little white truths

I realised recently that I hadn't yet reviewed the last product from this kit, Alpha-H's Micro Cleanse, which means that I haven't yet done my round-up post on the kit as a whole. Ooops! Sorry about that - I'd meant to do it ages ago!

But there's a reason for the hold-up: I hadn't used the exfoliant much until recently because I've been focusing on finishing other products, which have been open longer than this one and need to be used up first. Still, I was ready to change up my routine for a while so I moved this into circulation last month and I have used it before so I'm ready to give you my thoughts.

Here's what the Renew and Resurface Kit contains:

• Triple Action Cleanser 30ml 
• Micro Cleanse 30ml 
• Balancing Moisturiser and Gentle Exfoliant 30ml 
• Daily Essential Moisturiser SPF 30+ 30ml 
• Liquid Gold Smoothing and Perfecting Mask 30ml 
• Balancing and Pore Refining Mask 30ml 

The kit retails for $99 AUD but you can pick it up for less if you shop around. From memory I paid something like $74 for it, and I received a bonus Alpha-H product when I bought it. And of course, it's great value because you're getting 30ml sizes of six products: 30ml is a decent amount and more than enough product to work out whether any items are for you.

Do note: I've just seen that this product has recently been reformulated, so it's now called the 'Micro Cleanse Super Scrub with Glycolic Acid & Peppermint'. 

I gather that Alpha-H has done this because the product contained micro beads, and as you may know, these are being phased out for environmental reasons.

But I wanted to write this review because the product is still available in this form, and I understand that the newer version is largely the same, minus the micro beads.

I'm a huge fan of Alpha-H products but this one isn't my favourite. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad product - it's just that I prefer other exfoliants from the brand and this one I can take or leave.

It's a white cream that contains a reasonable amount of scrubby matter (although I personally think that more would be better), but the grains aren't fine enough to give a 'professional microdermabrasion result' as claimed and I've used much better scrubs that really smooth and resurface the skin. 

This one does get rid of some surface gunk, but it doesn't do it as well as dedicated microdermabrasion scrubs that I've tried, and I also think something like Kate Somerville's ExfoliKate (reviewed here) does a better job because the grains are more fine and therefore work harder without irritating the skin.

While I don't think this is hugely irritating, it's not as gentle and effective as something with finer grains, and I do find it a touch scratchy. Coupled with the peppermint fragrance (which I don't think agrees with my skin), my face feels a little dry and tight after using this but it doesn't feel as fresh, smooth and clean as it does when I use other physical exfoliants.

I've had a look at some online reviews and it appears I'm in the minority when I say that I don't love this product: a lot of people rave about it, so I guess it's worth testing at least because you might really like it.

But I reckon it doesn't meet its claims - it does do what it says it will to some degree, but not enough to be worth the outlay in my opinion - and I think you could spend your $50 on something that yields better results and doesn't feel quite so harsh on the skin.

All in all this product is ok, but Alpha-H has much better products and I'll be sticking with those.

Have you used this? Let me know what you think if so : )