There has been so much hype about the GlamGlow products in the last few months. It seems I can't watch a beauty favourites video on YouTube without this product being mentioned, and given the $76 CAD price tag, I really had my doubts. So, naturally when a product has been this hyped up, I had to try it for myself, and thanks to some nasty hormonal breakouts on my chin I had just the reason to. Here's some thoughts...
While it comes in a few formulas for different treatments, I decided to try the GLAMGLOW Supermud Clearing Treatment. Taken from Sephora.com "This formula was clinically developed by GLAMGLOW® dermatological chemists to help fight all common skin concerns including breakouts, discoloration, black and white heads, razor bumps, and in-grown hair. Powerful, skin-clearing mud visibly draws out dirt and congestion while a proprietary six-acid blend dramatically brightens and softens skin. It works to magnetically draw out dirt and pores with Activated-X Charcoal, leaving skin smooth and healthy-looking"
My first thought when I opened the box was, "holy crap why so much packaging?" which always has me a little skeptical about luxe beauty products because it makes me wonder how much of the hefty price tag is going to cardboard, ya know? To give you an idea, the box itself is about 6 inches in diameter, but the jar inside only carries 1.2oz of product. If you were to use this all over your face, I can see someone going through this quite quickly, but more and more I hear people recommend this as more of a targeted treatment, which is what I was using it for.
So I slathered it all over my nose and chin, where blackheads (nose) and breakouts (chin) were. I left it on for the recommended 20 minutes and watched the magic happen. Starting as a dark charcoal mud, it quickly dries to a concrete grey colour, which is also a bit how it feels (that whole can't-move-my-face-or-it'll-crack-into-a-million-pieces feeling). For a minute you think it has done its job, but then all of a sudden all these little clear dots pop up. According to the brand, this is their Pore-Matrix™ will reveal dots of vacuum extractions. Gross, but oh so satisfying, which helps with swallowing the crazy cost of this product.
So my final thoughts? As you can see in the inset pic of my nose (sorry for the extreme closeup, but necessary dontcha think?) It actually does extract the gunk from the pores that have it. I especially noticed this on the sides of my nose, where sneaky blackheads like to hangout. It REALLY got rid of those suckers, which had me feeling very accomplished!
Did it do anything for the nasty chin breakouts though? Unfortunately nope. They stayed in the same condition as before. I've heard many say they use this as a spot treatment for breakouts like this, but honestly it didn't work any miracles.
I know what you're thinking - SO IS IT WORTH THE HYPE?? Yes and No. What a classic gemini answer for me to give you. If you suffer from prominent persistent blackheads (I don't really) then yes it works wonders and the results you see before your eyes. If the problem is skin eruptions, I can't attest to results because I didn't get the ones I wanted. Either way I highly recommend heading to your local Sephora and asking for a sample to try it for yourself, they are awesome about letting you try before you buy. Otherwise, buy from a place online that allows fuss free returns, because it really is alot of money to spend.
Some Tips on usage:
A little goes a long way, you just need a thin enough layer to be opaque, and you really don't need this all over your face, but rather focus on the patches that give you grief.
Also a slightly silly but must be said rule : spending big bucks on expensive skincare may make you want to hoard it away and rarely use it for fear of going through it quickly. Keep in mind this is a MUD mask, and guess what mud has a tendency to do? Dry up. So if you buy it, don't be scared to use it!
Have you tried any of the GlamGlow products? Thoughts on them? Are they worth the hype for you?
You can buy GlamGlow products at Sephora.com LookFantastic.com and HQHair.com to name a few.
