I have kicked off 2011 by purchasing (amongst other things) Ritual's Awareness Intensive Moisturising Day Treatment. I have never used their products before but was really impressed with a few of the samples I received from them.
Rituals have adopted an unique and (dare I say it) original branding strategy. By bringing the rituals of a turkish steam bath or the balance of Yin Yang into your own bathroom, you can certainly fall for the appeal on a cold and wet January. This is exactly the kind of mood and feeling they bring with each of their products.
I was looking for a new face cream and opted for 'Awareness - Intensive Moisturing Day Treatment', which was on sale at £15 instead of £25! The packaging is definitely in line with their simplistic and peaceful ethos - neutral whites and greys on the outer packaging but sadly a more clinical transparent tub for the cream. Although the clinical look makes me feel like I've bought more than just a cream, it'd be nice to see some of their ancient and middle east rituals branding incorporated into it.
It's described as a daily treatment which will minimize fine lines and fatigue marks (definitely needed after the Christmas holidays). It contains natural venuceane, kombuchka and the usual uva/uvb filters. I have never heard of venuceane before but according to a bit of independent medical research venuceane is a chemically created anti-oxidanat derived from a form of bacteria that lives in deep sea thermal vents which has been proven to prevent accelerated ageing - sounds a bit long winded if you ask me but moving on....
Kombucha is a simple hearbal tea consumed in Russia, China and parts of the Middle East and believed to confer longevity with various positive properties - anti-carcinogenic, anti-ageing, aiding digestion and mobility of joints etc.
So far so good but I'm a bit of a sceptic when it comes to these new-age products and their radical claims. I'm definitely one for less chemicals in products I put on my face but in the end it was the cream itself that impressed me.
Creamy....
It's a perfect consistency - silky without being too oily and wet. A couple of fingertips and you can completely moisturise your face. My face feels fresh and I'm told glowing! All that aside, my favourite thing about it is the scent - it's fresh and very slightly sweet which will linger all day while you wear it.
It's early days though - I can't validate all their claims just yet about its anti-ageing mechanisms or whether my fatigue will no longer show. But what I can say is my skin feels supple and definitely glowing.
I'm impressed with my first Rituals purchase and I'd definitely consider their others - because of their higher market pricing, it's definitely going to be a treat when I buy anything from them.
4 weeks
As requested, I am going to update this blog after 4 weeks on any further comments etc.
Have you used any rituals products? If so what are your thoughts?
