This is my first review in 'Wellness & Beauty', and is in response to Captaind's excellent 'Challenge yourself Write Off 2005' in which he challenges reviewers to write a review in completely new category. Check out the other entries, and please.. be gentle with me!

My thanks go to Melissa (bops_mom) for adding this product at short notice!


My Theory

I have a theory about the type of men who care enough about their facial moisturiser to actually notice which brand they’re buying. They fall roughly into one of two categories. Those with sensitive skin, and the vain. When I refer to vanity, I’m using the word in it’s least negative, most pragmatic sense. I simply mean men who want to look and feel good enough to care about what they’re putting on their skin, especially their face. (Apparently the 'new' trendy term for such men is 'Metrosexual'!? I've said it before and I'll say it again, my love of the interlinking underground train system is purely practical!)

People with sensitive skin know only too well the suffering one can inflict upon ones skin by simply picking any random bottle of moisturiser off the shelf (or worse still, letting your girlfriend, wife, mother, sister, next door neighbour buy it for you).

So why am I writing this review? Well, I’ll admit to falling into both of the above categories. I care about the products I use on my face primarily because I have very sensitive skin, but I also like the effect of a good moisturiser and recognize that I do feel better about myself when I’m using quality skin care products that don’t leave me looking like I’ve just emerged from a hand to hand combat situation where the chief weapon of choice was a block of lard.


A sensitive issue

And for those of us with sensitive skin we’ll know that up until not too long ago, we were resigned to picking the ‘specialist own brand’ moisturisers or (dare I admit it?) simply using women’s moisturisers because they tended to be a lot less harsh on the face and didn’t smell like the inside pocket of your Grandfather’s overcoat. That was all back in the day when ‘real men’ wore lumberjack shirts, shaved with a rusty cut throat razor and then splashed their face with a liberal dose of an alcoholic substance from a green bottle most likely procured from some medical facility for sterilization. ’The sting’s good for you boy! Makes you feel like a man!’ Actually no Dad, it doesn’t – it makes me feel like someone’s set my face is on fire and is trying to put it out with a pin cushion.

But no more! ‘Male skincare’ is now a massive, multi-million dollar industry which is gaining on the female market with rapid pace. Now it’s not just a question of whether you have sensitive skin or ‘normal’ skin, it’s what ‘kind’ of sensitive skin you have! (Not sure? Just go to Clinique’s website and fill in your own ‘skin report’ – an 8 question survey which evaluates your ‘skin type number’ and your ‘skin tone value’! )
And increasingly brands which have built their reputation on providing quality products for the female market are venturing into the male market with definite success. Clinique is one such brand.

According to their website ‘Clinique is one of the world's leading brands of prestige skin care, makeup and fragrance products.’ It’s been churning out a vast array of these products since 1968 and it’s ethos has been it’s emphasis on fragrance free, allergy tested products designed by dermatologists. All their skincare products are built around the three pillars of ‘Cleanse, Exfoliate, Moisturise’. And it’d be fair to say that they’ve been quite successful in their mission and at almost every department store in the Western hemisphere you’re likely to find a Clinique counter complete with helpful women in white lab coats and makeup that must all derive from the ‘Orange glow’ collection.

I first encountered these friendly folk when I worked for the large Chemist chain ‘Boots’ (here in the UK) several years ago. They introduced me to all kinds of wonderful (and extremely expensive) products which they stuffed into my bag when I was buying other things, like Grandma’s stuffing a £20 note into your hand as you leave the door. I was young, cute, and innocent in the ways of the moisturiser. Back then if it was white and came out of a bottle in the bathroom it was probably ok to put on your face. That was until I discovered Clinique.


Mmmmmmmmmmm Lotion

And so, we amble onto the product itself.

I’ll say this from the start – Clinique M Lotion for men is the single most effective facial moisturiser I have ever used, period. And as my introduction suggested, I’ve used a few in my time.

According to Cliniques very own ‘Skin guide’ I have Skin Type 1 - meaning:

‘Your skin is dry, delicate and can be sensitive, often feeling taut. (If you have sensitivities to alcohol, wind, water, abrasives or occlusives, consult your nearest Clinique counter).’


(They also kindly added that ‘On your very fair skin tone, a little colour goes a long way. When choosing lip, cheek, and eye makeups, begin with paler tones or transparent formulas.’. Thank you, I’ll bare that in mind…)

And as far as my skin type goes they’re more or less right (I’ll leave my choice of eye shadow for another review) . Plus I do have a (rather unfortunate) allergy to alcohol – yes consumed as well as applied to the skin – which makes me come out in a bit of a rash. So in addition to dry, sensitive skin I react badly to alcohol based products, so I am even pickier than most women when it comes to choosing the right moisturiser. I was surprised to notice that Cliniques M Lotion does contain alcohol in it’s list of ingredients (see below) however as I’ve never had any kind of reaction to this product to date.

So, what does it do for you?

Well, according to the blurb it ‘replenishes lost moisture in dry skin areas. Skin looks fresher, healthier. Non-greasy formula.. Absorbs quickly; discourages tired-looking lines under eyes; relieves taut, tight-feeling, tender just shaved skin. Leaves no sticky residue and will not cause breakout. Clinically formulated.’ (Clinically formulated indeed, as opposed to what exactly? Being randomly formulated?)

And I’d have to say that on balance, it does everything it proclaims to do, and more.


Smooth operator

The lotion is much more liquid-like than most other moisturisers I’ve used in the past. It almost pours out of the tube with no need for excessive squeezing, as though it can’t wait to get on your face (or the floor if you don’t pay attention). This means that you have to apply a little at a time and rub it in straight away incase it runs off your skin – but as soon as it’s spread thinly enough it absorbs very quickly. Where other moisturisers sit around stodgily, waiting to be firmly massaged into your skin, M Lotion disappears without a trace within seconds of application, leaving your skin feeling soft, smooth and silky (to coin a cliche).

And as such I find you need very little to cover your whole shaving area, literally a few drops as the lotion spreads effortlessly over the surface of your skin and only a thin layer is required to fully moisturize most areas. Though yellow in appearance (hence the liquid gold reference) M Lotion becomes translucent when rubbed in and disappears to leave no residue or colour. The soothing affect (especially after the harsh abrasion of a dry shave with an electric shaver) is instantaneous and long lasting, leaving my skin feeling hydrated for several hours after applying it.

As I mentioned earlier all Clinique skin products are said to be ‘fragrance free’ and although this is virtually impossible to achieve in reality, what fragrance there is is non-offensive and hardly noticeable. I’ve used other ‘fragrance free’ products in the past which have left unpleasant lingering odors long after applying the moisturiser, but there are no such olfactory problems here.

In addition to do a wonderful job as a moisturiser, I’m pleased to report that even my sensitive ‘Type 1’ skin has had no adverse reactions to this product at all – so I would happily recommend it to any men with sensitive skin, although due to the price, I’d advise you to sample some at a Clinique counter and leave it a day before remortgaging your house to buy a years supply.


Show me the money!

And now, we come to the cruncher – cost. Again, alluded to in my title ‘Liquid Gold’ – this stuff doesn’t come cheap. Here in the UK it’s even more expensive than the US, according to Clinique’s UK website the current cost for a 100ml tube is £19.50. That’s nearly 20 pence per ml! Ouch. I’ll let those of you currently State-side work out the even more depressing equivalent in US dollars. Although you’ll be pleased to note that M Lotion retails much cheaper in the USA (almost half as expensive with the current exchange rate) and I might even consider getting this stuff shipped over in future. However, even at this near extortionate price, I’d still say that it’s worth every penny – and I can’t see myself using any other moisturiser again (although I might have to wait until my next Birthday before my lovely wife buys me another tube!).

There is some good news on the ‘economy front’ however, which is that due to it’s silky smooth application, the old adage that ‘a little goes a long way’ really is true in this case. I’m always amazed at how much there appears to be left in the tube when I come to use it, dreading the day when I’ve squeezed the last drop. At my current rate of usage (full facial application once to twice a day) I’d say I get at least 4 months daily usage out of one bottle, and that’s without being miserly with the amount I use. And the benefit of using this product daily certainly justifies the cost in my book.

So for those men out there looking for a little something special to treat their face to this winter, you can’t go wrong with M Lotion. I mean come on, even the name sounds like a dubious potion in a sci-fi movie which empowers it’s wearer with secret powers… there’s nothing like the rush of shouting from the bathroom, 2 minutes before you leave the house ‘Honey quick - where’s my M Lotion?’…

No superhero (with sensitive skin) should be caught without it…

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Clinique for Men – M Lotion 100ml

Ingredients: Purified Water, Mineral Oil, Sesame Oil, Propylene Glycol, Tea-stearate, Glyceryl Stearate, Lanolin Alcohol, Petrolatum, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, fd and c yellow no. 5 (CI19140), fd and c yellow no.6 (CI15985), d and c red no. 33 (CI172000) [iln5386]


Recommended: Yes