Honey, You Need to Ditch that Apricot Scrub, Part II: Alba Botanica Pineapple Enzyme Facial Scrub

Tamatha

Last time we checked in, I was heeding my aesthetician, Lisa's advice to walk away from my apricot-walnut face scrub. I was loving the Pevonia Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser she had given me a sample of, but had to continue my search for a new scrub, because although amazing, Pevonia is a little too dear for my pocketbook.

I immediately thought of another facial scrub I had tried several years ago, a pineapple one, which at the time, I thought wasn't exfoliating enough. But now, well, we know that less exfoliating is actually better, so it seeemed like a good idea to give this facial scrub another try. Since it is from a brand I trust: Alba Botanica, that only added to its appeal. (You may remember that they make my favorite lip balm.) The facial scrub in question is their Pineapple Enzyme Facial Scrub from their Hawaiian Skin Care Collection.

I had first been introduced to the pineapple facial scrub as part of a travel kit put out by Alba several years ago. (It was also through this kit that I found my favorite moisturizer, but that's a review for a different day.) The kit included mini sizes of this scrub, a facial wash, a shower gel, a moisturizer, and a 30 SPF sunscreen. All items were from their Hawaiian collection. It was awesome and perfect for throwing in your suitcase. One of the best impulse buys I ever made. But I digress.

Anyway, at the time, as I mentioned, I decided that the facial scrub wasn't scrubby enough. Now, of course, with Lisa's exhortation to steer clear of apricot scrubs still ringing in my ears, I decided to give it another try.

I still think it isn't exfoliating enough. It's got the tiniest scrubby granules ever and not enough of them, so I'm not convinced it's removing the dead skin cells it's supposed to. On the other hand, when I saw Lisa last week, she told me my face looked less dry, so it must be doing what it's designed to do. Perhaps it's the pineapple enzymes?

In spite of the lack of scrubbiness, I actually do like this facial scrub. It smells delightful! Seriously, that hint of pineapple is most welcome on a dreary winter morning. The base of the scrub is lovely, nicely creamy and exactly what one wants in the winter--something that doesn't even hint at drying your skin. And it rinses off leaving your face feeling a bit moisturized. So, I think it's a great facial cleanser for the winter (and it got Lisa's vote of approval). But I may keep up my search for something that is a bit more exfoliating, once warmer weather arrives . I'll let you know when and if I do try something new.

If you are ready to put down the apricot scrub (which you really need to do), you should give Alba Botanica's Pineapple Enzyme Facial Scrub a try. Overall it's great, but it loses one tentacle for not quite being scrubby enough.

(I'm guessing Alba would like you to know that since I bought my scrub a couple of weeks ago, they've changed their labeling, so if you're looking for this, look for Alba Botanica Pore Purifying Pineapple Enzyme Natural Hawaiian Facial Scrub. Yeah, that's a mouthful.)

Rating: 7/8 tentacles