4 Face Washing Mistakes You May Be Making
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For any K-beauty lover, our days start and end with cleansing our faces. And while this step seems like it would be the most simple part of a skincare routine, certain washing habits can undo the work that we’ve put towards keeping our skin healthy and nourished through top-notch products and expensive facials.
Related: How to Build a Basic Skincare Routine
In this week’s blog, we break down the most common face washing mistakes that people make.
Mistake #1: Not removing makeup completely
It’s easy to grow complacent from going through the motions of washing our faces every day, and sometimes, we can miss little bits of foundation or sunscreen in the crevices of our skin. When makeup particles are left on our skin for too long, it clogs our pores and leads to more acne and troubled skin.
A thorough way to clean off the day’s residue from your skin is to double cleanse. We recommend a micellar water cleanser, followed by a foaming cleanser like Bayeco Green Tea Foaming Cleanser for the best results.
Mistake #2: Using too hot or too cold water
For face-washing, use lukewarm water. Hot water strips the skin of its natural oils and can be very drying, whereas cold water does not effectively remove the gunk off our face. Lukewarm water helps loosen dirt, but preserves the skin’s moisture barrier.
Mistake #3: Washing too frequently
We recommend washing your face no more than twice a day: once in the morning, and once at night. Washing your face too frequently erodes the surface layers of the skin barrier, which will affect how efficiently your skin retains moisture. This may lead to dehydrated skin and early signs of aging.
Mistake #4: Using too harsh of a cleanser
While physical exfoliation can improve radiance, overscrubbing can cause serious damage to the outer skin layer. This translates to red and inflamed skin, a dull complexion, and a compromised barrier that may be more at risk for flare-ups and breakouts. Very gentle physical exfoliation is OK periodically, but make sure that you’re using an extremely gentle, face-approved product. You may also want to consider switching to a chemical exfoliant, such as the COSRX Two in One Poreless Power Liquid.
Chemical exfoliators like glycolic and mandelic acid are gentle enough that they can be used every day. Unlike scrubs which physically remove cells from the surface of the skin, alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) help dissolve connections between skin cells so they can be naturally shed more rapidly by your skin.