1, 2, 3, CLEANSE!

We all know how it goes. You've had model perfect, flawless skin for years, but suddenly it seems like oily, clogged pores have moved in and planted permanent residence on your face. So what do you do? You race to your bathroom, search your beauty cupboard and scrub away at your face, exfoliating like a woodman sands wood. Then, with the sink still running, you reach for some outrageous, "Dries-out-pores-instantly" facial cleanser and continue to scrub, rub and rinse. But wait, the minute you pat your face dry, you reach for the final regimen to your quick fix -- moisturizer. However, as the dried out, burning and tightening sensation kicks in, you slather on as much moisturizer as you can; it says OIL-FREE right!? Then, after a quick scan over in the mirror, you smile, relax an wait for the magic to happen.

Except most of the time, it doesn't. Let's re-look at that process you just went through as there are a few things you are doing that are doing just the opposite of keeping your skin clear and healthy. For starters, I would bet the only magical element of your "amazing results" facial scrub/cleanser is the blend of ingredients that not even an evil Genie would grant on your skin. At all costs, try to avoid cleansing products with sodium cocoate and sodium tallowate. Unless your skin is extremely oily, try to avoid these products as much as possible as they contain strong soaps/detergents that strip the oil from your skin and don't put it back. Also, avoid cleaners in the shape of a bar. The ingredients holding these products together as a bar shape are too harsh for your face and the synthetic coconut-oil derivative ingredients that supposedly "moisturize" are only clogging your pores.

Next, we all know how that tight, dry feeling after a serious cleanse feels. It's both liberating as we are convinced it means the oil is gone and we are a step closer to clearer skin; as it is painful so we automatically reach for the moisturizer. And chances are, we get moisturizer crazy -- I mean, the bottles say OIL FREE and those models in the advertisements have perfect skin, so it must be healthy. WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. Many people actually overmoisturize, only further clogging pores rather than working towards clearing them. Note to self -- exfoliating should only be done a couple times a week. Not every day, we need that protectant layer on our faces to protect our delicate skin. But we also need to scrub away dead skin cells and show the world our pretty, bright and happy faces. :)