I was so excited to try this with the huge hype it has had so of course when I saw pink and the brand Garnier emblazoned on the bottle with this holy water inside I has to give it a free ride in my trolley! I love that the lid is pink because it means that my husband will leave it alone because of the 'girly colour'. It also suits the decore surrounding it with all my various beauty products in pink and purple to keep it company and to make it look even better.
Usually I am really bad at removing my makeup before bed *slaps hand* so to make it more exciting and so I remembered; Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water found it's way in to my life. I bought makeup pads especially for the occasion.
I was sporting a smoked eye, intense red lippy and foundation to boot so needed something gentle for my sensitive skin but strong enough to handle the job. I squirted a generous amount on to my makeup pad and starting from the forehead worked my way down and saw no makeup but skin! I was amazed at how easily it was removing this makeup after 8 hours of stay power on my face. After I lifted the pad there was a noticeable streak of no makeup left behind....boy was I excited.
I continued thinking...it won't remove mascara without scrubbing but to my astonishment it removed it with a couple of swipes WOW!! I am a follower and a believer Ganrier! Sign me up. Afterward my skin felt cleansed and soft and teamed with my moisturiser it was baby skin smooth and that never happens with my dry skin. Officially dedicated :)
When the hype began to rage over this product I knew I had to try it for myself. I was stoked when I found some in Countdown on sale for $9 - I thought it was great value for money given its size compared with other cleansers I've tried. I gave it a go before bed that night and had a really positive first impression. I couldn't get over the fact that it looked like a regular bottle of water but could be so much more. I soaked a cotton pad with the product and circled it around my face; I love that you can apply it to your eye area as well - and voilà, clean and refreshed skin! I was surprised to see how much extra dirt it had picked up. But fast forward to the following night where I had a heavier face of makeup on and unfortunately my enthusiasm didn't remain so high. I needed multiple soaked cotton pads to cut through my makeup, especially my eye makeup which wasn't even water-proof, and even then I picked up more afterwards when I applied a toner. It was disappointingly clear that I had to use a lot more product and basically waste many cotton pads to get a truly clean face. The next night I loosened my makeup with water, baby oil, and a flannel first, then followed with the micellar water. This proved to be the best combination for me, and while it means that the product isn't quite the miracle worker that some claim, it's still good as a facial cleanser and 'light' makeup remover. It hasn't made my skin over oily or dry and I love that you don't have to rinse it off. Ultimately this product still helps me save time, it feels good for my skin and I will consider repurchasing it again, but it isn't as amazing as I was hoping.
Update: 04/06/2015
I just had to take another couple of lippies off this product. I think it was met with way too much hype and has since become overrated. The bottom line is it struggles to remove any the lightest mineral makeup on my face, let alone heavy foundation or thick mascara. The only time it works well is after my face has already been heavily rinsed or precleansed with oil. Therefore it's ultimately a product that over promises and under delivers. Not super impressed.