Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash

Hi Guys! I'm sorry for the long break ( I do tend to do this a lot don't I). I've had some old friends just come back so doing plenty of entertaining... and catching up on sleep. Boy am I tired out, I don't even feel like 23 anymore. 

Because I didn't have time to take photos, I've decided to review something that does not require pictures of my bigass face. That is the Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash! Prior to this, I was using the Biore Marshmallow Whip Face Wash due to the influence of many bloggers in Singapore (damn...too naive...sucker..., will probably do a review soon on that), and it was just... meh. Wasn't doing much for me. 

Back in Sweden I used Neutrogena face wash, scrub and mask (because it was the cheapest) and I really liked the range. So I decided to get this Acne line here in Singapore. I think it was just over SGD$10, pretty decent imo, cheaper than the Biore rubbish anyway. 

The bottle comes with a pump which I like over squeezing stuff out of bottles. It seems to be a generic pump however, and not designed specifically for usage of this face wash because one pump of face wash is wayyyyyy too much to wash just your face. So be cautioned. 

The texture of the liquid is between a gel and a liquid, almost like the Bodyshop shower gels. Anyway, the texture is nothing special.

Upon cleansing, I find that this removes plenty. It removes make up quite thoroughly, though I still would suggest using a separate make up remover as I've seen the horrors of what improper cleansing can do. Also, it contains 2% salicylic acid to treat acne. Even though it's 2%, it's only a face wash so that probably won't do much for severe acne. What I find it does is that every time I use this wash, I find the dry skin on my healing acne coming off, so it performs well as a mild exfoliater. 

What I like to do during my shower is to use this as a form of a mask. Technically it's too liquid to do that but before I shampoo and soap, I like to put some of this on my face first to let the salicylic acid do more work. Then after shampooing and soaping, if most of it is on my face, I'll just lather it up and rinse everything off.

After cleansing my face feels soft and not tight or dry as when I used the Biore wash. It also feels extremely clean. 

I have dry skin but oily skin on my cheeks. I don't really know how to describe it, but when it's dry, I am able to see my pores, and my pores seem to have some form of clog, or it might just be a hair follicle. Beats me. But when I moisturize well enough, these pores disappear. So I honestly do not know whether those things are good or bad. But! After about using this wash for a week, those pores seem to be less drastic. So maybe the clogs are being exfoliated by this cleanser? You be the judge!

I have nothing bad to say about this cleanser, except that people without acne may not like it. If you have dry skin, then please, do not be kiasu (greedy?) and try this, it will do more harm than good. My review is from the point of view of someone with oily and dry skin with current acne and acne scarring, so please do take that into account! 

Summary:

Pros:

- inexpensive

- has a pump

- 2% salicylic acid that helps with mild exfoliation

- removes makeup and dirt very thoroughly

- seems to lessen clogged pores 

- face feels clean yet not tight and dry after washing

Cons:

- pump is generic pump; one pump is too much cleanser

- only for people with acne prone skin, may be too harsh on normal skin