Long-time reader Jessica asked me to review this one and – having read about it – I totally caved.

A little history first. Japanese Nightingale Droppings are just that; freeze-dried Nightingale poo that’s been treated with UV light to get rid of any bacteria. Popular in Japan, it was used by Geisha to keep skin pale and interesting. The West soon caught on with a handful of Salons (like The Beauty Lounge) that offer the treatment as part of their facials. Posh and Becks are probably the most famous fans of the treatment.

Just in case you didn't know...

How does it work? Thanks to their diet no doubt, Nightingale droppings contain high amounts of Guanine which contains an enzyme to help fade excess pigmentation. In addition to that, the high Urea content (not Urine!) acts as both a moisturiser as well as an exfoliator. Both actions together (brightening enzymes and exfoliation) should help brighten up the skin.

So, after about 2 weeks just staring at the bottle I finally decided to use it – here’s what I found!

Smell – I usually don’t add this to a review but this stuff smells weird. Thankfully it doesn’t smell like, well, shit. It smells very earthy, a bit like soil. Odd at first but now I quite like it!

How to use it – Mix a decent amount of the fine powder in the palm of your hand (or a bowl if you’re smart) with some water and apply straight to your skin after a hot shower. Wait for 10 to 15 minutes and rinse off – rubbing the mask into your skin as you rinse like a face wash.

Results – It works! 10 minutes of this on my face left me with fresher, brighter looking skin. In addition to that, it almost works like a clay mask so my pores looked a bit cleaner and smaller afterwards. However, like most masks, the results are temporary. Used once or twice a week though, it’s really good. I would say beware if you have sensitive skin, this can leave you a little red thanks to the exfoliation.

Overall - I can see why this is so popular despite being so gross. It definitely works to refresh and brighten up the skin and it’s now a weekly staple for me. I still haven’t quite gotten over what it is yet but there’s no doubt, it’s a nice face mask.

I bought my bird poo (I sound completely insane) on eBay here and had a Japanese friend double check I wasn’t massaging something worse into my skin. What could be worse i’m not sure…

Try it out and let me know how you get on. Jessica? Consider your challenge complete!