A Wren Says

I have been washing my face with Bright Balance Hydrating Gel Cleanser from Thrive Causmetics for a few weeks now. I have come to a pretty clear assessment of how I feel about it. And that clear assessment, for me and my face, is that it is just okay.

One pro off the top is that the brand, Thrive Causmetics is mission driven. The second is that the product isn’t stripping. But that also leads right into a con. I’ve used it on days where I just wore sunscreen and to take off a full face of “ooh let’s put on more and more makeup” make up. In the first case, it did fine. My problem is that it never really sudsed, which wouldn’t be problem if I felt like I was able to effectively get it off of my face without feeling it left a film.

 And in the second, with makeup, it was fine. But fine at removing makeup to me is below mediocre when coming from a makeup brand. I found that it effectively broke down my makeup, but it couldn’t finish the job and rinse clean. I had to use a cloth to remove it all effectively. And even then, can I be sure that it wasn’t really the action of the cloth that did the work.

Here was my other issue. It is a gentle cleanser that should be safe around the ye area, but never have I had my eye burn like it did when using this product. Maybe shame on me for using it to remove mascara. (The website says it shouldn’t sting the eyes. Clearly I disagree, but maybe it was the makeup to blame.)

I don’t hate this product, but I also don’t love it. I will continue to use it up, but I definitely won’t be running out to replace it when it finishes. But if I were at a hotel that offered cleanser and this was in the bathroom, I’d use it. Okay, I’ll stop and get to the point. This is not a run out and try it now cleanser, but if you want to try it, be my guest.

Bright Balance Hydrating Gel Cleanser $32 for 150 mL

Verdict: Not my favorite cleanser, but also not the worse