? Sea Mud Soap is best suited to those skin types. And in combination with the oil for a double cleanse, you apply the oil to your face first, then follow with the soap and water regimen on top of the oil. If your skin is drier, Sea Mud Soap is not for you. You would use Active Phelityl Soap. All of this information and much more can be found at an Erno Laszlo counter or on their website. Happy Splashing!