How you cleanse your skin matters! We cover 6 steps on how to properly wash your face for clean, supple, and calm skin. Get the cleansing step of your skincare routine right to minimise breakouts, irritation, and dehydration.

How to Properly Wash Your Face

- Anything that touches your face should be clean
- Wash your face using lukewarm water and your favourite cleanser
- Double cleanse when wearing makeup
- Be gentle when drying your face
- Follow with hydration

Wash Your Face Morning & Night

Let’s start with the golden rule of how to properly wash your face; cleansing your skin in your morning and evening routine.

During the day, sweat, natural oils, debris, and pollution particles all accumulate on your skin. If you wear makeup and SPF, these sit on your skin all day too.

A double cleanse with a gentle cleanser is a must in your evening routine to remove this build-up. Left overnight, it can clog pores and you’ll wake up to pimples or inflammation.

Cleansing in the evening also allows the products in your night time routine to better penetrate the skin. A film of oil, dead cells, and debris on the surface prevents active ingredients fully absorbing.

So, if you clean your skin at night, why wash your face in the morning?

Bacteria from your hair and mouth can be transferred to your face from your pillow and bedding while you sleep. Cleansing in the morning removes bacteria and residue of overnight skincare products to give you a fresh foundation for your daytime products.

Bottom line? Don’t skip the AM cleanse.

Anything Touching Your Face Should Be Clean

Don’t undo your perfect cleanse by using dirty towels, face towels or headbands!

Bacteria, dead skin cells, oils, fungus and other debris collect on these and transfer to your skin. Even using dirty fingers will thwart your cleansing efforts.

Microfibre cleansing mitts are a brilliant way to apply cleanser and wash your face without touching your hands to your face. The esmi microfibre mitt removes 80% more dirt, makeup and product residue than using a regular face washer or your hands. Wash your mitt regularly to keep it fresh and replace every 6 months.

Using a clean headband is also a handy way to keep your hair off your face while cleansing. Have a few on rotation so you’ve always got a clean one on hand.

Wash Your Face Using Lukewarm Water & Your Favourite Cleanser

The temperature of the water plays a key role in how to use cleanser the right way.

Avoid using hot water as it strips the skin of its natural oils, dries it out and can result in skin barrier damage.

Stick to lukewarm water which won’t shock or irritate your face - this is especially important if you have sensitive skin or rosacea which can be triggered by heat.

How much cleanser should you use? We recommend applying a pearl-sized amount of cleanser to damp hands and massage gently into skin with an upward motion.

Double Cleanse When Wearing Makeup

Do you double cleanse?

When you wear makeup, the double-cleanse method is your best bet to remove every trace of foundation and powder lurking on your skin.

Washing your face twice keeps your pores clean and allows skincare products to deeply penetrate your skin boosting their effectiveness.

How to use a cleanser for double cleansing:

Massage a pearl-sized amount of face cleanser into wet skin with clean fingers. This first step is all about breaking up the makeup and other debris on your skin.

Rinse your face with lukewarm water.

Now, repeat the same process with the addition of a microfibre mitt or gentle cleansing pad. This helps to remove all traces of makeup and impurities to really clear out the pores.

You can use the same cleanser for both the first and second cleanse but choose one formulated with gentle ingredients. This allows you to wash your face twice without stripping the skin of the natural oils it needs to retain moisture.

Be Gentle When Drying

Maximising your cleansing routine isn’t just about how to properly wash your face. You need to pay attention to how you dry it too!

The skin on your face is delicate and needs to be dried with TLC - not the regular terry cloth towel which is actually really abrasive.

Dragging and rubbing it across your face can lead to skin irritation, inflammation, and over-exfoliation, particularly if you have sensitive skin.

Instead, very gently pat your skin with a towel to remove moisture. Leave it slightly damp and then follow with the next step in your routine. Applying products while skin is still damp helps lock in hydration and increases effectiveness. 

Follow with Hydration

A cleanser helps prepare the skin to soak up every drop of the other products in your routine and maximise their potency.

Immediately after cleansing, while skin is still damp, apply a hydrating serum followed by a moisturiser or face oil.

This 2 step approach is the optimal way to boost skin’s hydration levels. A hydrating serum delivers moisture deep into the layers of skin while the moisturiser or face oil works on the surface of the skin to lock moisture in.

There you have it! Our 6 simple steps for how to properly wash your face and how to use a cleanser.

esmi cleansers are designed to target skin concerns and gently remove impurities while calming and protecting the skin. View the Uncomplicated Cleanser range.