Primped VIP: Nelsons Pure & Clear

The lovely ladies at Primped sent out a care package to me, laden with loot for review as part of their Primped VIP club.

In my test batch is Nelsons Pure & Clear Purifying Daily Facial Wash (aka zingy fresh face gel) and Acne Pimple Gel (aka cream that takes away the ouch).

I do wish I was blessed with perfect skin that didn't require all of this, but alas...

I tested out the Purifying Daily Facial Wash, after removing my make up with my trusty Neutrogena Make up Remover.

Ingredients: aqua, polysorbate 20, disodium laureth sulfosuccinate (vegetable source), cocamidopropyl betaine (coconut source), chondrus crispus (carrageenan seaweed) extract, phenoxyethanol, arnica montana extract, benzyl alcohol, calendula extract, hypericum extract, xantum gum, tea tree oil, lavender oil, limonene (essential oil source), grapefruit oil, linalool (essential oil source), petigrain oil.

• This stuff feels and smells remarkably fresh like I just washed my face in a garden bed of herbs. But in a good way.
• It made my skin feel squeaky clean - it was satisfying to see the dirt wash away, but didn't leave my skin dry.
• The light foaming action was probably what they were aiming for when they made this range sodium lauryl sulphate free. It also has a cool jelly texture from the addition of seaweed as the base ingredient.
• Tea tree oil, Arnica and Calendula are the "active" ingredients. I normally find Tea tree oil products way too drying, but this seems to be doing the trick.
• Arnica is an old-school remedy for bruises - having used it in creams for that purpose before, I'm interested to see if the addition to this range improves the overall ickiness of blemishes.

To follow up, I used the Acne and pimple gel post-cleanse on top of my usual Neostrata Ultra Smoothing Lotion.

Ingredients: aqua, alcohol, tea tree oil, arnica montana extract, calendula extract, hypericum extract, triethanolamine, carbomer, limonene (tea tree oil source), linalool (tea tree oil source)

• Great texture. Maybe it's just me, but treatment creams always seem to be a bit too runny to truly stay where I put them. This has a thick gel consistency which certainly met it's mark (the horrible blind mofo on the tip of my lip).
• Smells strongly of Tea tree oil. This doesn't bother me too much, but might be an issue if you're sensitive to that kind of thing.
• It absorbs quickly and dries to a matt finish - see great potential for this as a pre-makeup fix.
• Also contains Arnica - in this case, intended to calm and soothe red spots. I think this actually worked in this instance.
  
• Only gripe is the ethanol base. This is probably acting as a preservative, and also speeds up evaporation of excess moisture (from the product), but sensitive skinned folk beware - this could dry you out. So use with care.

All in all I found these products nice to use - good packaging, reasonably priced - about $20 clams retail, and seemingly chockers with good natural ingredients.

I am impressed with the no-nonsense very clear ingredient listing, which is often my major gripe with "natural" skincare brands. Most consumers don't know what Melaleuca alternifolia oil is, and Nelsons have (kindly) remedied that by putting the conventional names clearly in brackets next to each botanical listed.

Props Nelsons! The Beauty Brains would be pleased, regardless of how efficacious your product is.