Facial cleansing is an intrinsic first step in any skincare regimen. The basic premise is that this detoxifying technique removes all dirt, grime, oil build-up, sweat, and impurities from the skin/pores, preparing a fresh canvas for our effective and advanced skin treatments.
But which facial cleanser is right for you? Can cleansing damage your skin? Here are some important basics about facial cleansing that will provide a streamlined direction for maintaining healthy skin for years to come.
1. Choosing the Correct Formula
Facial cleansing isn’t just about using soap, scrubbing your face, and then a splash of water. But it does requires a basic understanding of your skin’s natural chemistry. Soaps are alkaline, but your facial skin is on the slightly acidic side, and more delicate than our body’s skin, making it vulnerable to dryness and depletion of the natural sebum barrier when improper/harsh or toxic products are applied.
The Solution? Your facial skin requires a more pH-balancing and gentle formula, specifically personalized for your skin type. A Dosha-based Ayurvedic system can help you in this regard. Once diagnosed of your “skin type”, here are the formulas to opt for:
- Vata Skin – Daily Foaming Cleanser
- Pitta Skin – SBR Cleanser
- Kapha Skin & Combination Skin – Pore Perfect Cleanser
2. Cleanse 2X a day, Morning & Night
With ingredients like Orange, Grapefruit, Jasmine, and Calendula (varying according to dosha), start every morning with PVO’s energizing facial cleansing routine.
Morning cleansing removes remnants of pore-clogging molecules (from the ingredients you fed your skin last night) and oil build-up. On the other hand, Night cleansing removes dirt, pollution, and other pore-clogging substances, which enables your anti-aging serums to penetrate deeper and work more effectively.
3. Check for Hard Water
The water quality of some regions can have higher levels of minerals (like non-absorbable Calcium and Magnesium) – which makes the water “hard”. This can leave residue build-up, which is detrimental to your skin. For best results, always use soft, clean water (tip: you can use water hardness test-meters to check the hardness level of water) while washing your face with our organic cleansers.
4. Gentle Circular Motions
To use our cleansers, wet your face and neck with some clean water. Take a small amount of the cleanser and use gentle massaging strokes for a couple of minutes to activate microcirculation. With this practice, the active ingredients such as Salicylic acid (from White Willow Bark), Sea Minerals, and Aloe Vera gel in the formula travel deep into pores to draw away impurities and free radicals.
Avoid over-cleansing or scrubbing too vigorously.
5. Use a Toner Post-Cleansing
Spritzing a dosha-specific Organic Hydrator/Toner is also very important after cleansing your skin. Our toners balance pH, remove the last traces of any microparticles, and prepares your skin for faster absorption of our advanced skin treatments.
Some Additional Do’s and Don’ts of Facial Cleansing:
- Consider double-cleansing, especially if you have make-up (especially water-proof makeup!) on.
- Wash your hands before cleansing your face. Also, avoid using washcloths or tissues that might be contaminated with bacteria to pat dry your face post-cleansing. This minimizes the risk of contracting acne and blemishes.
- Always keep your skin moisturized.
READ NEXT: “Facial Cleansing with Zero Toxic Chemicals”.
