Skincare Review: Shiseido Ibuki Set

Good morning! I hope everyone is having a nice start to the week?

I decided to kick off this last week in January with a skincare review, specifically of the Shiseido Ibuki skincare set that I have been using now for about 6 weeks.

You may recall a post I did about my Sephora mini haul back at the end of November, and if you're interested, you can check it out here.

According to the Shiseido website, the word ibuki means "inner strength" in Japanese, and the products in the skincare line are therefore designed to help " correct imperfections, dryness and roughness while providing optimal hydration".


The set I picked up included three products:

1. Ibuki Gentle Cleanser

2. Ibuki Softening Concentrate

3. Ibuki Refining Moisturizer

Now that I've had a chance to test out all three products, I think it's time to give them a proper review!


1. Ibuki Gentle Cleanser

Rating:

First up, let's start with the Ibuki Gentle Cleanser. Oh my goodness, this has fast become my absolute favorite cleanser! For a long time, that spot was occupied by Fresh Soy Face Cleanser, but I have to admit, the Shideido Ibuki Gentle Cleanser is (in my opinion) superior. I've tested it out on my face following makeup removal and exfoliation, as well as on a full face of makeup, and it performs equally well in either situation!

Summary: You only need a very small amount of this stuff to get your whole face nice and clean! It lathers up beautifully and has a soft creamy texture. It's not too strong or drying for sensitive skin, and it really gets deep down into your pores for that nice and clean feeling.

2. Ibuki Softening Concentrate

Rating: 

Second on the review list is the Ibuki Softening Concentrate. When I first started using this, I really liked it and thought it was going to be my favorite product from the set. However, after a few uses it started to lose its luster. There isn't anything specifically wrong with it, but it just didn't impress me that much. On especially cold and dry winter days I found it helped add an extra shield of moisture for my skin, which is great, but I can't ever really see myself using this product in the summer unfortunately!

Summary: It certainly has a noticeable perfume scent, which might irritate people with sensitive skin. Great for people with normal/dry skin, but I wouldn't recommend it for anyone with oily skin.


3. Ibuki Refining Moisturizer

Rating: 

Finally, the last product in the set, the Ibuki Refining Moisturizer. Ultimately, this product was the most disappointing for me. The consistency is too similar to a serum (almost the exact same as the Ibuki Softening Concentrate), which immediately had me doubting the product. The scent is also quite strong, which again, isn't a good thing for people with sensitive skin. When I went back online to check out some reviews, I was not surprised to see lots of complaints about it being greasy and causing people to break out.

Summary: The consistency is far too much like a serum, in addition to having a heavy perfume scent. It doesn't seem to work well for oily or sensitive skin, nor can I imagine it being sufficiently moisturizing for dry skin. Overall, this one was a big disappointment.