Review: Skin Food Parsley Mandarin & other recommendations

Yoohoo ;)! This time around I will be doing a review on some Skin Food products I'm using: parsley and mandarin mild foam, parsley and mandarin emulsion and the tomato whitening toner.

I have been using these products since July 2012 after I bought them in Seoul and I will give my honest opinion.

The Parsley & Mandarin line of Skin Food claims to be specifically for troubled skin (which in my case is my running problem). There are six products in the line but I currently only have two with me. I chose only to buy the emulsion because I didn't want to use the whole set of Parsley & Mandarin line to risk drying out my skin (cause I had done so with the Peach Sake line and I figured it was not the brightest idea when my skin started peeling frequently). Of course different people have different skin types and products tend to vary for everyone, for me, I am between a oily and combination skin type and these products worked fairly well for me.

Parsley and Mandarin Emulsion (For Troubled Skin)

"This lightweight emulsion for troubled skin contains parsley and mandarin extracts, and antioxidant dandelion and lily extracts, to effectively control skin problems without irritation, making skin healthy and lustrous." 

It's directly quoted from the Skin Food website...

The bottle comes with 160 ml of solution and I may say it is enough for months worth of use.

I recommend this for:

-people with troubled skin

-people who prefer a more moisturizing lotion

I do not recommend this for:

-people who don't like heavily scented lotions

-people who don't think a twenty-something CAD bottle of lotion is worth it

I had doubts when I picked up this product, but this has proved to be the best (so far) emulsion I have ever used. I have used the peach sake emulsion (which blatantly sucked) and lotions from Laneige and Shiseido, they all don't compare to this and this is why: it actually mildly does what it says and isn't overly oily. No this is not a magical product that makes acne and troubled skin all disappear but it definitely soothes it and makes the skin feel much more soft. I personally am not a fan of the scent but I have grown used to it and there tends to be a slight tingle when it is applied to the skin but again, I didn't feel too negatively about it as it wasn't a sign of irritation. What I enjoyed the most is the moisturizing nature of this product. Products for troubled skin tend to be an assortment of torture devices to make our skin all dry and crummy but this emulsion is another story. 

Packaging: 4/5 (Korean packaging gets me every time...only problem is, when it's almost gone it will be a pain in the butt to get the remaining product out.)

Does what it claims: 4/5 (not a miracle lotion, but I see effectiveness)

Price: 3/5 

Texture: liquid-like cream 

Repurchase: Yes

Overall: 4/5

Parsley and Mandarin Mild Foam (For Troubled Skin)

"This foam cleanser for troubled skin contains parsley and mandarin extracts to effectively control skin problems. It also contains dandelion and lily complex extracts for a soothing effect."

The bottle comes with 150 ml of product.

I recommend this for:

-people who have troubled skin

I do not recommend this for:

-people who don't like heavily scented face washes

Picking up this product was a fluke haha. I think flukes tend to happen when you're on a time constraint  in Myeongdong and you're just trying to grab as much as you can buy (obviously I have an obsession to stuff my luggage till it's about to burst and trying to spend every last penny...not good). 

I didn't really regret purchasing this or anything, it was fairly cheap...roughly around 8-9 dollars Canadian. It simply did it's job of cleaning my face and did seem to control the troubles on my skin fairly okay, but I wouldn't categorize this as a 'WOW' product. It just does it's job, nothing more nothing less...It also doesn't really 'foam' up that much. I don't know if it's my wishful expectations but if a product has the word foam in it, it's only natural to expect some va va boom foam! (Okay, I know it says mild foam but I thought it meant it was mild on the skin...now I understand that the foaming is mild.)

What stood out for me when it comes to this product is, it doesn't tend to dry my skin as much after using it. I say this because I find a lot of the cleansers I use tend to feel somewhat dry after use and there are some...cough...Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit Oil-Free Acne Wash...cough...that generally makes my face flake (I hated that product). 

Packaging: 3/5 (convenient) 

Does what it claims: 4/5 (better than some face washes)

Price: 5/5 

Texture: A shiny/pearl-like cream

Repurchase: Maybe

Overall: 3.5/5

Lastly...As a part of my skin care regime...

Tomato Whitening Toner

"This skin brightening toner containing arbutin and tomato extract rich in lycopene, vitamins and minerals makes dull skin clear and blemish-free, improving skin tone."

The bottle contains 135 ml of product.

I recommend this for:

-people who prefer a milder smelling toner

-people who like the Hadalabo toner, but less sticky

-people who like moisturizing toners

I do not recommend this for:

-people who don't like scented toners

The reason I chose to pick up this toner instead of a Parsley Mandarin toner is because I didn't want to overuse one element nor do I want to dry out my skin again so I decided to go with something a little different (there is that saying of how too much of one good thing isn't always good). 

I like the smell of this product as it's a very mild smell (doesn't actually smell like tomatoes) and it's the type of toner where I feel like moisture is being locked in, unlike the peach sake one which tended to sort of dry me out a bit (yes I am sort of on a hating streak on that Skin Food line, bite me). The tomato whitening toner is a clear liquid that generally looks like water but when it's patted into the skin there is a slight sticky feeling to it. The product claims to brighten skin but I don't see how brightened or whitened my skin got...I'm starting to think this whole whitening thing is just a Korean Product gimmick, lets face it how many of those 'whitening' products has actually 'whitened' our skin tone? (Or brightened for that matter). It doesn't really matter to me though as it's not really an element I indulge myself in because...my best whitening product is to stay out of the sun.

Packaging: 5/5 (it's easy to access and it's pretty, what more can I say?)

Does what it claims: 3/5 (It's a toner, alright.)

Price: 3/5 

Texture: Liquid, clear

Repurchase: Maybe

Overall: 3.5/5

I think this is slightly better than some toners but it's nothing 'WOW'ing either. It's not one of those products I would push or highly recommend, but if you need a toner and don't mind trying this out, go for it. 

I know when I buy things I tend to like ravaging the web for reviews to determine if a product is generally good or not and I find that although there are similar opinions, there are also varied ones too. I think most importantly a wide variation of reviews from an assortment of people really helps making the decision to get a product or not much easier. 

Well that is it for now, hope that was helpful!

-- eva.