Valeria Out Loud

Hello everyone!

As I mentioned in my makeup posts before, I get stopped often about my makeup, and to be honest, whenever anyone asks me about my face I want to talk about skin care more than makeup. Good-looking skin starts with how we take care of it.

The first step in skin care is cleaning your skin. Cleaning your skin should be an effective way to clean pores/remove dirt, oils, makeup and/or dead skin cells.

How we choose our cleanser is directly correlated to our skin type.  Are we dry, oily, or have mature skin or sensitive skin?  Then our determination for a cleanser is the product formula type.  Do we choose a powder or bar cleanser?  Do we choose a face wipe or a foaming cleanser? Then we choose the product by our other likes and dislikes of cleaning power, the product’s texture or its scent.

Skin types vary person to person. Generally there are four major skin types: normal, dry, oily and a combination.

• Normal refers to well-balanced skin; whatever way you wash this skin it feels dry to the touch but supple.
• Dry skin type produce less oil than normal skin; whatever way you wash this skin it feels dry immediately after being patted dry (feels tight).
• Oily skin has an overproduction of skin oils (sebum); whatever way you wash this skin it feels oily immediately and throughout the day.
• Combination skin types go in both directions of dry combination and oily combination.  Each combo skin type is majorly defined by the skin of the t-zone and cheeks. ALSO, I’d like to add sensitive skin to the list of combination because some skin is highly sensitive.

On top of skin type there is skin condition.  Many exterior and interior factors play in your skin’s condition.  Skin condition is affected by age, climate, genetics, air pollution, certain medications, and stress, and they all play in how our skin reacts and what it produces (like oil/sweat).   You may notice skin condition if you travel often. You may see that people who live in high wind, coastal areas have drier, mature skin vs people who live in hot, humid climates that have oilier, smoother skin.

Then on top of skin type and condition, there are so many formula types on the market based on makeup removal, texture, consistency and scent. Personally, I have tried all the types out there, not all brands, but all types.

Here’s a quick list of formula types: bar, clay, cream, foam, gel, milk, oil, powder, micellar water, and wipes.

☞ Before I get to the Top Ten Thursday list of what products I tried, let’s talk about how to wash your face.  Some folks may not know!  Now I am going to start here with using your hands (my favorite tools) to wash your face. There are a lot of brushes and tools on the market that can assist in washing your face, however.

Wet your face with warm water. Never use extremely hot or cold water, which can irritate your skin. With your cleanser of choice, dispense about a nickel-sized amount on one hand. Massage the product between hands, using your other hand to ‘warm’ the product. Then apply the cleanser to your face, moving in a circular motion until the product reaches all parts of your face, including over eyes.  This motion helps to breakdown makeup, dirt, oils, etc.. Then rinse your face with warm water, passing the water over your face still the cleanser is fully removed. Follow to dry, by patting your face dry. DO NOT rub the towel across your face, this can actually irritate your skin.

Here is my list of cleansers that I have used, but let me explain my skin.  My skin type is normal/dry, and my skin is still considered youthful.  My likes in a face cleansing product are 1.) one that washes away my makeup, 2.) AND leaves my skin soft to the touch before my serum and moisturizers, 3.) the consistency shouldn’t be goopy, and 4.) no overpowering scents.

Valeria’s Top Ten Thursday- Face Cleansers

1. Peter Thomas Roth, Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Cleansing Gel- This is by far my favorite face wash!! The technology, the scent, the consistency and the texture are everything my face wants.  I can clearly feel the smooth gel where it is being applied, and it fully rinses from my skin.  This product leaves my skin glowing and it feels refreshed …and squeaky clean.  (meaning no foundation is found on my towels when I pat my skin dry!)
2. DHC, Cleansing Foam- This is a pretty fantastic cleanser in an unassuming package.  And, though, I am dry/combination skin this product is for oily/combination skin, and I still think it’s great.  This cleanser lathers to a fluffy mousse like consistency and feels like it moisturizes my skin as it’s applied.  It does a great job at breaking down my makeup, too.
3. Neutrogena, Ultra Gentle Daily Cleaning Foam-  This foamy cleanser is a perfect cleanser for most folks.  The foaming action is not as tactile as the DHC one above, but it does a great job at cleaning the skin, removing makeup and leaving my skin feeling happy.  I used the gentle formula which means there is no dyes or perfumes, and it worked great for my two daughters, one a teen and one a pre-teen.
4. Kiehls, Midnight Recovery Botanical Cleansing Oil-  Let me start with this..oil cleansers are NOT like other cleansers.  They do not foam, they do not give you that feel, so please try this with an open mind. Oil cleansers are great for all skin types, but oily skins may like a foamy soapy feel.  I LOVE oil cleansers, especially in the Winter when there is not much humidity in the air.  This cleanser is great and I feel like my makeup melts off well. My skin was clean and soft to the touch.  There were a handful of times I did use a follow-up cleanser when I had non-transfer foundation on.  I did compare this to my other favorite oil cleanser I used to use (ten years ago) from DHS, and this oil was a touch better, but both are great.
5. Lancome, Energie de Vie Foaming Cleanser- This lathering cleanser has THE best scent out of all on my list.  It’s a burst of glowing freshness.  My skin feels refreshed and clean, with all my makeup that was removed. 
6. Oil of Olay, Gentle Clean Foaming Face Cleanser-  This creamy foam cleanser is simple and effective, AND INEXPENSIVE!  It left my skin feeling clean and comfortable.  This was my go to face cleanser for over 10 years!!  I haven’t seen it on the shelves of my local drug stores any longer, but I am not sure if they discontinued the product of not.
7. DHC, CoQ10 Washing Cream- Another great cleanser that left my skin squeaky clean and refreshed.   Not a trace of makeup left behind.  Also, I would walk away from the sink with my skin feeling moisturized and supple.  I have gone through MANY tubes of this cleanser, and highly recommend it if you are looking for something to shake up your current skin care regime.  
8. Lancome, Bi-facil Makeup Remover and Cleanser- This is a dual phase liquid cleanser, which needs to be shaken and used on cotton rounds like it’s brother Bi-facil Eye makeup remover (Bi-facil Eye is MY FAVORITE AND ONLY EYE MAKEUP REMOVER THAT I WILL EVER USE. ). This face cleanser works really well if you use infallible/non-transferrable foundations, and leaves your skin feeling refreshed.  However, I like to use a cleanser after this because, again, I prefer a foamy wash.
9. Clinique, Liquid Face Soap- Ok, this is where I will not sound so positively.  This soap is good, not the best. And I only say that because it never left my skin feeling refreshed. And many days I felt like my skin had to be moisturized right away or I’d ‘die’.  
10. Vichy, Purete Thermale 3in1 Cleanser- For a milk cleanser that is to be tissued off, this cleanser may be my favorite one. With that said, I am just not a big fan of cleaning my skin without water and tend not to lean towards milk cleansers like this one. I feel like I use an absurd amount of tissues, cotton rounds and towels to feel clean…then follow up with a cleanser and water.     I started to use it in my shower as a conventional cleanser, which actually worked but I prefer foaminess.

Share your favorite cleansers!  I always love to hear what people are using out there..comment below or on FB!