BEAUTY BATTLE ROUNDS: ENVIE DE NEUF exfoliating gel VS. THERADERM NuPeel enzyme peel

BLACK HEADS, WHITE HEADS GO AWAY! Exfoliation

I've gotten more and more requests on comparison posts so I decided to start a beauty battle series.  This is where I will compare similar products to see if one is worth the price difference.

I have a few exfoliation products I love.  One of my favorite exfoliation product is the Borghese mud mask.  But, it is rather drying and I can only use it once a week for my dry, sensitive skin.  Then I discovered enzyme exfoliation, which is much more gentle.  You simply rub the gel onto your face and keep rubbing till dead skin surfaces.  This helps prevent the development of white heads and black heads.  Last thing we want is dead skin clogging our pores right?

I came across the Envie De Neuf Gold Radiance Exfoliating Gel when I visited Taiwan.  The lady at the department store gave me a deal I simply could not refuse; $46 for 2 tubes.  I quickly bought it and fell in love with it.  After I rub and rinse with cold water, my skin radiates!

                 vs.  

$63 Envie De Neuf Gold Radiance Exfoliating Gel    $22 Theraderm NuPeel Natural Peeling Gel 

100mL                                                                           60mL

Let's see how well they exfoliate first.

 Left: Theraderm NuPeel, Right: Envie De Neuf (can you see gold specks?)

 Envie De Neuf (the dead skin is colored in brown)

Theraderm NuPeel (the dead skin is more white, and moisture is not fully absorbed after rubbing)

Exfoliation and moisture power: Envie De Neuf (EDN) picks up the dirt with the dead skin.  The moisture gets absorbed into my skin quickly as I rub my skin.  On the other hand, Theraderm NuPeel (TNP) exfoliates the skin just fine but does not pick up as much dirt and the moisture does not get absorbed by my skin as quickly

Time difference: Envie De Neuf (EDN) works much faster.  The moment you put on EDN, you can start rubbing and after 30-60 seconds, all my dead skin gets rubbed off.  Also, the dirt on my skin rubs off too.  On the contrary, the Theraderm NuPeel (TNP) needs some time to work.  After you apply a thin layer, you have to wait 30-60s before rubbing.  And once you start rubbing, it takes 2-3 mins to rub out all the dead skin. Overall, you would save almost 5 minutes with the EDN

Overall effect: They both did the job.  EDN was definitely faster but at the end of the day, both hands were exfoliated and felt soft to touch.  No difference to the naked eye aside from the dead skin being black with the EDN.  Both hands were moist and smelled great.

After rinse: not much difference between the two

Comparing ingredients and their functions

Ingredients:

Theraderm NuPeel 

-Moisture: aloe, glycerin, hyaluronic acid

-Calming: aloe, green tea leaf, cucumber, chamomile flower

-Brightening: ascorbic acid, lemon

-Exfoliate: pineapple, papaya

-Antioxidant: green tea leaf

Envie De Neuf

-Moisture: Aloe

-Calming: witch hazel, algae extracts

-Brightening: 24 karat gold foil (releases anions to balance ions of skin to brighten)

-Exfoliate: papain enzyme

-Antioxidant: pomegranate

Note: both products have fragrance.  

Battle result: $63 per 100mL is equivalent to $37.8 per 60mL for EDN.  So is the $15.80 difference worth the difference?  For me, one big tube, using it twice a week will last me approximately half a year.  Saving $15.80 for half a year is not really worth saving 5min every 2-3days.  The TNP does have glycerin and hyaluronic acid, which locks down the moisture.  It also has more natural ingredients but it's not something I can use every other day because the acid from lemon and ascorbic acid will likely irritate my sensitive skin with chronic, regular use. Overall, I think I will switch back and forth between the two.  But, once I run out, I may just repurchase the EDN :)

I still use my Borghese mud mask for heavy duty hot summer days.  But, for my lazy days where I just want to rub and rinse, I would go to my enzyme peel :)  

That's all folks!  Let me know what your favorites are to exfoliate :)

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