I don't usually try new beauty products. I used to be the kind of person who tried a new moisturizer, a new cleanser, or a new primer every single month. But over time, I realized that was not helping my skin whatsoever. I have my tried-and-true products for oily skin that I use consistently to help me keep things consistent.
However, in my November diaper bundle that I receive from Honest (I'm a sucker for those cute printed diapers), I had the option to choose any Honest Beauty products. I decided to go to the Try Me Kit for Oily Skin, just to see how their products really measured up.
Obviously, I get diapers for Forrest from Honest. We also exclusively use their baby body wash and shampoo, bubble bath, diaper cream, and healing balm; they're the only products that don't send Forrest into a tail spin of rashes. I love their products mostly because they deliver them to my house, which is a major bonus.
When my bundle arrived, containing not just diapers, but the Try Me Kit, I was pretty excited to try it. I was also surprised that the kit arrived in such a nice travel bag; it feels like high-quality faux-leather, lined with a nice canvas. For something you get for free, it's pretty great.
The Try Me Kit for Oily Skin came with three products:
- Refreshingly Clean Gel Cleanser
- Dependably Clear Oil Free Moisturizer
- Beyond Protected Daily Beauty Fluid SPF 30
The gel cleanser is the largest bottle and I've been using it for about a week, once a day, without running out. The moisturizer is much smaller, but again, I've been using it once a day for a week and haven't run out yet; the beauty fluid is the same size as the moisturizer.
Alright, let's talk about each products.
Refreshingly Clean Gel Cleanser
I actually really like this cleanser; it cleans and gets rid of everyday oil as well as make up without leaving any kind of residue or feeling like it absolutely strips my skin. I can get really dry after washing my face, especially with harsh cleansers, but so far, I haven't noticed any dryness with this cleanser.
My one issue with it is that it smells really strongly--and not very good. Honest is famous for their products being fragrance free (or if they're scented, they have a fragrance free option) and sometimes, this can make them smell, well, a bit weird. When you combine chemicals to create soap, you're obviously going to end up with some kind of smell. They may have wanted to add a little something to cover up the smell of this. The closest approximation I can get is it smells like that really cheap lotion you can buy at the dollar store: chemically and weird.
Dependably Clear Oil Free Moisturizer
This moisturizer gets a solid OK from me. I didn't feel like it harmed my skin, but I also didn't feel like it really did anything different from my normal moisturizer. It felt nice though and didn't give my skin that tacky feeling that some moisturizers leave. I tend to avoid "oil free" moisturizers because that often means they use something artificial to create moisture and ultimately, oil is actually very good for your skin (yes, even oily, acne prone skin). I worried a little bit about this moisturizer stripping my skin, but I haven't noticed any issues.
Again, the one major issue I had with this product is... the smell.
The smell of this moisturizer was different than the cleanser, but not any better. I don't know how to say this without sounding weird, but this moisturizer smells like cheese. It smells like that fake white cheddar cheese dust that's used for packaged popcorn or chips. It smells almost foot-like. That's not a pleasant way for your face to smell. I had a moment where I felt a bit like the scene from Mean Girls where Kady replaces Regina's moisturizer with foot cream.
Beyond Protected Daily Beauty Fluid SPF 30
I use an SPF 30 on my face every day anyway, so I was excited to try this product. However, it was my least favorite of the kit and here's why: it's not fluid. It's near impossible to get out of the bottle. It has a super weird texture and you have to use a ton of it to cover your face. And just like the moisturizer, it smells like cheese-and-feet.
That's enough "no thank you" moments to make me put it back in the bag and not finish the little bottle of it. I really wonder why they didn't just add an SPF 30 to the moisturizer; three steps is bordering on too many steps for skincare for me, and especially with a product where the instructions are "shake vigorously" so you can get it out of the bottle, it's just too time consuming.
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