Spectro Cleanser Review

 

Since the pandemic started, I've been looking for ways to add an extra cleansing step in my routine just to be sure I get rid of every bit of gunk from my masks. As mentioned in the past posts, I already have a solid skin care routine consisting of kojic acid soap, mandelic acid serum at night, alpha arbutin serum in the morning, and jojoba/rosehip/grapeseed oil whenever my skin feels dry or tight. This routine typically works, but in the rare times that I get out and wear a mask or makeup, I need something extra for cleansing. 

I have this small bottle of Spectro cleanser. A friend came to visit from the UK and gave me this. I've honestly never heard of this brand before, but judging by the way it's packaged, it looked like it's from a reputable brand. Like, it doesn't look luxurious but it doesn't look cheap either. Nothing fancy, pretentiously hippy, or fraudulently "herbal." Just something you'd normally find in supermarkets. 

It's supposedly a gentle cleanser. I'm sure about the gentle part, not so about the cleansing part. It's so freaking gentle that it doesn't really seem to do anything. It's very similar to Cetaphil cleansers texture-wise, although this is thicker and smells a little bit like white glue.

I wanted to like it. Because it's fragrance-free, non-irritating, and moisturizing. However, it simply just did not work the way I needed it to. I have oily skin that needs to be exfoliated regularly, and kojic acid soap does this just fine. The Spectro Cleanser does not remove makeup, sunscreen or mask gunk. 

You're supposed to massage this into the skin for 30 seconds to loosen up deep-seated debris. I do that and then rub it off with a cotton ball, the way I do it with Cetaphil. I find though that it takes at least 3 times of repeating those steps just to feel clean enough.

This isn't sold locally, but in the US, it's sold for $35-40 for a 500 ml bottle. Quite expensive, by Philippine standards. 

In essence, this is an awesome product. I guess it's just not for my skin type and routine. I would recommend this for normal to dry skin, with an occasional blemish, no heavy usage of makeup or sunscreen. In sum, it's still worth a try. I'm giving it 3 stars out of 5.