I thought I'd do a post today about cleansing, there is so much rubbish advice out there and advertising that just confuses people, so I'm hoping this post will help.

EDIT: I've split this post into two sections; Do's and Don'ts, to make it easier to read.

Firstly, cleansing is the most important part of your routine, if your skin is properly cleansed, all your products that you apply afterwards are far more effective. 

DO:

1. Cleanse morning & night
You need to cleanse your face in the morning, to remove sweat and dead skin cells. At night, you need to cleanse to remove make up, and to rid your skin of dirt & bacteria. If you do not cleanse your skin properly, it will become clogged, dull, and be more susceptible to breakouts and dryness or dehydration.  As mentioned in my previous post, just as you would brush your teeth morning & night, cleanse your skin. Make time.

2. Use a dedicated face cleanser
This might sound obvious, but alot of people use body products/shower gels on their face. The skin on your face is different to the rest of your body, so treat it differently.

3. Remove make up before cleansing your skin
Use a micellar water on cotton pads to remove your make up first, then cleanse your skin using a cream/balm/oil cleanser and a warm facecloth/flannel. Micellar waters are not enough to use alone as a cleanser. Or, if you'd prefer not to use a micellar water first, you can double cleanse using your cream/balm/oil cleanser, (first cleanse to remove make up, second cleanse to clean your skin) just turn your face cloth to the other side in between, so that you are not adding make up back onto your skin.

4. Remove your cleanser properly
I've said it before, but cotton pads/tissues don't remove your cleanser properly. (By cleansers - I always mean a cream, balm or oil consistency). Use a face cloth or flannel to remove it (note: use a clean cloth every day, they are really cheap, I have about 10). Run the flannel under the clean water from the tap (warm water, not hot), rather than filling the bowl. Men shave over the sink, people spit in the sink, I don't really want spit on my face, thank you.


DON'T:

5. Use wipes
Where do I begin? 
Wipes do not cleanse your skin effectively, they mostly just smear make up, dirt, bacteria, etc, around your face. They contain alot of alcohol, and surfactants (detergent like chemicals) which is what keeps them moist in the packet, and are really stripping, and irritating to the skin, and can also make you suffer with more breakouts. 
It's literally like putting neat vodka on a cotton pad, and wiping it over your skin. The irritation can leave your skin feeling tight, red and sore, particularly because these ingredients are then left on the skin. It's like rubbing soap into your face and not washing it off. Yes, even the wipes by those skincare brands that claim to only use 'natural' ingredients and that their products are 'kind to skin'. 
People will also often be quite rough on their skin with wipes, particularly trying to remove eye make up, dragging and pulling at the delicate skin around the eyes. 
When I see women in shops picking up wipes I just want to grab them out of their hand and educate them. I was in the queue in Superdrug last week and there were some ladies stood behind me, one with about 5 packets of wipes in her hand. She was saying 'I don't know what's wrong with my skin, I just keep getting all these spots all over my face so I think I need to use more of these'. I died a little inside. 
No no no, please cleanse your face properly, leave the wipes for backsides. 

6. Use foaming/bubbly face washes
Cleansers that are foaming very often contain sulphates/sulfates. These are foaming agents added to many cosmetics, such as shampoo, shower gels, handwash, etc. They strip the skin of it's natural oils, which can leave it feeling 'tight' and dry. This can lead to your skin going one of two ways: either dehydrated and dry, or very oily. If you strip the skin of it's natural oils, it will try to hydrate itself by producing too much oil, leading to breakouts/oilyness. (Go and look at your handwash/shower gel, they will be in there, normally listed as sodium laureth sulfate/ammonium lauryl sulfate.) I try to avoid sulfates in my products where possible. There is a common misconception that if you have oily skin, you should use a gel or foamy cleanser to get rid of the oil, and that creamy cleansers will make your skin more oily. That's not the case - as long as your cleanser is removed properly, it won't leave your skin feeling greasy or oily.

7. Use soap
By soap, I mean soap bars that Grans have in their bathrooms. Soaps do the same as the above, they strip the skin leaving it tight, and they also alkaline the skin, leaving it a breeding ground for bacteria. Your skin should never feel 'tight' after cleansing, if it does, your skins acid mantle is being disrupted. The acid mantle works like a veil that keeps moisture in, and pollution and bacteria out. Plus, soap sits on the side collecting bacteria, dust and hair, I don't think anyone particularly wants that on their face.

 8. Use water alone
Many, many women often say to me 'I use water to wash my face, I just splash it with water'.
This is not enough. You wouldn't just splash your hair with water to wash it, you wouldn't just rinse your mouth with water to brush your teeth, you get the picture. 

And finally... 

9. Don't exfoliate every day
There are so many 'daily face scrubs' and 'daily exfoliators' out there. Your skin does not need to be manually exfoliated every day. Doing this will destroy the skins protective barrier, leaving your skin irritated, dry and sensitive. It also leaves acne-prone skin more susceptible to spots and oiliness, as scrubs spread the germs from one spot all over the face, and stimulate the oil glands. 
Unfortunately, most of these daily scrubs are marketed at those with acne-prone, oily skin, and it's the worst thing you can do. It won't help.
The same goes for cleansing brushes. I hate those, why would you want to almost sand your face using what is essentially, a large electric toothbrush? Your skin is delicate, it is not a piece of furniture.
Using a mild, exfoliating toner containing AHA's every day is fine, but not granular scrubs/brushes. 

...So to conclude, the best cleansers to use are cream, balm or oil consistencies, whatever your skin type!


*Rant over* 



I hope this post has been helpful! If you have any questions or requests just pop them in the comment section below :)

Follow my blog with Bloglovin