As much as I love playing with makeup, I've always been a total nut for skincare. Having suffered from acne most of my life, it's always been my personal quest to find products that keep my skin looking clear and feeling soft. That being said, the process has never been easy. It can take weeks before you can tell whether or not a skincare product is helping or hurting your situation, and you can invest a lot of money in things that ultimately disappoint.
That being said, I really like to take my time with testing skincare. Makeup I can try a few times and have a pretty solid opinion on, but skincare I like to introduce slowly and test very thoroughly before I go and share my opinion with the world. I want to give you all the best recommendations possible, and with skincare that process just can't be rushed.
Speaking of which, I took home a boat load of skincare from Generation Beauty LA and its been taking me quite a long time to work through testing it all. I've been enjoying a lot of it, but this set in particular really blew me away. The Pur~lisse Skin Survival Kit has all the essentials you need for a daily skincare routine and has been nothing short of spectacular for my face!
The Skin Survival Kit is a 9 piece set containing everything you need for glowy, hydrated skin. In each set you get a travel-sized Blue Lotus 4-in-1 Cleansing Milk, a full-sized Blue Lotus Brightening Serum, a full-sized Blue Lotus Balacing Moisturizer, a full-sized Daily Lip Nourisher with Mango & Shea Butter, and four sheet masks (2 Blue Lotus + Seaweed and 2 Blue Lotus + White Tea) all tucked inside of a cute silver cosmetics bag.
Anyone who knows me personally knows I'm all about a great deal, and this set is by far one of the best ways to sample some of Pur~lisse's best selling products on a budget. It retails for $75 and contains $214 worth of product! Doing the math, that's a 65% discount. And if the savings weren't good enough on their own, Pur~lisse created this set in support of Look Good Feel Better, an organization offering complimentary beauty sessions to cancer patients to help boost their confidence and sense of well being. 100% of the proceeds from every set purchased will be donated to the program, so you can know you're not only doing something great for your skin, but you're also doing something great for others.
Even though the savings on this set are pretty sweet, and the cause it's supporting is wonderful, what really impressed me the most was the quality of the products themselves. I've had zero shame in raving about Pur~lisse's amazing sheet masks over the past six months, but this was my first time exploring the rest of their line.
So let's start out with the product I already know and love from Pur~lisse - the Blue Lotus + Seaweed Treatment Sheet Mask ($8). These natural fiber masks are infused with a mixture of blue lotus, seaweed, and Asian botanicals to brighten and soothe the skin while providing it with deep hydration.
Even though I suffer from large pores and areas of oiliness, using these masks once a week helps to keep my skin balanced and smooth. I always feel like they leave my skin looking extra plumped and glowy and are a treat I look forward to using on the weekends.
You also get two of the Blue Lotus + White Tea Treatment Sheet Masks ($8), which are a little more deeply hydrating than the Seaweed masks. This version is infused with antioxidant powerhouse white tea to help fight damaging free radicals, white mulberry to brighten, and anise extract to firm. If my skin is looking a little extra dull or tired these are perfect to perk it right back up! Both of these masks retail for $8 individually, but you can also purchase a 6 pack for $36.
The first step of any great skincare routine is cleansing, and I always prefer a gentle, soap free option that won't throw the pH balance of my skin totally out of whack. The Blue Lotus 4-in-1 Cleansing Milk ($36) is just that - a soap and sulfate free, creamy cleanser that gets your skin clean without leaving it stripped of its natural oils. It's infused with a blend of soy milk, whole oats, and white tea to calm and soothe the skin and keep it looking fresh and youthful. In this set you get a travel sized version (2.5 oz) which is worth about $17. On very light makeup days I find this cleanser is enough to remove everything from my face, but if I'm wearing anything heavier or waterproof I'll definitely need to go in with a separate makeup remover first. Still, I love how fresh it makes my face feel without leaving it tight or dry!
As the clock continues to count down towards my 30th birthday, I've been trying to be better about including anti-aging products in my everyday skincare routine, serums included. The Blue Lotus Brightening Serum ($76) is a hydroquinone-free formula that will safely brighten and clarify the skin and help to reduce the appearance of discoloration and age spots, giving it an overall more luminous and youthful appearance. While age spots are something I've generally been fortunate to not develop yet, I do find that every time I get a pimple it leaves a mark that takes several months to fade. Over the past several weeks of using this serum I do feel like it's helped to speed that process up a bit, although I can't say that its made them disappear completely yet. Still, this serum is intensely hydrating and plumping and definitely gives my skin an overall more glowy, brightened appearance.
Now, if I could only repurchase one product from this set, my choice would hands down be the Blue Lotus Balancing Moisturizer ($55). My fellow oily skinned girls probably understand the struggle of finding a great moisturizer that doesn't leave you looking like a grease ball after a few hours. This formula, however, delivers the perfect amount of hydration without making my skin look extra shiny by the end of the day. It absorbs quickly into the skin and leaves it feeling silky smooth, making it the perfect base to wear under makeup. In this set you get a full sized 1.7 oz bottle valued at $55.
And of course, I love that Pur~lisse also decided to include something in this set for your lips! Especially at this time of year when it's cold and dry, lip balm is an absolute everyday essential. The Daily Lip Nourisher with Mango & Shea Butter ($16) has a petroleum-free formula that won't get you stuck in the dreaded lip balm addiction cycle. Packed full of good-for-you ingredients like shea butter, jojoba, and rice bran oil, this balm is deeply hydrating and helps to keep your lips chap-free. As far as balms go, this one has a very light, slippy, ever so slightly greasy texture that does absorb into your lips and make them feel soft and supple. If you're a liquid lipstick wearer, this balm is the perfect prep to keep your lips from looking parched. Apply a little of this balm 15 minutes before you apply your lipstick, let it sink in, and then wipe off the excess immediately before application. Your lips will seriously thank you!
If you're generally overwhelmed by the idea of creating a skincare regimen for yourself from scratch and are interested in exploring some higher-end products, this Skin Survival Kit is an amazing place to start! You've got all the necessary building blocks for an excellent skincare routine, no matter what skin type you have. And while $75 may seem like a lot of money to spend up front, it's actually probably on-par with what you'd spend at the drugstore if you were to buy the same number and type of products. I honestly might buy myself a backup set to have on hand, just because of how great of a value you're getting. The price you'd pay to buy a replacement of the serum is actually a dollar MORE than what you'd pay for buying this set, which would make it almost silly not to! Needless to say, Pur~lisse gets a big thumbs up from me, and I'm sure I'll be buying more from them in the future.
Have you tried any Pur~lisse skincare? What do you recommend?
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