Wednesday 17 April 2013

Oskia skincare review

I first discovered this range in 2011 (when Love Lula started stocking them I bought my first product). After using their products on an off for the last 2 years I feel pretty confident about this review.


This is still a relatively new brand in the world of skincare yet it has managed to get pretty rave reviews from magazines like Vogue and Tattler. Their product have one a few awards including a  Anti-ageing Beauty bible best mask  for the renaissance mask.

 Instead of having products formulated for different skin types this line is formulated for an age period of mid twenties to mid forties (products help fight against premature ageing so the line will be most beneficial for ladies and gents in this age range, but of course other age groups can also use these products).

The star ingredient is MSM (Methyl Sulphonyl-Methane), which is a  nutritional supplement that helps with production of collagen. One other thing that unites all the products apart from the eye gel is the signature rose-lychee scent. it is sweet yet not overpowering. It is definitely one of my favourite things about the line. Every time I use the product I get that sense of well being you get in the spa.

One other ingredient that they use in a lot of the products is Zinc glycine. Zinc is super important for healthy skin ( personally I have noticed that whenever I use products with zinc my skin looks better), according to Oskia the zinc glycine combination helps with absorption of zinc into the skin.
There website is a really great source of information about the ingredients that they use and they also have full ingredients lists for all their products.

Generally speaking I do like the whole line. I feel that all products are good and if you have ever felt that lack of luxury when you started using natural products (or if lack of luxury prevented you from trying natural products), give this a try. Everything from glass packaging to how the formulations feel and perform screams high end.

On their website it says that their products consist from 98% natural or nature identical ingredients the other 2% are ecocert and soil association approved preservatives. Out of the 5 skincare products that I am reviewing currently 3 contain phenoxyethanol.  I am not sure if they will be reformulating since phenoxyethanol is no longer approved.
All the products stay fresh for up to 9 months after opening.


Oskia Perfect Cleanser. After doing all the pictures I realised that I forgot to include this in my main photo. Must have been subconscious since this is my least favourite out of all the products.


Don't get me wrong it is a perfectly nice cleansing balm, with the same lovely scent as the other products. This was the product that I wanted to try the most (all the anticipation must have made my expectations too high). The thing that sold me was the fact that you don't have to use a muslin cloth with this. You smooth over dry skin (you can do a massage if you have a bit of extra time) like with any other balm cleanser, then add water and this turns milky. Rinse of and voila.

 Well I have oily skin and the thing is that for oily skin it is actually recommended to use muslin cloth with this balm. I really wanted to be able to use it with out the cloth since I am stubborn and it didn't work. With the cloth it does work great in terms of leaving your skin cleansed and hydrated at the same time, but I feel that it is a product that works better for slightly drier skin than mine.

The packaging is pretty handy especially if you are one of those people that don't like to dip your fingers into a jar. I am almost finished with my tube (that is why it looks so out of shape) and I have not had problems with separation until now. I think it is because of heat, so I would be a little careful taking on holidays to hot countries. One other thing If you are using this for make removal you need to use a muslin cloth otherwise your  skin won't be completely free of make-up and this is not suitable for use on the eyes. The balm does not contain phenoxyethanol. It also comes in a travel size.



Oskia Micro Exfoliating Balm. A lot of the ingredients in this are the same as in the perfect cleanser. When you open the jar it has this little extra lid that helps with keeping the product fresh ( this is a rather thick balm and I have never seen it melt apart from on contact with skin).
This is a physical exfoliator and it contains micro silica and MSM granules for this purpose. They are truly micro as the balm appears smooth when you look at it, you only feel the granules when applying the balm.

 Now you can use this in a few different ways with the same results. You can carefully smooth the balm over your face, then add watter and softly massage the skin (the granules dissolve with water so the more water you add the less of an exfoliation effect). Just like the cleanser the exfoliation balm turns milky with water. Make sure not to massage this in before adding water in order not to irritate or damage your skin. Then rinse off.

The other option is to wet your skin first then massage in the balm, add more water and massage again. Then rinse off. The results are the same skin feels smooth and hydrated. This is pretty much a three in one treatment if you use thin in the morning. It cleanses, exfoliates and moisturises in one go (depending on your skin type you might not need any further moisturising).

How I use this: I spread it carefully in a fairly thick layer on dry skin (you don't really need that much, about a fingerfull or two), then jump in the shower. Before ducking my head under the shower I wet my hands and massage lightly. I let the running water do the rest while washing my hair and other things. When I come out my skin still feels hydrated but much smoother. I do this once every 2-3 when I feel that my oily skin needs some extra help.

The exfoliation effect is pretty mild the way I use this product (not like say from something like Suki lemongrass cleanser) and you don't get that squeaky clean feeling, so you don't have to worry about interfering with your skins normal processes or damaging it in any way.
As I use this fairly infrequently the 50ml pot tends to last me somewhere around the 9 month mark.
Does not contain phenoxyethanol

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Oskia Renaissance Mask. This really is the star product from this line. To be honest I don't think there is a comparable mask out there, natural or other wise.


When you open this it also has that extra plastic lid like the exfoliating balm. The consistency is not as thick, it is somewhere in between a gel and a balm. It has this light pink colour but if you massage it in it turns white ( the recommendation is to spread it whilst lightly massaging it in so it turns white, wait for 10-15 min, add a little water and massage again, then rinse off).

That is how I use it most of the time. I also frequently use this in the shower. I apply like before. Let it sit on my face while I brush my hair or a quick body brush (normally around 5 min) than just jump in the shower. Works just as good both ways.

The effects are pretty amazing. Clearer, brighter skin with less visible pores (I know your pores don't physically shrink but I guess they appear smaller because all the dead skin cells are gone).
This mask provides what is known as chemical exfoliation, due to fruit enzymes of papaya and acids from pineapple, passion fruit, lemon and grape (the dead skin cells are dissolved with fruit acids without any physical rubbing).

What is great about this mask is that as well as having a brightening effect it also has plumping/moisturising effect because of all the other ingredients like ribose and lactic acid that increase cell turnover.

I use this every 1 to 2 weeks depending on my skin during the cold months, less so during summer. The 50 ml jar lasts me on average about 5- 6 months. This is my must have product for winter.
This mask contains phenoxyethanol. It comes in a travel size.



Oskia Get Up & Glow. Again this is a pretty unique product, maybe not in terms of claims (instant radiance etc.) but definitely in terms of appearance and performance.



It comes in this glass pump bottle. I like the packaging it looks great, good from a hygiene point and I haven't had any problems travelling with this. The consistency is of a watery gel and this absorbs in seconds. The colour is this sort of beige gold with slight mother of Pearl effect. Looks gorgeous. It is definitely iridescent and not a glittery effect.

 For my face all I need is one pump. When rubbed in the skin appears glowy but I can't see any of that pearl effect that it has before being absorbed by the skin.You can use this like a serum or instead of moisturiser (that is what I do). It works great in terms of hydration (it doesn't have oil control and doesn't claim to have it, but what I notice is that when my skin is well hydrated it stops being so oily looking by itself without those type of products).

I also used to use this half and half with kora organics tinted moisturiser. Always got complements on my skin with that combo ( I still like that tinted moisturiser it just seems silly to order from Australia just for one maybe two products).

Apparently you can use this on top of makeup for extra glow effect but I never got round to trying that out.

Now the problem that I have with this is that despite the fact that the bottle is 30ml I do not use it up before the 9 months run out (you can see in the pic that I have 1/3 of a bottle left and the 9 months are gone so it will be used on my legs and arms now). This happens because I hardly ever use this during summer (if I use a sun screen I don't use anything else my skin really does not like layering of multiple products). And during the rest of the year I use this about 3 maybe 4 times a week, and like a mentioned previously my skin only needs one pump.

 So I was super excited when Oskia announced mini sizes, unfortunately this is one of the products that doesn't come in a smaller size. I would love love if they did a travel size of this for people like me who don't use this every single day as at the moment this is the only reason that I do not purchase this product every time it runs out.
It does contain phenoxyethanol.



Oskia Eye Wonder. This is the only eye care product that I use. I am not a fan of eye creams (natural or not) I have tried a few and they always seem to either irritate my eyes or give me those tiny bumps next to the eye area.


This comes in a pump bottle similar to get up and glow. It is a gel serum that you can apply under the eye are and over the lids (literally from temple to temple). A little goes a long way, I only need about half a pump, so you do need to be careful with how hard you press. It feels really fresh and cooling when applied, and eye area does look instantly more hydrated and for lack of a better expression less tired. It claims to visibly brighten dark circles, smooth the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, increase radiance, reduce puffiness and protect DNA.  Apart from the fine lines and wrinkles (don't really have those yet) and DNA (not sure how you can measure that with the naked eye) it really does deliver on those claims.

You can use this both AM and PM , I only use once in the AM (no particular reason just what I do). And the 15 ml does lat me the full 9 months (well maybe a few days less).
You can also use this like a treatment mask for extra tlc: apply a thick layer and cover with an ice-cold damp cotton-wool pad. I have not tried this but I don't see how it could fail to work as this gel is just really good even in a small quantity. It is fragrance free. Contains phenoxyethanol.


Oskia Pure MSM. The last product that I have is the MSM supplement. This has 45 vegetarian tablets. You can take either 1 or 2 as a food supplement before food.



I only have 4 left and I have been taking them 1 a day ( maybe 2 or 3 times I took 2). I find that with all supplements consistency is key, you do really need remember to keep taking them every day to see any results (however I do not take them the whole year round, more like a course of treatment, once it runs out I take a month or so break).

 As I mentioned MSM helps with healthy collagen production, which in turn helps to have healthy skin, nails, hair and more importantly helps with cartilage in the joints. So outwardly improvements can be subjective and hard to attribute to the supplement alone.(you can't be sure whether it is the skin care that is making your skin look so glowy or the supplement, I tend to think it is the combination of both). One thing that I have noticed is that when I take this my nails are definitely stronger (and I have been super lazy about nail care this last year I haven't even been using hand cream more than like 3 times this winter, so I know it is these babies for sure).
Refill sachet available.


Just to sum up my review I have been trying to cut down on the amount of beauty products that I buy (since I hate throwing away unused products or having to give them away because they don't suit me), I have been creating a list of the products that are my hero products. The ones that made it on to this list are the renaissance mask, get up and glow, eye wonder.
And I also have the mai tie massage candle on my wish list.

At the moment Oskia has a little competition: if you like them on facebook you could win a Perfect Face Gift Set.

You can get their products from cult beauty and content amongst other websites, but if you get them directly from oskia you get £10 off for you first order (if you type the code "welcome"), if you refer a friend both of you will get a £15 voucher.

2 comments:

  1. Renaissance mask sounds pretty perfect! The gel texture and the exfoliating properties remind me of Tata Harper mask. I really like MSM and Zinc in general as ingredients too.

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    1. I love Tata's mask, but this one is a little more gentle, and very hydrating :)

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