Good things come to those who double cleanse.

Facial cleansing is almost everything! It’s the most important thing for your skin care routine to be a success.

So what is Double Cleansing?

It is a cleansing method that involves washing your face in two steps:

First: Using an oil based cleanser, cleansing balm, or micellar water….the first cleanse removes all dirt, makeup, bacteria and environmental toxins. (Captain Blankenship - Chamomile & Lemon Oil Cleanser)

Second: the second cleanse actually cleanses your skin by using a water based cleanser or foam to cleanse your pores and clarify your skin. (Clarins - Gentle Foaming Cleansers)

Leaving the day’s dirt, makeup, excess oil and even dead skin cells on your face over time can lead to blocked pores, irritation, skin barrier damage and spots. Any blocked skin pores left untreated and not cleansed can lead to comedones - aka black heads and white heads - and this creates the perfect conditions for inflammatory acne to develop.

The second key component that is commonly missed is Exfoliation. In the simplest terms, exfoliation is physically or chemically removing those dead and dulling skin cells.

Physical exfoliators work on the top layers of the skin to remove dead skin via rubbing and washing off. (These are usually natural beads, crystals, micro-granules, ect.)

Let’s talk about Apricot Scrub (gross, yuck, NO) which contains walnut shells which has jagged edges that cause micro-tears in the skin when used and causes more damage than good. So if you have a bottle throw it away or maybe give it to someone you don’t like lol.

An oil-infused gel or cream will gently exfoliate and nourish the skin leaving it instantly clean, soft, and radiant. (Clarins - Pure Scrub, Fresh Scrub, or Comfort Scrub)

Or you can do an Acid/Chemical exfoliant- So instead of physically sloughing the dead cells away, Chemical exfoliators penetrate deeper into the skin and can be a great option for skin that has deep congestion, is more resistive, or can’t tolerate physical scrubs due to sensitivity.

How often you should exfoliate depends on your skin, but I very rarely advise exfoliation more than 4 times a week.

If you want your skincare routine to WORK you have to be consistent about exfoliation, because otherwise that expensive product you just bought can’t actually do its job instead it’s sitting at the surface and can’t get passed all the dead skin build up.

Sleeping with makeup on or forgetting to rinse your face before bed is a big no-no. Your skin has a memory. In ten, twenty, thirty years from now your skin will show the results of how it was treated today. So treat it kindly and with respect :)

xo,

Desirae