Its a beauty bloggers worst, nightmare, running out of their holy grail cleanser and as I scraped out the last dregs of my Emma Hardie Cleansing Balm panic mode set in. An impromto trip to Space NK was called for whereby I left empty handed (this is popular stuff), cue a second failed attempt and third time lucky saw me reunited with my new best friend in the skincare depot. I discovered this gem of a product like many others, through blogger hype and when I saw it had skincare goddess Caroline Hirons seal of approval I was sold. Admittedly I shudder a tad as I hand over the best part of 40 notes on a small tub of skincare but as I moved onto my second tub of the stuff I thought it about time it received a good ol' review.
Having the longest name in skincare history - Emma Hardie Amazing Face Natural Lift and Sculpt Moringa Cleansing balm (phew) is a balm cleanser designed to thoroughly cleanse the skin whilst removing every last trace of makeup. Packed with Moringa Seed Extract, Wild Sea Fennel and Vit E the balm is specifically targeted at balancing, purifying and minimising the appearance of open pores which is something that I definitely fight on a daily basis. So if you do have skin verging towards the oilier side of normal do not fear the oily texture of this as if anything it helps with reducing oil production. Whereas more abrasive products can strip the skins natural oil thus making it produce more to counteract, this actually balances the skin helping to control the level of oil you produce naturally.
In terms of the product itself theres not much that I can fault from its gorgeous smell to its texture. In the tub it appears solid but I use my fingers to scoop a pea sized amount and work between my fingers to soften, I then apply to a dry face, after removing my makeup with The Sanctuary's Facial Cleansing Oil. I gently rub the product all over my face, adding a little water if need be which emulsifies the product making it go that little bit further. I know there are various ways to use but I have found this the best for me. I then use a muslin cloth, or a flannel, whichever is hanging around at the time and gently rinse in circular motions before patting dry with a towel. The product does not leave any residue and just leaves my skin feeling, well, plump I guess is the word and moisturised without feeling greasy. Aside from the rather hefty price tag, this is definitely a winner in the skincare stakes and gets a big thumbs up from me and as they say the true beauty obsessive starts with the basics - skincare. Once you sort that, then the rest just falls into place ;-).
If you do want to go that one step further with this cleanser then Emma Hardie has a great video on facial massaging and how to use the product to its full potential which for all you skincare junkies is worth a watch!