Skin Series: Part 2, Cleanse

This posting is part of a collection of posts based on everything that I had learned at a recent Sephora class.  For the first posting in this series, click here.

Cleanse
The first step into maintaining beautiful skin is cleansing the skin.  There a million different kinds of cleansers out there.  These include make up remover, cleansing oils/jellies, cleanser, and toner.   Something new to me is the idea of gel and oil-based cleansers...  These do a tremendous job of removing eye make-up while remaining gentle on the skin.  I love them, and highly suggest giving them a try!

Here are a few different options that are out there (all free of parabens, sulfates, and phthalates):

Ole Henriksen Pure Truth™ 
Melting Cleanser  $34

Josie Maran
Argan Cleansing Oil $32

bareMinerals® 

MINERALIXIRS™ Facial Cleansing Oil $30

Keep in mind, when you use a gel or oil-based cleanser, you won't get the "lather" of traditional cleanser.   So, if you like that lather, you may not like these types of cleansers.

 To apply these cleansers, put on the skin dry.  Massage the gel or oil into the skin and then rise clean with warm water or remove with a make-up remover wipe (if you're not near a sink).  If you are unsure whether or not this is something you would like, ask for a sample!  

Here are Sephora's Top Tips:

• Allow makeup remover to sit on eyelids and lips for 10 seconds before massaging with water
• Apply oils and jellies on dry skin with dry hands and then rinse with water
• Use cleansing tools to remove extra impurities from the skin

During this portion of the course, I was also introduced to the Luna - a tool that can be utilized during the cleansing process.  The Luna allows for deeper, precision cleaning with anti-aging surface that uses silicone waves. 

This is an alternative to the Clarisonic.  Though my "beauty guides" at Sephora demonstrated the Luna, the Director of Education is a total Clarisonic fan.  I told her about a friend's experience, as every time she used it, she broke out.  The director said that many times people fail to share that the Clarisonic can cause "purging" for up to two months!  So, just keep that in mind.   

Lastly, as you are putting together your skin care regime, pay attention to the ingredients you are using.  For example, using all products that contain salicylic acid would be way too drying on my skin.  If you are not sure of how different ingredients react, I could go into a whole spiel about peptides and such, but I will save that for another post.  Instead, you can check out the Sephora Skin Care Glossary here if you'd like. 

I hope you enjoyed this post from the Skin Series.  Are there any other cleansers out there that you love?