Review: Sanctuary Spa 'Deep Cleanse Facial' Routine - Cleanser, Toner and Moisturiser

Hi! So today I'm going to share my thoughts on three skincare products in the 'Deep Cleanse Facial' range by Sanctuary Spa, aimed at oily skin. I actually tried this routine a while ago but I now only really use the cleanser for reasons I'll explain in this post!

As you can see, all three products come in simple blue packaging which is quite practical - the cleanser comes in a squeezy tube, the toner sprays out and the moisturiser has a pump. You can't really see how much you have left in any of the products but just going by their weight I know I've used up a fair amount of the 50ml moisturiser despite not liking it and I still have a lot left of the 150ml toner.

Firstly the Fresh Faced Purifying Wash promises to 'melt away even stubborn mascara while also leaving skin feeling conditioned, smooth and soft.'

I really like this cleanser, it foams up well and does the job of cleansing my oily skin nicely. It can sometimes leave my skin feeling a bit dry though and it hasn't really done anything when it comes to spots - although I can't really expect it to! It smells a bit strange but I neither like or dislike it.  I'd probably give this cleanser 7 out of 10.

I've actually repurchased this twice despite not really loving it if that makes sense - once simply because my first one ran out and I simply had no time to look at loads of reviews to find the right new cleanser, so I went with this one again because I know it works quite well for me. Then I recently repurchased it again in the travel size to take when I went to stay with my boyfriend. But after this one runs out I will probably try a new cleanser, so if anyone has any recommendations that would be great!

Secondly the Pore Refining Toner is just okay - it doesn't seem to do anything positive or negative. It can be quite refreshing to use but I honestly can't tell if it's doing anything whatsoever when I use it.

It promises to 'help to balance skin’s pH levels and minimises the appearance of open pores without stripping or drying skin.' but I haven't noticed any changes in the size of my pores.

I used it again today for the first time in ages and it did seem to make my moisturiser sink in a bit better but other than that it did nothing much! I don't know, maybe it is balancing my skin's pH level after using the cleanser and I just can't tell? I'd give this 4.5 out of 10.




The Skin Mattifying Hydra Lotion (moisturiser to you and me) was very disappointing though, it smells fairly strong and at first I liked the way it felt on my skin - as it promises, it mattified yet hydrated, and it also sunk in well so it left a good base for applying makeup...then it broke me out quite badly.

The moisturiser swatched

I persevered with using it for a while in case my skin settled down but this product clearly has something in it which really irritates my skin - possibly the alcohol denat or the added fragrance. It's a shame as it could otherwise have been a great moisturiser. If you have oily but not sensitive skin then you might get on with this but I still wouldn't really recommend it. I'd give it 2 out of 10.

If anyone can recommend a good moisturiser that mattifies yet hydrates the skin without irritating it in any way then I would love to hear your suggestions! I'm tempted to try one from a brand like Clinique which will be fragrance free but I'm not sure as obviously Clinique is quite expensive!

I was hoping sticking with a routine of using these three products at least once a day would help clear up my skin - unfortunately it didn't. I do tend to break out around 'that time of the month' though so I can't really blame my skincare for that, sometimes it's more of a case of clearing up those breakouts as soon as I can rather than trying to prevent them as I know they're going to happen!

I wouldn't say Sanctuary Spa is really high end but these products were fairly pricey - the cleanser and toner are both £9 each, whilst the moisturiser is £13.50. I think I might have got the cleanser and toner in a 2 for £12 offer when I bought them but £13.50 went down the drain when I bought the moisturiser which is a bit annoying.

Overall the only product I would recommend out of the three would be the cleanser but even then it's not really an amazing product.

Sorry that this post has been a bit negative but personally I do find it helpful to hear about what products haven't worked for people.

Skincare is very personal though so if you love any of these or would still really like to try them then don't let me put you off! At the time of writing there is a 'buy one get second half price' offer on selected Sanctuary Spa products at Boots.

If you have any thoughts or questions please feel free to let me know in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

Sabrina xx