It’s frustrating that my favorite working facial skincare range, Le Couvent Des Minimes is pulling out of the Philippines but I won’t be pretentious and say I’m depressed, I’ll live, but grr. It’s skincare for goodness’ sake. In case you didn’t read my past reviews Le Couvent Des Minimes is a French skincare range that is part of the brand family of L’Occitane and Melvita and I was more than pleased that SM actually brought it in about a year ago. The packaging is gorgeous and is like a more affordable version of L’Occitane (almost half price). The Beneficial Rose facial range is perfectly suited to my skin type, dry-sensitive. It’s not purely vegan as a brand like 100 Percent Pure but the amount of botanical ingredients integrated into the LCDM formulas is impressive and I like that the range is paraben-free and tries not to include mineral oil. I had a strong feeling this botanically sound brand wouldn’t last here…one thing might be is that the brand name is not easy to read for many Filipinos. Even I get lazy to say the whole brand name when someone asks me what facial cleanser I use and that’s not very good for word of mouth marketing. I’ll survive and maybe I’ll find something that works for slightly less, but I really must say that I’m super annoyed that LCDM (it’s a mouthful) is being phased out locally from SM department stores probably due to the lack of volume sales. It’s still available in Europe and here Le Couvent Des Minimes has a US website so for those with GCASH amex or relatives in the States you’re still good I guess. Sigh*. My favorite product from the range, their Gentle Rose Cleansing Milk is practically sold out already, salesladies had none to offer. They still had this accompanying moisturizer to the cleansing milk, and I’m nearly tweaking my own ears for not giving the sister moisturizer a go last year. This is LCDM’s Beneficial Rose Complete Moisturizing Cream
KEY INGREDIENTS: Aqua/Water, Glycerin, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Damask Rose Floral Water, Rosa Centifolia Flower Extract, Sunflower Seed Oil, Gallic Rose Seed Milk, Wild Rose Seed Milk, Wild Rose Hip Polyphenol, Rosemary leaf extract, Vitamin E
Clearance sale at SM 50% off, Php649 from Php1299
To appease my sad discovery that the Gentle Cleansing Milk was no more, I got this Beneficial Rose Complete Moisturizing Cream (now on clearance sale at 50% off, Php649 from Php1299) which they are still selling, NO mineral oil, parabens or colorants. So it seems I’m on a moisturizer kick, I reasoned with myself that it ought to be the last thing I try before the brand disappears from the face of Manila. Read more to get the full review.
Had I known how good this moisturizer was I seriously wouldn’t have asked my aunt to find the Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cream in the States, because this gives me the same non-greasy healing hydration in a slightly gentler botanical formula my skin is already familiar with.
I wish more brands would package their products this beautifully, a tad old fashioned perhaps (glass jar, metal lid) but reusable and cute to collect, and the brand name embossed on the lid? Yes, please. It’s sealed for freshness because since it’s a botanical formula without parabens the shelf life is shorter at 6 months from opening it.
The color of the product is an off-white ivory cream, testament to its not using artificial colorants (looks exactly like the Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cream but slightly thicker). The scent is rose obviously but it doesn’t overpower or stay after application. The texture is rich but not too dense, like Greek yoghurt at its thickest.
I now plan to stick this in the refrigerator for some cooling summer comfort in the evenings and to make it keep longer. It’s nourishing and light enough to use for day or evening if you have dry skin, for people with oily or normal skin it’s better to use before bed. I like that it makes my skin feel the way it does after using the Gentle Cleansing Milk from the same range so it’s probably the next best thing. If you need a gentle moisturizer that’s not necessarily 100% vegan but is botanically “equipped” look no further, but you’d better check in SM this March before this completely disappears. TIP: Try checking on a Wednesday, this whole of March in SM beauty floors there’s an ADDITIONAL 10% OFF added to already discounted items on Wednesdays, well, at least that’s what they told me in SM Makati.