This is an unpaid review by blogger Heather of thiscountrygirl.com. 

Check out her Instagram for more original posts, photos, and reviews. 

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What we use to apply our skincare products may not be something that we pay much attention to. Do you apply them with your hands? Do you use a cotton pad? Either method has great potential for wasting precious product, and in turn...money! I have personally used both ways to apply liquids to my skin. I stopped using cotton pads because too much product was being sucked into the cotton and not be distributed onto my face. Another reason I gave up cotton pads is because I was using aggressive treatments that made my skin very sensitive and the cotton felt too abrasive on my face. So I switched to using my fingertips to apply products. The liquid would often times drip between my fingers leaving excess product in a spot where it was hard to apply to my face. I eventually got smarter and started dumping liquids into my palm, doing a therapist swipe à la Caroline Hirons, and patting onto my skin. This was by far the best methods of all I had trialed thus far, until I discovered Intrinsics Silken Wipes by watching Liz Alaska use them in every routine she posted to Instagram.

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I wasn't sure where to purchase Intrinsics Wipes as they are professional use products, which only made me want them even more! If this cotton is good enough to be used in treatment rooms then why am I not using them on my face! I definitely needed them in my arsenal! Whenever I searched the Intrinsics website I found online stockists but all were for professionals. I did not even consider looking on Amazon, but that is indeed where they are found for us regular joes! When Intrinsics contacted me and asked me to try a few of their products, I felt like they were reading my mind!

Previously I used different brands of cotton varying from cheap drugstore cotton pads that crumbed before my eyes when wet, to Sephora Collection cotton rounds which are durable yet small and soak up a lot of product, to Shiseido cotton pads that everyone loves. Shiseido cotton is definitely soft but also soak up way too much product.

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Enter Silken Wipes

Intrinsics Silken Wipes are soft, gentle, and absorb the perfect amount of product. However, all of those things aren't their greatest selling point. It is their durability and size that makes them standout among the crowd. The Large Silken Wipes are 4" x 4" folded and unfolded 8" x 8".* There is nothing else like it on the market for us regular consumers who don't have access to professional products! They could even be cut into halves to prolong the package, which is already huge with 200 included cotton sheets.

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The Silken Wipes are their softest cotton and did not irritate my skin at all. They are very thin, but made with the softest cotton. I use them to apply toners, acids, basically anything that is in a liquid formation. I feel like such a pro using Silken Wipes! 😉 I even read a heart warming story the other day over on Instagram about a fellow #skincarecommunity member's baby who has extremely sensitive skin, she can't even use baby wipes on her tush. The only product she could find that work for her precious baby girl was, you guessed it...Silken Wipes! Intrinsics ended up sending her a box of goodies for her baby, and herself! Now that is a company I can support wholeheartedly!

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Silken Wipes are made with Intrinsics proprietary Med-Esthetic Soft Fiber Blend, it is truly magical. Silken Wipes have a Light Absorbency rating as to not soak up all of your precious skincare products. Intrinsics touts they are "less absorbent on purpose, long lasting, economical and strong." They are thin, yet durable, and don't leave cotton lint all over your face. Literally the perfect little square. Once you start using Intrinsics, you'll definitely be hooked!

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They also come in a 'Petite' size that is more like your traditional cotton pads. The wipes are size 2" x 2" and unfold to reveal a 4"x 4" cotton square.

Intrinsics has other options?

When I received my package from Intrinsics, I felt like a little kid on Christmas morning! It was a huge box filled with a variety of cotton products. How did I not know they made all these other products too? Their Silken Wipes are obviously their most talked about product on social media, but their other cotton option are definitely worth consideration as I have found all sort of odd jobs for them the past month! Since I had never considered a variety of Intrinsics products, maybe others do not know about them either? Well you will today!

The other options available to purchase on Amazon are the Large and Petite Cotton Wipes and the 12-Ply Cotton Gauze.

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Difference Between Cotton Wipes + Silken Wipes

The Cotton Wipes are enclosed in a resealable, plastic package with green markings and come in the same two size options as the Silken Wipes. When side by side, it is often hard to tell them apart, however they do perform different. The Cotton Wipes are made of 100% Natural Cotton and have a Medium-High Absorbency Rating. The texture is still soft yet will provide gentle exfoliation. Cotton Wipes are something you want to use when you are removing product, like a mask. It can also be used for the Cold Water Cleansing Method that is all the rage right now on social media. See @lizalaska's Story Highlights for more info on the Cold Water Method.

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The Large Cotton Wipes are what I use to remove my makeup sometimes with Bioderma Micellar Water. They do not feel abrasive on my skin and I don't waste cotton pad after cotton pad like I have in the past!

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Another job I have discovered thanks to an IG tip (sorry I don't remember whose post I read this on!) is to use a Cotton Wipe, add a small amount of an oil or balm cleanser to create a DIY makeup remover wipe! Simply genius! Much better than using most makeup wipes that contain a lot of fragrance, preservatives and other not-so-beneficial skincare ingredients for the sensitive eye area. Plus you can change it up every night if you want by using different cleansers.

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Cotton 12-Ply Gauze

Another option Intrinsics offeres is the Cotton 12-Ply Gauze that is used during Facial Treatments. It is Medical Grade Gauze that is made with 100% Naturelle Cotton and also biodegradable. The Gauze also comes in the Large and Petite sizing, but instead the Large opens to a 12" x 16" single-ply sheet. It has a Medium Absorbency Rating and has found multiple uses, the #1 being removing nail polish! I will never use a cotton pad to remove stubborn nail polish again, the gauze is just so much more effective and time saving! I also have used it for medical purposes. My 7-year old daughter burned her thumb recently on our gas heater, so sad. It blistered, she peeled off the blister without my knowledge or consent, and was left with a big patch of missing skin. Sorry for the gory details. I had to cover the wound so it would not get infected while she was at school or doing other ridiculous things that kids do. I placed a Large Gauze square on top of the burn then covered with cohesive wrap. When I changed the dressing I was relieved and very happy that the gauze did NOT stick to the wound. We have been using it during every dressing change since!

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Conclusion

Overall I am very pleased with Intrinsics products and will definitely repurchase with my own money. I have found uses for all three cotton options, and it has been very handy to have the different sizes for different skin tasks. I have been using them constantly and have barely made a dent in my packages! I feel like they are worth every penny. Intrinsics is a fantastic company that I can support 100%, they have great ethics and really care about their customers. They are a fantastic blog with different ideas on how to use their products that you should definitely read! If you are a professional you can check out their map here to find a stockist near you. Also, you can follow them on Instagram and see product updates, new releases, tips, etc, here.

Cotton Pads/Wipes may not be glamorous, but are necessary! If you are investing in skincare products, you should definitely consider investing in the tools that apply those products. You can thank me later! For those of you who already love and use Intrinsics Silken Wipes, I hope you learned a little more about other products that they offer, they are definitely worth a try!

Until Next Time...

Heather