The Round Up... Clay Masks

Best For... A Truly Deep Cleanse
Origins Clear Improvements - £23.00

When my skin is feeling particularly grotty - disgusting word but it's the only one that really sums up how congested and vile my skin feels sometimes - this is the one I reach for. You only need a tiny amount of this (this tube has lasted me the best part of two years - I have a second tube of this which I got in a set last Christmas that I still have never cracked open as this one is still going strong, so the price is really ridiculously reasonable!) as clay can absorb an incredible amount, I was told just how many times its own weight it can hold but I can't remember the exact figures!

The point is you need a really thin layer of this - no slather it on and waste a tonne of product here. This is the harshest of the three on the skin so I only apply it exactly where I need it, usually round my nose and chin otherwise it could end up drying out skin if it's not really required. Having said that when you put it on skin where it is needed the results are unparalleled, it's like a vacuum for anything that could be clogging up your skin and leaving you with clear pores and no oil build up. Dry skinned girls may want to avoid but for anyone with combination or oily skin this is definitely a must have.          

My only advice would be to make sure you moisturise well - even maybe use a moisture boosting mask or serum - as as well as sucking out all the oil and grime clogging you up, it can also strip even the oiliest skin of moisture, so make sure to replace it!



Best For... A Gentle, Non Drying Cleanse
REN Invisible Pores Detox Mask - £18.00

Of the three this is the one I like the least, it does it's job, but just not any better than the Una Brennan version. It's much more gentle than the Origins one and can be slathered all over - though I find my eyes sting if I take it too high up on my nose or cheeks, which doesn't happen with either of the other two options. Once it's slathered on though it definitely does what it is supposed to and removes the clogging dirt and oil without stripping the skin, so worth having if you're a REN loyalist or there's a 'buy two products and get x free' - which there currently is on Feel Unqiue, where I've linked up to. If you're reading this later and that offer is finished M&S are always running offers on their beauty hall - offers well worth keeping an eye on. Overall there's nothing massively wrong with this product or anything for me to put you off buying it, but I just think the Una Brennan one does a really similar job and is half the price.

With mentioning- you get 50ml of this product for £18, whereas you get 100ml of the Origins Clear Improvements for £23 or 125ml of the Una Brennan for £8.99, so it's half the size of the Origins and less than half the size of the Una Brennan.



Best For... A Gentle, Non Drying Cleanse On A Budget
Una Brennan Deep Clean Pore Purifying Clay Mask - £8.99

The packaging and name of this product seems to have changed since I picked it up - to the Salicylic Acid Anti Blemish Clay Mask, but I think it's pretty much the same product.

This does a really similar job to the REN version, it will clean out your skin without drying it - funnily enough I tried the cleanser from the Una Brennan Tea Flower range i.e. the deep cleaning range, and it dried my skin out horribly - I definitely don't have this problem with this mask. When I was commuting to Edinburgh over the summer for the Fringe Festival there was just something about being on a train for the best part of four hours a day (not to mention the 'grab it and go' nature of my diet - I was leaving the house at seven and arriving home at nine, every meal I ate was some form of fast food or, at best, an M&S sandwich) that left my skin feeling pretty congested. I slapped this mask on almost every second night to no adverse reactions and it definitely helped to prevent any of the grime I could feel living on my skin turning in to anything on the surface.

This only needs to be on the skin for five minutes to do it's job so it's also a great one if you're rushed for time and don't want to be sitting around for ages waiting on it drying it etc.




All in all, the Una Brennan is a great high street cleansing mask that I reach for quite a lot and will repurchase, but for a truly deep cleanse Origins is the only one to cut it. As for the REN? I'll use it up, it's not a bad product, but I won't bother replacing it once it's gone.