Make sure you rinse thoroughly and never leave any cleanser residue on your skin. This will lead to dryness and irritation.
Pat dry with a clean towel. Do not use your dirty hand towel or the towel you use to dry off your body. These are full of bacteria, dead skin cells, hair, and product residue. Reserve a section of clean towels that you can use to dry your face once and then discard to wash. It’s so important that after you properly cleanse you don’t rub new bacteria onto your skin that will later be locked in with a moisturizer. When drying your skin make sure to pat and not aggressively rub the towel over your skin. The rough texture of a towel is actually a form of physical exfoliation when scrubbed over the skin and is too abrasive.
Cleansing is arguably the most important part of a skincare routine. Do it wrong and none of your products will work to their full potential. Cleansing your skin ensures that there is no residue, dirt, oil, makeup, or sunscreen left on the surface of your skin. When your skin isn’t cleaned properly that residue will prevent your other products from absorbing and creating change in your skin. Think about it -- your skin is an organ that works to keep things out of your body. Products are formulated with intentional delivery systems to help them absorb and work to their best ability. Imagine your product trying to work against your skin’s natural ability to keep things out and the buildup of makeup and debris on the surface of your skin. It just won’t happen.
Now let’s get into how to properly cleanse:
Wash your hands first. Our hands are dirty little things. Make sure to start out your cleansing routine with clean hands so you’re not spreading bacteria around your face while you’re trying to clean it.
Massage your cleanser onto your face and neck for at least 60 seconds. You’ll want to focus on areas that get congested. This could be your nose, chin, forehead, jawline or cheeks -- any area where you tend to break out or have large pores that tend to get clogged. Don’t forget the hairline or neck. These area’s often get neglected. Set a timer for 60 seconds if you need to! Really take your time to gently work the cleanser into your skin.
Rinse with lukewarm to cool water. You never want to rinse your cleanser off with hot water. Hot water can lead to redness, irritation and dehydration. If you cleanse in the shower don’t forget to turn the water temperature down when you get to rinsing your face. Our bodies can handle much higher temperatures than the more delicate skin on
It may seem like a simple task, but there are key things that will optimize your cleansing routine so that the rest of your products will give you the results you want! When it comes to which cleanser is right for you I prefer that everyone has a gentle, acid free cleanser. This can be in a foaming or cream form depending on skin type. I prefer foaming cleansers for normal, oily or acne prone skin and cream cleansers for dry, mature or sensitized skin. I prefer cleansers to be acid free to ensure that it can be used every day, twice a day without the risk of irritation or dryness. These gentle cleansers are perfect to use pre and post esthetic procedures! That’s not to say cleansers with acids are not great! I think of them more as an addition for someone wanting to boost their already solid routine rather than a go to. Treatment cleansers are a great option to use a couple nights a week to boost exfoliation and product penetration, but are often too strong for twice daily use.
When it comes to makeup wearers or those of you who are great at reapplying your SPF throughout the day this is where I would introduce the option of double cleansing! Makeup, oil and SPF create a layer of residue on the surface of your skin. Nightly cleansing works best when you do it twice. Think of your first cleanse as sweeping the floor and your second cleanse as mopping. If you try to mop without sweeping you’re just moping around all the crumbs and dirt on the floor. To double cleanse you would just follow those cleansing steps twice, it's that easy! You can double cleanse with a cream cleanser first and foam cleanser second, foam and foam or cream and cream! It’s all about creating a personalized routine for your needs.
At Le Spa we want to make sure you are maintaining the work we do on your skin during professional treatments with proper home care. Ask us which cleanser is right for you and if you should be double cleansing. We love nothing more than helping you achieve healthy skin.
