SKINCARE | Vichy Purete Thermale Beautifying Cleansing Micellar Oil Review

Double cleansing has long been part of the Asian skincare routine and it is actually really nice to have a lot more options now that people aren't quite as scared to use oil to cleanse their faces. The concept of first using an oil cleanser to lift and emulsify makeup and dirt from the skin followed by a second cleanser to actually clean the skin makes so much sense! The double cleanse will not dry out your skin as long as the first cleanser is oil-based. I have been fortunate enough to try a few oil cleansers and believe it or not, they really are all different in their own way!

Last year, Vichy released the Purete Thermale Cleansing Micellar Oil* ($125mL/$19.95 CDN), a gentle oil to milk cleanser that promises to remove even the toughest of eye makeup without compromising the softness of skin. 

Some cleansing oils are very thick in consistency if a thicker base oil used like sunflower or rosehip oil. While these thicker oil cleansers feel wonderful to massage into the skin, they can be a challenge to remove from the eyes because they do not rinse out easily. The Purete Thermale version is lighter and made of highly refined mineral oil base, but does contain camellia (tea seed) oil which historically has been shown to have moisturizing, anti-microbial and antioxidant properties. It also is a great emulsifier meaning that oil-based makeup products don't stand a chance when this cleansing oil touches it!

Ingredients: PARAFFINUM LIQUIDUM / MINERAL OIL • CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE • ETHYLHEXYL STEARATE • ISOHEXADECANE • PEG-20 GLYCERYL TRIISOSTEARATE • AQUA / WATER • CAMELLIA OLEIFERA SEED OIL • PHENOXYETHANOL • TOCOPHERYL ACETATE • PARFUM / FRAGRANCE • CODE F.I.L. C168918/1

This is one of the first cleansing oils I have used that contains fragrance, but not to worry because it does not last once everything has been rinsed off. I actually enjoyed the scent though I cannot pinpoint what exactly it is.

Final verdict: The most important question is probably, "Did this cleansing oil work?" and I can definitely say that yes, even waterproof eye makeup was no obstacle for this cleansing oil! If I had extra coats of mascara, I made sure to be extra generous with the oil around my eye area and give some extra TLC. It also did not make my vision blurry which I loved! The consistency is lighter which I appreciated and rinsed off with ease.

The Vichy Purete Thermale line is available at all mass drugstores.