Review: The Body Shop Tea Tree Facial Cleanser and Clearing Lotion

*Disclaimer: All products have been purchased by me for my own personal use.*

Strait outta the box!

I couple of months ago, The Body Shop was having a buy 1 get one half off sale online, so I decided o get my money's worth and get 4 products, since I had enjoyed their tea tree facial exfoliate. In this purchase, I bought the Tea Tree facial Cleanser, Tea tree Skin Clearing Lotion, the Mango Body Scrub, and the Pink Grapefruit Body Butter. On a note that is completely off topic: for the Body Shop to be such an environmental conscious company, they do waste a lot of paper in their packing materials!

For this post I will be reviewing the Tea tree Facial Cleanser and the Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion.







First, the Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash:

Image from The Body Shop's website

This was comes in a 8.4 fl oz bottle, which is a pretty good amount for a cleanser. It got very good reviews (4.8 star rating out of 5) on the The body Shop's site, and is labelled as one of the best selling products. The description on the site says that this facial wash is for blemished skin, and gives clearer-looking skin when used as part of a regular regime. It also is supposed to remove excess oil without over-drying skin, help remove imputites, and is gentle enough for daily use.

Besides the amount of product, I like that the consistency is not very heavy and sticky like some cleansers. This one is very light, but not too watery, and it is easy to wash off. It also doesn't take a lot to cover your face. Because this product is not very thick, don't expect a lot of lather like with some brands that you buy from the drug store. This product has the general tea tree smell, which I really don't mind, and once you wash it off your face, the smell doesn't stay. 

I've been using this cleanser for a little over three months now, and I must say that it is all that it says it is! I have oily, blemished skin with occasional breakouts. The first thing I noticed when using this product was that it doesn't dry out my skin! Most of the cleansers I've used make my face feel stiff and dry afterwards, but not this one! After about a week, I noticed that my nose was less oily than it usually is, and after a month I noticed that I had had only one pimple since using the cleanser!

Second, the Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion:

Image from The Body Shop's website

This lotion comes in a 1.69 fl oz tube, which concerned me because of the small amount for soemthing that is supposed to be used daily. This product also has very good ratings (4.5 stars out of 5) and is a best seller, which is where it got tricky for me. The desciption says that this is a light, non-oily moisturizing lotion for blemished skin, and should be used after your Tea Tree cleansing regime. It is also supposed to provide lightweight hydration and be easily absorbed with shine control for a matte finish, antibacterial action, and it's clinically proven to give clearer-looking skin.

This product is also not very thick, but not too watery either, and has the characteristic tea tree smell. The first time I applied the lotion, I only used a small amount all over my face, including my eyes (there was no warning on the bottle about avoiding the eye area). Within a few seconds, my eyes started to sting and my skin felt dry and tight. When I looked in the mirror I saw that the skin around my mouth was so dry that it had a chalky film left behind. The next day, I tried a larger amount, thinking that maybe I had just not used enough lotion the first time, but the same thing happened. To be fair and give the lotion a chance, a kept using it for another week, but each time it would dry out my skin and leave it chalky and ashy looking. After about a week and a half of using this, I dumped it for Ponds Facial Cream.

Conclusions

Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash

Pros

• Not heavy or sticky
• Works as described on blemished and oily skin to reduce break-outs and oiliness
• Does not dry out your skin

Cons

• Really only works on blemished and oily skin

I would definitely recomment this facial wash to anyone with blemished and oily skin!

Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion

Pros

• Not heavy or sticky

Cons

• Has a strong smell that can irritate your eyes and skin
• Can severely dry out your skin

Based on my own personal use, I would not recommend this product. The majority of people who reviewed this lotion on the Body Shop's site said it worked well for them, but there were a few people who had the same experience as me with their skin drying out and looking chalky. I'm not sure if this is something that only happens on people with dark skin or not.