Review: The new PS..Naturals 'Balm To Oil' Cleanser & Comparison to Clinique's Take The Day Off Balm

Hey everyone! Thanks so much for coming back to my blog for this review. If you've followed me on Instagram for a while you may know my holy grail for makeup removal is the Clinique Take The Day Off Balm, which retails at €29 for a 125ml tub - which is, let's be honest, expensive AF! Now, Penneys/Primark have launched a new Naturals range in their PS Skincare line and one of the products is a Balm to Oil Cleanser (50ml) for €3.50. How does it compare to the more expensive Clinique balm? Let's find out.

PS... Naturals Balm to Oil Cleanser. Available in Penneys/Primark Stores now for €3.50.

So in the photos above you can see what the packaging says - 90% naturally derived ingredients, botanical, organic, vegan, cruelty-free, recyclable. AMAZING. I was already on board when I heard of this new range just because of these statements, but when I saw a Balm To Oil Cleanser was one of the products I knew I had to get that, because it's literally 10% of the price of my Clinique one (I spent more than €29 on mine as I bought it in New York - I'm pretty sure I spent the equivalent of €39!) Anyway, so far I've used this new product twice and the easiest way for me to give you my honest review without any frills or discussion, is just to say I LOVE IT. It smells gorgeous, and honestly for me, it did the job just as well as the Clinique Take the Day Off Balm. If anything I would say I prefer it to the Clinique because it's 90% cheaper, smells better, and is travel sized (although there is a travel size version of Take The Day Off too if you prefer that product).

Clinique Take The Day Off cleansing balm, retailing at €29 from Boots and others. (Photo not my own).

With both products, you scoop a piece of the balm out onto your finger (usually about the size of the area from the fingertip to the first knuckle, if that makes sense). The heat from your skin is what causes it to melt into oil so you need to be ready to put it on your face straight away! You then rub it onto your face and spread all over, making sure to rub the eyelids a lot if you have eye makeup on, and voilà, all of your makeup melts with the oil. Then just take a damp or wet facial cleansing cloth and wipe away, I do this repeatedly with more water, and your face looks like you haven't been wearing makeup in ages - not one bit of residue is visible!

Of course, a double cleanse is best if you've worn lots of makeup, so I always go over my face once more with some Micellar Water or a face wash product, and usually I find some more foundation and mascara comes off in that second cleanse. So definitely remember that after using the balm to oil (either clinique or PS) that your skin may look completely clean, but it does need an extra cleanse to ensure you have nothing left on the face that could cause spots.

For cleansing, I decided to try the PS Naturals Gentle Face Wash, which I got for €3.50 also. This wash smells the same as the balm, as they both have Organic Coconut Water and Australian Kakadu Plum in them. I really can't describe it but it smells really clean, organic, and not overpowering - it's a really soothing scent! This face wash was exactly what it says on the bottle, a gentle, gel-formula wash that turns into a lather when applied to a wet face. I felt like this wash really got into my skin and cleaned it properly as it lathered up so well, and washed away with a cloth easily. I normally use Elave's Sensitive Face Cleanser and I find that it just doesn't lather, and while it probably still does the job and is great for sensitive skin, I much prefer a product that I can see lathering up and working, so the PS one wins for me. If you don't get the Balm To Oil Cleanser, maybe because you don't wear makeup often, then I'd highly recommend at least getting this product as you can use it on bare skin every morning and evening. This would also work for removing makeup but I tend not to use washes as makeup removers because I don;t like to go near my eyes with anything that lathers!

PS...Naturals Gentle Face Wash, available in store for €3.50 now.

Finally, I got the PS Naturals Overnight Sleep Mask for €2.50 and have used it twice so far. I actually bought two of these so I could use one per night but realised when using it that there is enough product in one package for at least two nights' use! I still have some left in the one I've opened so that will be my third use from the one package - so worth €2.50 if you ask me! Again, this smells exactly like the other products and feels super gentle on the skin. Personally I didn't find any noticeable benefits from using this but it did the same job as a layer of moisturiser overnight would. My skin is really soft so I would have to assume the overnight mask contributed to some of that!

All three products I chose to purchase from the PS...Naturals range.

So, overall, I could say I'm fully converted to the PS Balm to Oil cleanser and will be using that from the second my Clinique one is empty (I have about 10 more uses from my Clinique tub). If you love Take The Day Off as much as me and maybe have sensitive skin too, you NEED to give the PS version a go and save your money! There are more products in the PS Naturals range that I didn't purchase, like a daily moisturiser, natural exfoliating discs and biodegradable wipes. I really want the biodegradable wipes but haven't seen them in store! Anyway, any questions leave them below or in a DM and I'll get back to them. Thanks so much for reading and I hope what I've said has been beneficial, and I hope you love this new PS range as much as I do if you purchase any of the products!

Love,

Aisling

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