I was thinking about this review, as, predictably, I washed my face the other evening, and thinking about how lovely a product it is. It was, in my mind, going to be a glowing review. Then I got to thinking about all of the other facial cleansing oils I’ve used, and I thought, hey, maybe it ain’t so great after all.
First thing’s first: this is Chanel. This fact either matters to you, or it doesn’t – and, depending on how much it matters to you, it may render the rest of this review null and void. If you are a Chanel devotee who loves having the high-end brand on your shelf, no matter what the efficacy levels, then you could do worse. And I mean, really: you could do a lot worse.
This cleansing oil, firstly, looks great. Chanel’s packaging design just works, and it looks great on the shelf of your bathroom cabinet, no matter what cheap tat you’ve squashed it in with (what, just me?). The oil smells and feels amazing – it’s very lightly perfumed but smells slightly floral and very feminine (but not too floral), and it’s a really light oil so, when you apply it, it just feels lovely. Silky smooth – you’d almost be loath to take it off. When you do, using a bit of hot water, your skin feels really smooth and moisturised, and, of course, still smells great.
Those are the pros! The first con – and, really, quite a major one – is that I would, more often than not, end up washing my face again because this oil just does not remove all of your make-up. For a cleansing oil, this is a bit of a crucial point. It may be the fault of my Dermablend, mind you, so if you are a really light make-up wearer you may fare better than I did. Still, I also ended up removing my eye make-up separately which, while common with facial cleansers, is not ideal.
The other major con, obviously, is that this stuff is expensive, coming in at around the €40 mark for a bottle. (This bottle, on the other hand, will last and last - I am dying to finish it so I can try out my Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish but the Chanel is not budging!)
Lastly, when I compare it, well, it doesn’t come off too favourably. My favourite cleansing oil by far was Lancome’s Huile Douceur Remove All Cleansing Lotion, which I found in the airport and have sadly been unable to find in store (although I’ll tell the truth: I’d kind of forgotten about it and must have another look!), followed in close second place by Origins’ Clean Energy Cleansing Oil, which is a little too herbal-smelling for my tastes, but does the job.
So, my verdict? For die-hard Chanel fans only.
PS Remember the review I did of Origins’ High Potency Night-A-Mins, back in November? Well I have just finished up my pot. That’s a staggering seven-and-a-half-months later, and I have been using this cream every single night. If you ask me, that’s €40 well spent.
