Review + Ingredient Analysis | O'slee Honey Sugar Mask

It came to my realisation of how important it is to have a physical scrub in a skincare routine, I have missed it. I used to incorporate both physical and chemical exfoliators but due to the fear of having "micro-tear" on my skin (which I failed to find many journals about this), I then only allowing alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) and beta hydroxy acids (BHAs) to do the exfoliation works. While I'm still a huge fan of that method, there's something so deeply satisfying about the old-fashioned scrub. In this post, I'm going to review O'slee Honey Sugar Mask, which originated from Hong Kong and can be found selling in Guardian. Prior to this, I've used mostly the wash off scrubs from Skinfood, for example; Black Sugar Mask Wash Off, Black Sugar Honey Wash Off and Rice Mask Wash Off. I've also used St. Ives scrubs, regardless of whatever bad reviews they have on the internet.

I did think on repurchasing my favourite Skinfood Black Sugar Mask but being me, I wanted to see what else was out there, especially with the brand that is easily reachable in Malaysian drugstores. So when I saw this O'slee Honey Sugar Mask was selling for 70% off, I quickly paid for it because let's be real, apart from I did need a new scrub, the discount offered had definitely caught my attention.



About The Brand
To be honest, I did not know anything about the brand until I was about to write this review. It apparently has won multiple awards through its Rosehip Beauty Solution III toner, so I'm guessing that is their best-selling product. On the other hand, there are two kinds of scrubs available, selling at the same price. The first one is what I have with me, Honey Sugar Mask and another scrub is Pomegranate Milky Mask (curated for whitening and anti-ageing purposes).

Honey Sugar Mask is said to be formulated with "high speed dispersing technology" meaning that the brown sugar (scrub agent) is transformed into very fine powder so that it can remove cuticles, whiten and nourish skin without hurting the newly grown cuticles. There are several claims that we can look into which are;
1) Soften and remove cuticles and dirt gently.
2) Skin lightening and whitening. Skin becomes rejuvenate after used. 
3) Natural honey and melted brown sugar deeply nourish the skin.
4) Deep cleansing and remove blackheads
5) Pores become invisible after deep cleansing and removing cuticles
6) With cleansed moisturised skin, oil secretion will be reduced.
(source: official website)


They seem to highlight the word "cuticles" but it's probably not the best term to describe the outer skin layer of your face? I mean, while I know it's been years since the last time I flipped through an anatomy book, "cuticle" is better known to be one of the nail anatomy parts not face.

Packaging
O'slee Honey Sugar Mask comes in a  small ceramic tube as opposed to its big box packaging. It somehow makes me feel betrayed, lol. The scrub comes together with a spatula, which I appreciate a lot so I don't have to take out my emergency Nutella mini spoon to scoop out the product. There's also a sponge! so I guess, all you need to do is to spoon out a little bit of it on the palm of your hand or the sponge itself and massage it into your wet face- at least that is how I've been doing. The product weighted for 100ml.

Ingredients
Sucrose, Squalane, Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Butyrospermum parkii (Shea Butter) Extract, Simmondsia chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Isononyl Isononanoate, Hydrogenated Grapeseed Oil, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, C12-18 Alkyl Glucoside, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Lithium  Magnesium Silicate, Glycyrrhiza glabra Root Extract, Tocopherol, Honey Extract, Phenoxyethanol,  Fragrance, Bisabolol, Allantoin, Hyaluronic Acid.

The "buffing" ingredient in this scrub is brown sugar, which is further enhanced by the addition of moisturising ingredients such as squalane, glycerides, glycerin, shea butter, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, olive oil, castor oil and honey. The uses of a lot of oils could be the reason why the overall consistency of this O'slee scrub is oily. 

Sugar is a common natural exfoliant used in skincare applications in order to remove the outermost layer of dead skin cells. It's also a natural source of humectant. The sugar used in this scrub is in the form of sucrose, which is commonly referred to as a "table sugar". I love how O'slee decided to use brown sugar because it generally has a high moisture content, making the sugar to appear "soft" in appearance and texture. The brown sugar is then ground into a powder form so that it will still give the gritty-scrubby feeling but appear soft and gentle at the same time. 

Next, we have Squalane that gains its popularity in the recent years. Squalane is considered as an emollient and skin conditioning agent in the cosmetic industry. The biggest source of squalane comes from marine species, but it can also be obtained from plant sources. O'slee didn't enclose the source of its squalane used in the scrub and that can be a problem if you're a vegan user.

Caprylic/Capric Glycerides is a mixture derived from coconut oil and glycerin. It helps in moisturising the skin and also act as a dispersing/enhancing agent so that the scrub can be easily spread out and absorbed by the skin. Its ability to enhance some chemical compounds through the skin has been reported in a number of studies. All of these chemical properties are also shared by the next ingredient of the list, which is the Butylene Glycol.

Glycerin and several other following ingredients are all best described as humectants and emollients, so can you imagine how "moisturised" this scrub is? Keep reading to know how the texture is like. Meanwhile, honey is beneficial to skin but it's quite disappointing to know it is the 6th to last ingredients although it's being highlighted and that is how the product is marketed.

Sources:
1) James A.K, Kent and Riegel's Handbook of Industrial Chemistry and Biotechnology, Springer Science & Business Media, 2010.
2) Frank G., The Chemistry of Oils and Fats: Sources, Composition, Properties and Uses, John Wiley & Sons, 2009.



How To Apply
1. Dry face
Apply the mask on dry face, gently massage in circular motion for 1 minute. then rinse.

2. Wet face
Apply the mask on wet face, gently massage in circular motion, then the sugar will melt down. Let the mask stay for 5-10 minutes then rinse.

My Routine
Remove makeup using micellar water ▶ oil cleansing ▶ O'slee Honey Sugar Mask ▶ water-based cleanser

The Test Drive
This O'slee Honey Sugar Mask has a little hint of lime, very pleasant and perfect if you don't like anything that is heavily scented. The overall texture is grainy but soft, almost buttery and I feel like the scrub is the softest one I've ever tried in my life. You probably have zero chance of over-exfoliating whilst using this scrub on wet face and I can see how it is suitable for skin that reacts badly to abrasive, topical exfoliants. It's also not so light that it melts away before the exfoliating job can be done. The scrub is easy to scoop out of the jar, without worrying too much about spillage and waste.



Unfortunately, I do hate the performance of this scrub.
I've tried it for almost 10 times to give it a fair shake and I cannot bring myself to use it anymore. Let's just say if I could return this scrub to Guardian, I would! First off, I dislike how this scrub is leaving behind a waxy and oily film on my face after I rinse it with water. Not to mention, it's actually pretty difficult to wash off making the whole experience annoying. It makes less oily residue if I were to use the sponge given, but IT IS STILL OILY. My preferred choice will always be the formula that can make my face feeling clean and hydrated. Anything that still feels heavy after rinsing is a big no-no.

I'm not sure if I could compare this to any scrubs I've tried before because this is definitely something new in terms of texture and performances. If anyone knows a local brand named "Scrub District", they kinda give a similar oily feeling as soon as you work the scrub into the skin, however, I enjoy the moisturising feeling that Scrub District gives me while O'slee Honey Sugar Mask only gives me a "coating" feeling. Judging by how uncomfortable my skin feels like afterwards, I can only imagine oily skin people going to hate this stuff. Maybe it's amazing for people who seek for a moisturised scrub but it's definitely something that I'd not recommend getting. 


First picture shows the swatch on dry hand and the second one is when I work it into the skin with a splash of water. As you can see in the fourth picture, this scrub leaves a large dot of an oily trace on the blotting paper. Since O'slee Honey Sugar Mask is a little bit on the pricey side (RM63.50/Guardian), I think you better off with something that much more pocket-friendly. Maybe you can try the Skinfood Black Sugar Wash Off, which also available in selected Guardian stores- it's my current favourite scrub.

So right now, I'll continue to use it to avoid waste (although I really don't want too 😪). From my experience, a pea-sized amount of product doesn't really leave behind residue but it's definitely not enough product to make the scrubbing work done. I can't talk about how effective this scrub is to remove blackheads because I don't have any (thank God!), same goes to whitening, but I doubt it will give any lightening effect as per claim. I'd say naaah to oil control sebab macam lagi buat kulit muka berminyak adalah, aaaaand the conclusion is, I really hate this scrub 🤣. 


Maintenance
This is something I'd really like to highlight. It's the best not to put the scrub (or any scrubs basically) in a humid conditioned bathroom because this kind of surrounding could make the surface of the scrub to become mouldy. I usually leave mine outside the bathroom. Also, I do not recommend you to use your fingers to scoop out the products because apart from the obvious hygiene issue, these sugar beads could dissolve so easily with the water from your hand and that will turn the consistency of the scrub into something milky. Close the lid tightly after using to lessen the moisture contact. 


That's it guys. Remember, all of the opinions are my personal ones and you might like the aspects of this O'slee scrub that I don't. Feel free to share thoughts with me in the comment section below. Also, what's your current favourite scrub?! 😃