Face cleansing is one of the most important steps in one’s skincare routine. But have you ever experienced certain times when your face still breaks out even after cleansing? If yes, then you could be cleansing your face wrongly. Don’t worry, many people unknowingly make these seven mistakes when cleansing the face. Be sure to avoid them at all cost!
1. Using water that’s too hot, or too cold
It’s best to wash your face with lukewarm water. Water that’s too cold doesn’t give a good wash, but if it’s too hot, it can cause irritation.
2. Cleansing the face with dirty/unwashed/unsanitised hands
Cleansing the face doesn’t just mean washing it with face wash. The process of removing your makeup using a makeup wipe or remover is also an important step in face cleansing. Be sure to remove your makeup with clean hands! After a long day of activities, your hands could be infested with bacteria. You wouldn’t want them on your face, right?
Keep a hand sanitiser by your vanity, or simply wash your hands before removing makeup. That would do the trick!
3. Using the wrong product
As beauty enthusiasts, we are tempted to try all the products that have been raved about. However, the constant change of products may end up irritating the skin. Furthermore, each product works differently for different people. Everyone’s skin types and skin needs vary. What may be a holy grail for some people, may not be for you.
So pick out a product that works well for your skin. If you have dry skin, get a moisturising face cleanser. If you have oily skin, use a face cleanser that would help to minimise pores and help control the oil.
4. Over-exfoliating or not exfoliating at all
It’s important to exfoliate the skin as it helps to remove all the gunk from your face (i. e. dead skin cells). However, over-exfoliating can irritate the skin because you’re not letting your skin regenerate and recover from the exfoliation process. If you don’t exfoliate at all, it may cause break outs because accumulated dead skin cells can trap impurities and sebum that can cause inflammation. Face cleansing is not enough. Exfoliating helps you get into and cleanse the areas that normal face cleansers cannot do.
Read our article on All You Need To Know About Exfoliating to find out more about exfoliating.
5. Not rinsing cleanser off thoroughly
Rinse, rinse and rinse again! Even when you feel like you’ve washed off all the cleanser from your face, check again. Make sure you rinse around your hairline and your neck. Not washing off your cleanser properly can again, cause irritation on the skin.
6. Unclean towel
Use a clean towel after you’re done washing your face. This also means, no sharing of face towels! Using a dirty towel would put more bacteria on your face after you’ve washed it.
7. Rubbing the face
We know how tempting it is to take that towel and rub your face dry after washing it. STOP! Rubbing your face with a towel is harsh to the skin. Patting your face with a towel is the right way to go.
