As a fan of minimal makeup, I really live by the old adage, “less is more.” There’s just something about wearing little to no makeup that feels so… free. Maybe this is the inner feminist in me coming out, but I think it’s actually just as simple as: gunk on your face just never feels good (just realised how that sounds… leaving it in anyway).
Which is why, when it comes to makeup removers, I’m pretty picky. I mean, if the day comes where I’ve actually been bothered enough to apply eyeshadow, CC cream and mascara, then you bet your bottom dollar imma be taking aaaaallll that off come bedtime. What can I say, I feel pretty passionate about a clean face!
Of course, my increasingly obsessive penchant for watching beauty videos and reading beauty blogs — which may sound counterintuitive after what I just wrote, but I promise it’s not — has alerted me to the joys of micellar waters.
What I’m getting to is, I like micellar waters. And I’ve found a great drugstore one that’s cheap and cheerful — and does the job well.
Ladies and gents, introducing the Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water.
As someone with mega sensitive eyes, these magic elixirs waters were a revelation. You mean, you can remove eye makeup without turning your eyes into the enflamed spawn of the devil (dramatic, but not entirely inaccurate)? Or, it’s not actually necessary to slick oil over your lids — to the point where you experience blurry vision until you pass out for the eve? Yep… heaven is real.
This cutie (yes, the travel size really is quite cute) is my new boo when it comes to makeup removal — and not just because it cost me around $4 during a rather pleasing Priceline sale.
The consistency is just like water — no surprises there. Don’t be fooled by the bubbles in the pictures — that’s simply the result of my butterfingers ways!
I apply a fair bit to a cotton pad (I love using a luxurious amount of product #bougie) and then just hold it over my eyes, gently wiping to remove the mascara. It really takes off my eye makeup in seconds — and doesn’t pull at all.
A little clarification: this can apparently be used as a total face cleanser as well as an eye makeup remover, although I confine its uses only to the latter. In a pinch, this would be a decent cleanser, but I ideally like to double cleanse, and at worst, have something that requires splashes of water on my face.
There’s nothing too remarkable about this product — and this is exactly why I like it. It’s not too heavily fragranced and, like the Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Water that introduced me to the micellar water world, it’s more about what it doesn’t do than what it does.
What I mean by this is: zero irritation, zero oil, zero stinging, zero general ickiness. Yay!
I think this baby is a really great drugstore/high street find, and is great quality for the low price. If you’re in the market for an effective eye makeup remover that won’t make you rue the day you discovered mascara… this is it.
Have you tried the Garnier Micellar Water? What’s your favourite non-offensive eye makeup remover? Do you also hate the feeling of makeup on your face? Let me know!
Steph x