Olay ProX Intensive Firming Treatment Review

Olay's ProX Intensive Firming Treatment is a set of five pre-packaged, intensive treatment masks and a skin tightening serum that you use consecutively for five days in order to give your skin intense moisture and firming. 

Here's what Olay has to say: 

Pro-X Intensive Firming Treatment is a highly effective way to hydrate skin and improve elasticity for skin that looks significantly younger in five days.

Each Intensive Treatment Mask contains as much moisturizer as a full-size bottle of product. The mask is made of a flexible material that stretches to fit the unique contours of your face. It delivers volume-boosting hydration to improve skin's elasticity. After five days, your skin looks significantly younger.

Skin Tightening Serum immediately tightens skin and reduces the look of expression lines. Then, this unique formula hydrates to help increase skin's natural fullness for firmer skin.

We each used the masks and serum and here are our impressions.


Jill: Generally, I liked this product. I live in an excessively dry, cold climate and I did find that the mask helped alleviate the dry, wind burned skin on my cheeks. I did find that there was a firming feeling,  upon using th serum, and especially after directly after removing the mask. However, I can't say whether that effect is in part due to the evaporation of the water from the product on the skin, or  the actual product itself. I don't really suffer from fine lines yet (keep your fingers crossed), so I don't think I'm the best judge for the firming aspect of this product.


I did find the mask very moisturizing. According to the information sent to us with the product, each individual mask contains the equivalent of a whole bottle of moisturizer! And while I did find this effective, I also feel that this is overkill. Simply put, your skin can only absorb so much product at one time, so I don't believe that this amount of product is necessary.


My biggest complaint about the system, and this says more about my schedule than anything else - is I find the timeline of the regimen unrealistic. I managed to follow it for three consecutive days, but as the week wore on and I got busier, I felt I just didn't have the time to devote to wearing the mask, especially when I only remembered at midnight. It didn't help that upon seeing me in the mask, my boyfriend exclaimed "Wow, that's INTENSE", intense meaning I looked like someone out of Silence of the Lambs. Was that fear I saw flash over his eyes?


Seriously though, this is a good product. Both the serum and the mask deliver on their promise of moisturizing and firming, although I can't say how dramatic the firming effects are given my skin type. I wish I had a another pack of it now, so I could use it to combat the endless winter I am experiencing out here in Edmonton.




Catherine: I applied the serum day and night and the masks nightly for four days. I found it all a bit too intensive for my skin. I began to break out so I stopped using the treatment. It could have been something else causing me to break out, so I also stopped using the moisturizer and cleanser I was using as well. I did go back and use the last mask about a week later, so I think this treatment doesn't necessarily have to be used as instructed - five days in a row. That can be difficult to schedule in on a busy schedule and may not be good for some skin types.


My skin felt very, very smooth and toned after each mask and the serum helped to extend that feeling. The next day, that feeling was diminished slightly but there was still a moisturized feeling that wouldn't have been there without the mask.


Wearing the masks was odd. Each one is pre-moistened and comes in foil pack. When the mask is taken out of the packet, it's cold and dripping with white goop. If you can get past that and get it on your face (shiver) then you leave it on for ten minutes or so. There are adjustable flaps to help it fit to your face, but the eye holes are TINY and considering you're supposed to avoid getting the goop into your eyes, that's difficult. I took a photo of myself in the mask, for your entertainment. I look like a serial killer. But you can also see how the mask doesn't go all the way up my forehead, has tiny eye holes, and large nose and mouth holes. I would've smiled, but the mask would've slipped if my face had moved at all. It was difficult to keep the chin flaps in place, as gravity kept causing them to slide off.

Anyway, if you've stopped laughing, here's me after removing the mask. See? My skin looked so nice I even took a photo of myself without a stitch of makeup on for you.

So there you have it, our review of the Olay ProX Intensive Firming Treatment. Have you tried this? What did you think? Tell us!

C&J

Olay Professional Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser

Sent to us for review is a new product from Olay - the Olay Professional Pro-X Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser. (See our review of the Olay Professional Pro-X Restorative Cream Cleanser here.) The Pro-X Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser has a lathering microbead formula that gently exfoliates and removes dirt and make-up. It's meant to be used 2-3 times a week for optimal results but is gentle enough to be used every day if your skin needs it. The Olay Professional Pro-X Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser comes in a 177 mL size and costs $28.99.

For the purpose of this review, we each used the Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser for a week.

We will again be using our 5 point scale to rate and review this product.  To read a full description of the scale, please visit this post: http://beautysquared.blogspot.com/2009/11/beauty-squared-review-scale.html  

C's Skin: 

I have combination skin that's oily in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin). When I tried this cleanser it was winter and moderately cold (approximately -15 C). I wear full make-up most days and like a cleanser to wash off all my make-up including my eye make-up. 

J's Skin:

I have combination skin - an oily t-zone and dry cheeks. My skin is not sensitive but is fairly thin. I live in a very dry climate and so my skin tends to get dehydrated and flaky in the winter. I am not prone to breakouts.

C's Review:

Value: 3

This cleanser is pricier than I would normally spend on a cleanser, especially from a drugstore brand and especially for a cleanser that's best used a few times a week. If I was using this every day, the price would be more reasonable.

Application: 5

Despite the face this is an exfoliating cleanser this is not an abrasive cleanser. It is very slightly gritty but very gentle. The scent is mild and pleasant and the lather is creamy but not uncontrollable. 

Effectiveness: 4

Like Jill, I found this to be more drying than the ProX Restorative Cream Cleanser but not at all overly drying. I could use this cleanser in the summer when my skin is oilier and needs more exfoliation. It is designed to be used in conjunction with the Restorative Cream Cleanser so perhaps it would be slightly less drying not used every day. 

J's Review: 

Value: 3.5

Seems pretty expensive to me for a drugstore cleanser.

Application: 4

Lathers up quite nicely and has a pleasant scent. Rinses off fairly easily and though it leaves my skin a little tight, is not overly drying.

Effectiveness:  4

I am giving this a lower rating than its sister product the ProX Cream Cleanser not because it cleanses less effectively, but beacuse I don't find exfoliating cleansers very effective at exfoliating. In general I believe exfoliating cleansers are not very effective because people do not spend enough time working the product into the skin. That being said, this product cleanses quite thoroughly.

C & J

Please note that the following product up for review was sent to us by a PR firm. All the opinions expressed in this review have been made independently and are not in any way affiliated with the company supplying the products or the PR firm we are in touch with.

Olay Professional ProX Restorative Cream Cleanser

We have a bunch of Olay products we were sent for review and this is the second in the series (read the first - the Olay Regenerist Advanced Anti-Aging Eye Roller review here). 

Olay has a new product line called Olay Professional ProX, which is touted as a scientifically advanced line of potent, proven and professional products that re-signal skin to perform more like it did when it was younger. 

The Professional ProX Restorative Cream Cleanser is the first of the two cleansers we were sent to try out. Its companian cleanser is the Olay Professional Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser, reviewed here. It's rich lathering formula is pH-balanced and helps restore skin’s purity to its optimal condition. It costs approximately $28.99 for 150 mL.

 We will again be using our 5 point scale to rate and review this product.  To read a full description of the scale, please visit this post: http://beautysquared.blogspot.com/2009/11/beauty-squared-review-scale.html 

We each used the Olay Professional ProX Restorative Cream Cleanser for seven days. Here is a quick description of our skin types to help provide you with an idea of how the product works.

J's Skin: I have combination skin - an oily t-zone and dry cheeks. My skin is not sensitive but is fairly thin. I live in a very dry climate and so my skin tends to get dehydrated and flaky in the winter. I am not prone to breakouts.

C's Skin: I have combination skin that's oily in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin). When I tried this cleanser it was winter and moderately cold (approximately -15 C). I wear full make-up most days and like a cleanser to wash off all my make-up including my eye make-up. 

J's Review:

Value: 3.5
A bit steep for a drugstore cleanser, but you only need to use a pea sized amount so in that respect a whole tube will last you a long time.

Application: 5
This product has a velvety rich lather that feels nice on the skin. I also appreciate the hygenic pump dispenser which travels well and dosen't leak.

Effectiveness: 4
At first I was confused because given the product name I was expecting a true cream/lotion cleanser and not a foaming cleanser. Once I was over the confusion, I found this product cleansed well and left my skin feeling smooth and fresh. You only need a tiny amount to build a rich lather and I found it to rinse off fairly well. My only complaint is it did leave my skin feeling a bit tight after cleansing.

C's Review:

Value: 4

This cleanser is two or three times more expensive than I'd normally spend on a drugstore cleanser. However I found it to be an effective, very good cleanser so I don't feel it's overpriced.

Application: 5

This is a cream cleanser that lathers once mixed with water. You don't need much of it to get a good cleansing and it rinses off easily. It has a pleasant, inoffensive scent. You can use too much of this, and the few times I was overzealous, it was difficult to lather effectively and to rinse off afterwards.

Effectiveness: 4

I liked this cleanser though I did need to exfoliate more frequently during the week, as I felt like it didn't clean as deeply as I like a cleanser to do. However, it left my skin feeling very smooth and clean and not overly dry. Overall, I would recommend this cleanser. My guess is that it would quite well for most skin types.

C&J

Please note that the following product up for review was sent to us by a PR firm. All the opinions expressed in this review have been made independently and are not in any way affiliated with the company supplying the products or the PR firm we are in touch with.