Nivea sent me some of their Perfect & Radiant newbies the other day and the two items that hit home were the wipes and micellar water.

First up, the Perfect & Radiant 3-in-1 cleansing wipes (R62,95, Clicks) are pillowy soft, smell lovely and clean (like their ‘Soft’ creme) and make use of micellar water so, while they feel ultra gentle and mild, they’re bad add bitches when it comes to whipping off your make-up. Water proof-mascara? Doesn’t stand a chance. Full face of foundation? Bye girl, bye! Although they are being ambitious when they say you don’t have to rub.

I don’t love that these wipes aren’t alcohol-free but there’s enough hydrating shizzle in here (castor oil, glycerin etc) to totally compensate so you’re not likely to dry out or anything. I was also impressed by its vitamin E content. Usually when I product blabs on about containing vitamin E it’s not ‘lying’ but the contents are such trace amounts that it’s negligible. In this case, however, there’s a whopload of it along with soothing panthenol.

As for the Perfect & Radiant Micellar 3-in-1 cleansing water (R110,95, Foschini), this is alcohol-free and also contains glycerin and castor oil plus that vitamin E and panthenol bomb.

Ironically, I found the micellar-infused wipes did a better job of taking off waterproof mascara than the micellar water (used with a cotton pad) but it definitely does work. Also, being alcohol and fragrance-free, this would be a better pick for someone with sensitive skin.

I compared Nivea’s micellar to Bioderma’s Sensibio and while the latter acted slightly faster with less rubbing both got the job done. Then, when it came to taking off regular mascara, both performed equally well. Where Nivea klaps my darling Bioderma in its moer, however, is the price point. At just over one hundred bucks for a whopping 400ml it’s a total steal in comparison to Bioderma’s R220 for 250ml.

Love, love

Leigh