Suki Balancing Mini Skin Care Kit

Suki is a sophisticated line of skincare and cosmetics that uses only the purest ingredients. Suki's list of Chemically Independent and environmental ideals is mind-boggling, including cruelty-free, recycled materials, vegetable inks, glass instead of plastic, and no petrochemicals just to name a few. Having used several of her products now, my impression is that the products are very high quality using only the best ingredients and marketed toward a more mature audience. Marketing is not excessive, packaging is simple, and the products themselves are very unassuming. Depending on your style, you may find this refreshing or just boring. ;-)

Suki's Balancing Mini Skin Care Kit is a great way to try out her skincare products. She also offers a Nourishing Mini Skin Care Kit for maturing or dry skin. I like to mix a few of the products from each kit to customize my skincare regimen. Included in the Balancing Kit: Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser, Transformative Cleansing Clay, Concentrated Balancing Toner, Balancing Day Lotion, Pure Facial Moisture-Balancing, Velvet Moisturizing Cream, Delicate Hydrating Oil, and Butter Cream Healing Salve. I've already reviewed the Butter Cream Healing Salve here, but the others I'll go through individually. The products come in tiny glass vials (except the Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser which comes in a larger 1.0 fl. oz. glass jar and the Butter Cream Healing Slave which comes in a small packet). The glass vials are unique (so refreshing not to have plastic, really), but don't really contain enough product. You won't see any appreciable difference in your skin in the time that it takes you to use up the product, but you'll probably be able to decide whether you want to purchase a full size and give it a shot.

Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser
One word: YUMMY. If you love sugar scrubs, you will LOVE Suki's Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser. It smells like lemon drops! The instructions say to "add water if desired", but you won't get the foaming action unless you add water and it's really pretty rough if you don't add it. But it only takes a small amount of product plus water to create a great foaming, exfoliating cleanser! It also removes makeup pretty well. Now I myself am not a fan of sugar scrubs (due to the stickiness and mess around the cap from the sugar) but this stuff is fantastic. I wouldn't use it as a daily cleanser (although you could) but I'd use it a few times a week for exfoliating. If it came in a larger size I'd use it in the shower as an exfoliating body wash--the large sugar granules would be perfect for that. Buy a full size for $30!

Transformative Cleansing Clay
This product is targeted toward improving blemishes and purifying the pores. It's probably the most acne-solving product in the kit. I have combination skin and rarely breakout, and since it's winter I've been a little dry, so this product wasn't really for me. It can be used in 3 ways: cleanser, mask, or spot treatment. However, the instructions for cleanser state to smooth onto face and leave for 5 minutes before rinsing. I prefer for my cleanser to just go on, take off makeup and cleanse, and come right back off (who has time to leave it on for 5 minutes every time you wash your face?). And maybe I just didn't use enough of it (b/c it's in a tiny vial and I was trying to ration it?) but it didn't take off makeup too well. I think this would be better used as a mask (wash face first to get rid of makeup and then apply and leave on for 10-15 minutes). I tried this approach, but didn't really see a difference in my skin (but to be fair I only used it once or twice, and I didn't see a difference with another traditional clay mask from Esthederm that I purchased from a spa, so maybe clay isn't for me). I can't comment on the blemish spot treatment aspect, but seems like the white willow 15% active salicins and the antibacterial zinc would be great for acne.

Concentrated Balancing Toner
What is the purpose of toner? I never use toner anymore. Anyway, there isn't really enough product in this tiny vial to figure it out. There are maybe 2 applications. I can say that it is alcohol-free, so it doesn't have the burn, and it contains white willow 15% active salicins and vitamin C polypeptides to calm and soothe inflammation. Oh, and it smells good. But I'm not a toner girl. Give me a mild cleanser, a moisturizer/anti-aging serum/SPF-containing combo, a great eye cream, and an exfoliating cleanser to use a few times a week and I'm good.

Balancing Day Lotion
This moisturizing lotion contains white willow 15% active salicins and natural retinol to reduce inflammation, balance oil production, and moisturize. For me it isn't moisturizing enough, especially in the winter, so I'd leave this one to oily or acne-prone skin (which is mainly what it's for, so I don't know why I'm complaining). It smells like roses in a middle-aged anti-aging serum or grandma kind of way. A lot of Suki's products smell like roses, and I'm not a fan of rose or floral scents in general.

Pure Facial Moisture-Balancing
This one really threw me for a loop. It is pure plant oils, vitamin E, and essential oils. OIL for your face! WHAT?! Is anyone else confused about this? What about all the oil-free stuff we've been taught? I guess that applies to mineral oil or oils that are of lesser quality, because Pure Facial Moisture-Balancing is straight up oil. Apparently it actually balances oil production. Who knew? Needless to say, it took me a while to get over the shock and actually use this on my face. After the Balancing Day Lotion wasn't moisturizing enough for me I tried a little of this. I've found that it does the job of moisturizing my combination skin that's a little drier in the winter. I just use a TINY bit. This vial will last me forever--go figure. I won't be purchasing a full size though b/c I like my moisturizer to have sun protection in it.

Velvet Moisturizing Cream
This is a light hand and body lotion that smells WONDERFUL. I just said I normally don't like floral scents, but this one is fantastic. It also leaves my hands feeling extremely soft and smooth. If you are looking for something that isn't heavy and thick but still smells and works great, try this product. You can buy the full size for $27.

Delicate Hydrating Oil
This is a body oil. Has anyone ever used body oil? Again, I've always been taught that oil-free is the way to go, so the closest I've ever come to slathering myself with oil is suntanning oil and Avon Skin So Soft back in the day. Well, Delicate Hydrating Oil feels like that. Greasy and oily. The oil doesn't really sink into the skin the way a lotion does, so you're just shiny and greasy afterwards. The vile of oil was one total body application and smelled like rose oil but nuttier. Slick. Eeew. Well at least I learned I'm not an oil kind of girl.

Final thoughts: great ingredients in these products, but since it's winter and most of us tend to be a little drier this time of year, you might want to try the Nourishing Mini Skin Care Kit instead of this one. If you are a teenager, have oily skin, or you usually have a few blemishes, try this kit.