The other day, as I was hanging with two local fashion girls in the midst of a shoot for a good friend the subject, as it often does when I'm around, turned to skin care and makeup. The girls had some good questions for me about products, which made me realize that maybe I need to re-visit some basic truths about cleansing your face. I am a staunch believer that even with all the miracle creams, mircoderms, peels, dermaplaning etc. nothing beats proper cleansing. I find most often, that it is the step at which women (and men) go wrong: we tend to misdiagnose a pimple as acne, or dehydration as dry skin.
Here is an easy way to find out if you are using the right cleansing product for your skin.
Wash your face with your normal cleanser, then do nothing: no toner, no moisturizer, nothing. How does it feel? Does it feel tight or dry? If so you are using a cleanser that is too strong for your skin. After cleansing your skin should feel fresh and clean not stripped of oil.
Then, leave your face alone (no products) and make a mental note of how long it takes before your skin becomes shiny or oily. If it becomes shiny within 15-30 minutes, you likely have oily skin, if you find that it happens by noon then your skin falls into the normal range, if it never really becomes shiny or oily or not until late in the day then your skin is likely dry.
Equally as important is the moisture content of your skin, are you dehydrated? One way to check is to pull skin taught at the jaw line then with your other hand push up the skin to compress the pores together. If you are dehydrated your skin will have a somewhat rhinoceros or reptilian like texture. FYI it doesn't matter what skin type you have, you can be dehydrated!
If you find that you are over cleansing, dehydrated, or breaking out from over cleansing here are a few great basic cleansers to try.
Cetaphil is a good all purpose cleanser but it works best with an old school method that I learned years ago. Massage the cleanser on dry skin, take a soft muslin cloth dampened in warm water, lay it over the face, press in slightly then remove wiping off the cleanser, follow that by rinsing 10-15 times with warm (not hot) water. This will help clear your pores and keep skin fresh.
Another more natural version is Burts Bees Soap Bark and Chamomile Deep Cleansing cream. Use as instructed with Cetaphil and your skin will be super clean but not super dry.
Of course if you have skin conditions and questions that cannot be addresses by simply cleansing always check with your doctor or dermatologist.
