Garnier Micellar Water

Garnier Micellar Water

This is a legacy post that has been given a facelift. Content is the same but may have been edited for clarity and readability. Any additional commentary is noted in line.

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Micellar Water, where have you been all my life? Oh, right, in France, as Bioderma. But NOW, here, everywhere, inexpensive, accessible, and glorious.

I purchased my bottle of Garnier Micellar Water from Target, unassuming in its pink-capped, clear, oval bottle. I tend to do a good job resisting the hype, but I got anxious when I got home with it. Is it just water? Did I just pay $6 for a bottle of water?!

What’s in a Micelle?

I did more homework. To explain it simply:

The molecules in a product like this cluster together to form a tiny, spherical micelle. Imagine each of those molecules to be polarized: one end likes water, the other prefers oils. They prefer to hang out with friends with similar interests, so the outside of the micelle consists of all the ends that like water, while the inside prefers theirs butter-side-down oils.

When we apply the micellar water, those tiny micelle spheres split open, enabling the oil-loving centers to make contact with our skin. In this critical moment, the exposed interior grabs everything that isn’t water. When we wipe away, the micelles close back up, trapping whatever ilk they attached themselves to.

So, thankfully, no, it is not just regular ol’ water. Many of these products have ultra-tiny oil molecules suspended in the solution. This Garnier product claims not to contain any oils; if it had, it wouldn’t bother me – but it seems that the surfactant component of this is made up of a few other things (you can see the relatively-short ingredient list for more details).

Trying it Out

Garnier Micellar Water, like every other one out there, claims to remove makeup and cleanse…without rinsing! I could accomplish this in one step with philosophy Purity and my Clarisonic, but I really need to moisturize after Purity. It isn’t exactly a lazy-girl solution, either, as it requires rinsing.

I set forth to remove and clean on a day where I basically followed my Look Awake in No Time routine, but with a bit more effort on the eyes. I saturated a cotton pad with the liquid and held it over an eye for about five seconds as the directions suggested – much like how I would with any makeup removing wipe. After five seconds, I wiggled it to break my L’Oreal mascara free; lo and behold, aside from the tiniest bit left on my lower lashline? My eye was clean! I did my other eye, cleaned both lower lash-lines. Then, I got another pad for the rest of my face and approached it how one might use toner – I saturated the pad, and swept it across my face.

Disbelieving, I did my face a second time. My skin was free of product, but not taught, and definitely not irritated by tugging or scrubbing. I’m a believer.

The Bottom Line

Yeah, I’m rebuying the hell out of the Garnier Micellar Water. I do want to try Simple’s Micellar water since I liked their wipes so much, but regardless – this product is fantastic. I love:

• how gentle it has been to my skin
• that it is unscented
• that it isn’t just a disposable wipe.
• not having to rinse

If you’d like to try it, you can get it anywhere that sells drugstore skincare.

Have you ever used a micellar water product?

**2018 Update**

Nowadays, I’ve mostly eschewed cotton pads and instead use these awesome, reusable makeup cloths. They don’t require micellar water to do a great job – but their powers combined are, in my experience so far, unbeatable.

I also enjoy the micellar water from Simple (I might enjoy it a smidge more, actually) – but I just buy whichever is cheaper per ounce at the time.