Review: Marie Ernst Luxury Soaps

I want to begin this post by saying that I've always despised bar soaps.  Truly,  My hubby uses them everyday but I find them drying AND they smell a little clinical.  Plus, they leave this little film on your skin even after you've rinsed and dried off.  Not pleasant.

I was approached by the reps for the Marie Ernst Luxury Soap line and asked if I was interested in reviewing this fancy new soap "system".  Yes, I do call it a system as this bar soap is actually two separate pieces, creating a ying yang effect, that do drastically different things.

First off, the instructions.  There was a whole page on how to use this special soap.  It was even displayed on the back of the package.  One side of the pumice and the other is the moisturizer, when combined they are the perfect pair to cleanse your skin.

 
The beige side is the pumice and the green side is the moisturizer.  Both sides smell absolutely amazing.  The beige side reminds me of my travels through Asia, coconut/sandlewood, while the green side has a lavender/patchouli smell.  Love them both.

Directions say to wet both pieces, place together and then cleanse your skin.  I used them in the shower and though the process made for an extra long shower, my skin felt so clean, moisturized and film free afterwards.

One gripe with this system.  I don't quite know how to store it once it's been used.  I think you'd need to have two separate soap dishes to store them BUT maybe you want to store them together, I don't know.  I will say that the smell alone makes me so happy and seriously takes me back to my backpacking days...

Have any of you tried this soap system before?  Thoughts?

    

Bar Soap for Your Face???

I can almost guarantee that every person here has used bar soap to cleanse their face at least once. Ha, I know I have.

My first encounter, aside from using Dove Bar Soap as a child, was with Clinique's Facial Soap. Looking back, I realize I didn't give this product a fair shot. At the time, I was beyond obsessed with any cleanser that came out of a pump and thought that bar soap was much too simple for my "under 14 year old" skin. I used to watch my mother use this soap and even though she had (and still has) fantastic skin, I instantly decided that bar soap wasn't for me. And, to be honest, this was my last encounter with facial bar soap.

Ummmm, until last week I guess.

I was, again, in the States with my friend, checking out Rite-Aid. (I love this store so much. Do they really carry anything different than Canada? No, but the store never seems to be busy and it's really cheap too.) While looking through the skin care section, I saw a little and very lonely looking facial bar by Neutrogena Naturals. It was on sale for $4.39 and since I'd just recently read a magazine article about Kristen Bell, who is now the new face of Neutrogena Naturals, really loving this product, I added it to my cart.

Now the Neutrogena Naturals Face & Body Bar is made with both avocado and olive oil (2 great ingredients known to nourish your skin) and best of all, the entire naturals line is void of chemical sulfates, parabens, petrochemicals, dyes and phthalates. So, in other words, they really are natural products. I was so eager to try this bar out that as soon as I got home from the States, I washed my face. First impression was the smell. It was nice, crisp, fresh and very apparent was the lack of chemicals. (Very nice for a change.) The soap lathered up extremely well and didn't feel harsh on my skin. Sometimes, cleansers can aggravate my skin for no reason and this one did no such thing. And perhaps the biggest plus about this soap is that it washes off completely. There wasn't any residue left behind and my skin felt very clean and moisturized.

I've been using this soap ever since that day and my skin looks and feels so much cleaner than it used to. I never thought I'd say this but I'm officially a fan of a facial soap bar and highly recommend this brand. Have any of you ladies tried this before? Have you ever used a facial soap bar?

Ciao