Let’s get into the nitty-gritty of cleansing! We’re now in the midst of Winter, and this often means your skin is dryer. With this change, cleansing your face twice a day may feel excessive and like it’s drying out your skin. With the right products and method though, this can easily be avoided. We’re taking you through your cleansing routine today and going through our cleansers product reviews so you can find the right balance for your Winter skin.
So, what’s the deal with cleansing anyway?
During the day, your face builds up a layer of oils, dirt, pollution and sweat that sits on your skin. If you don’t wash this off, then it can cause oxidative damage to your skin. This leads to a break down of collagen and thus causing wrinkles. Not good news… Suddenly cleansing sounds more appealing already! Your facial skin is delicate though, you’ve heard us say this before. If you used regular soap on your face, it would be too harsh. Stripping your skin of its natural oils and damaging it’s protective barrier. You’ll likely have a very red and sore face – ouch! This is why facial cleansers exist, and for differing skin types.
Which cleanser is right for you?
Let’s look at what you’re trying to do, and thus what your skin type and lifestyle require. I promise we’ll get to our Cleansers Product Reviews eventually! Straight up, if you wear makeup then it needs to be removed first. This is because this thicker layer of products can hinder a complete cleanse of your face, and you may be left with residue or pollutants that damage your skin. A Micellar water is designed with this in mind, and there are also targeted makeup removers. Check the labels of your products!
Double (pre) cleansing is a great idea also if you live in polluted cities or wear sun protection (ie. this should be all of you!!! Protect your skin!!!) as removing your products and pollutants first will provide a better result. Similarly, if you have oily skin, then double cleansing is a great idea. Please make sure you’re using a targeted oily skin cleansing routine though, as otherwise you can damage your skin. This can lead to the production of more protective oils – exactly what you don’t want!
What about dry, sore skin though?
The only clause to the Double Cleansing rule is when you have dry, irritated and Rosacea skin. In this scenario you may even want to only cleanse in the evening. When you skin is already impaired, you need to stick to a very gentle cleanser. Don’t forget to give your skin a post-rinse with warm (not hot) water to remove any residue cleanser afterwards. The evening is always the most important time as you’re removing the environmental damage, dirt and products to allow your skin to heal unhindered while you sleep. You could even skip your morning cleanse. Except more often that not, with dry skin, you need evening moisturisers and serums to assist your skins hydration and healing. Their residue is best removed in the morning to allow your skin to better absorb your morning serums and moisturiser.
Let the Enzymes do their thing!
Your face has now be cleansed of excess particles. But what comes next? While the impurities are gone, you will likely still have a layer of dead skin cells (it’s a constant turnover) and there will be a residue of pre-cleanser. You can now use your enzyme based cleansers to really get your skin clean. Remembering these specialised cleansers are designed to still be gentle enough for you skin. They are working by weakening the bond of the dead skin, allowing them to be removed without harsh scrubbing. If you’re feeling you skin getting dryer than you’d like, you can interchange the enzyme cleanser for a more gentle cleanse – just don’t use soap!
If you’re a plain-old-water kinda’ person, please consider the effect of those left over pollutants, dirt and products on your skin. Slowly causing the break down of your collagen is not going to do your skin any good in the long term. While cleansing may feel like an unnecessary extra, unless your living in a bubble, or love wrinkles, please at least use a gentle cleanser in the evenings!
With clean skin, comes a smooth surface texture and less wastage of your serums and moisturiser.
If left in place, this layer of dead skin tends to soak up your products. Leaving the skin underneath in desperate need of hydration still. There will also be less nutrients from your serums going in, frustrating! By removing these dead skin cells, you’ll find your makeup will glide on effortlessly and you’ll have a natural glow to your skin that is often hidden. Really, cleansing properly can often be half the battle won. We have a large range of cleansers available, and are always happy to help you choose. Simply fill out our online skin consultation, easy!
The next step is your exfoliation. This is in some ways part and parcel of properly cleansing your face, but lets leave this for another time, as your cuppa is likely getting cold and you haven’t even made it to the good bit. Our personal cleansers product reviews, giving you a glimpse at what else is available!
Meg’s Cleansers Product Reviews
“The race was on in the clinic amongst us girls for these Cleansers Product Reviews because we all use the same cleanser, so I’ll let one of the girls talk all about Osmosis MD Purify while I review a cleanser that I recommend for a very common problem – back, chest and neck acne. Very common in teenagers, but many of my adult clients too. Lots of my clients have asked what their partners or kids can use for body acne and this Aspect Purastat 5 cleanser is the one I recommend.
What is it?
A gentle exfoliating foaming cleanser that thoroughly frees skin of embedded dirt, excess oil and environmental pollutants without stripping the skin. While this cleanser is generally used on the face, it is a really great one to use on the body. It comes in two sizes with the large in a 220 ml bottle, which is great to keep in the shower and use on your back, neck and chest.
What does it do?
This cleanser contains L-Lactic Acid which is an AHA that exfoliates. L-Lactic Acid is really beneficial for acne as it ‘dissolves’ the glue like bonds that stick dead skin cells together, meaning that bacteria and grime can be properly washed away. This is a great ingredient to use on the body as we don’t often wash or exfoliate these areas and with boys and men especially, hair can become ingrown and become painful, especially in areas where they shave, such as the neck.
How to wash your back:
It can be a little tricky to apply to this area, so a long handled loofah is a good option. Pour a 10 cent piece sized amount of cleanser onto the loofah and scrub away in circular motions. It is not necessary to scrub hard as the cleanser will do all the work, the loofah is only there for easy application. If you can find a soft loofah, that would be even better.
The verdict:
An all round excellent cleanser that can be used on the face and body and especially good at eliminating body acne.
Perfect to pair with this cleanser is the Aspect Illuminating Polish. A granular exfoliator that can be used once to twice a week on the face and body. Especially amazing on the back.”
Meg
Julie’s Cleansers Product Reviews
“Cleansers… had a few in my time and so many I’ve loved! Which one to choose to review? As usual I wait until everyone else has submitted their favourites, just to make sure I am offering a different take on the same product, or choose a different one. I’m a bit of a cheat like that.
And yes, I too have loved the Osmosis MD Purify, this one, was the very first cleanser my colleagues recommended I should use for my ageing skin. For a while now, however, I have been using Aspect Dr Deep Clean, and have been really, really happy with the way it feels and performs.
BUT! Just recently Meg gave me a sample of the Medik8 Cream Cleanse and oh my lordy, it is super nice.
I’d never been much of a fan of cream cleansers, as I always felt like I was cleaning my skin with a moisturiser, so was it really working? I did change my mind somewhat about cream cleansers last year after I had a facial, and the Osmosis MD Lift Away was used to cleanse. Guess what, I loved it, and immediately purchased one (gee, do I love everything?), but eventually I started to use only of an evening to remove makeup, if I had been wearing any, as it was brilliant for that. Anyway, back to the Medik8 Cream Cleanse. It’s not a heavy cream, it’s more like a light foamy cream, if that makes sense, and smells so good! My skin is left feeling not squeaky clean, but silky clean, no dryness or tightness at all. It actually feels like I have just removed a nourishing face mask.
So it seems once I’ve finished my trusty Aspect Dr Deep Clean I will be purchasing the Medik8 Cream Cleanse That’s for certain..
Another to add to my cleanser love list.”
Julie
Phillipa’s Cleansers Product Reviews
“Normally I’d say hands down Osmosis MD Purify. Like the rest of us here in the clinic, we’re hooked. But… if you remember some of my earlier reviews, I tried Medik8 when we first started stocking them – and I’m STILL hooked!!!
Yes, it’s time to admit I have a new favourite. Sorry Purify, it’s not you – it’s me! Medik8 Surface Radiance Cleanser is definitely one of their best sellers for a reason! I need to stop using explanation marks, but it really is exciting. It’s very similar to Purify, but I find it a thicker gel and that it goes much further. It lathers beautifully and leaves me with squeaky clean skin. I match this back with Medik8 Calmwise Soothing Cleanser, which I use when my skin is impaired. This is such a wonderful gentle cleanser – easy to massage into dry and sore skin, yet leaving me feeling refreshed. I find both of these cleansers are spot on. They are easy to apply, don’t have strong offensive scents and leave me feeling clean and not too dry. If you’re feeling curious, give them a go – there are smaller travel sizes available, so you don’t have to spend much to experiment!”
Phillipa
Yes, it’s time to admit I have a new favourite. Sorry Purify, it’s not you – it’s me!
Megan’s Cleansers Product Reviews
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Megan
We hope you have appreciated hearing our “real life” feedback on these products. If there is a product you have enjoyed, please leave your feedback. Your favourite cleanser, serum or moisturiser? Write a review on the website and you’ll even receive an extra 300 points. Simply locate the product (in this case the cleansers we’ve just reviewed in our Cleansers Product Reviews), click the Reviews tab and leave your rating and review. We believe in finding products that are scientifically proven to improve your skin’s health without using nasty ingredients that we are better off avoiding.
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