The Cleanser Edit: Morning Cleansers
Do you need a separate cleanser for the morning? Not really. Heck, sometimes you don’t even need to use a cleanser in the morning! But for the sake of argument, and for the sake of those of us who just like a little bit of extra indulgence, or physically need it to brave miserable Mondays, let’s talk about morning cleansers! My philosophy on morning cleansers – yes, I have a philosophy on morning cleansers (whaaat?!) – is that they have to meet certain very strict requirements: a) they have to be texturally pleasurable, b) they have to be olfactorily pleasurable – i.e. they must smell good (or smell of nothing if they can’t accomplish olfactory success), and c) they should (mostly) rinse off clean – though this last condition is less strict especially when my skin is having a dry weekend – no pun. So in sum – they just have to make me feel good. You’d think that would be easy, but somehow, not many cleansers pass this simple 3-tier test. After a year of testing however, I’ve managed to line up a few winners and while I am sure there are hundreds of beautiful cleansers I probably missed because of my annoying sidekick – my wallet – I think this is a solid group. Moreover, none of them is so ridiculously expensive that you feel as if you are rinsing off dollar bills down the sink and in fact, some of them are disarmingly affordable. So here they are: my little army of morning soldiers – fighting off those pandemic blues one day at a time.
Holifrog Tashmoo Water Lily Nourishing Milky Wash: This is a non-foaming, creamy, light weight, ivory colored, cleansing lotion. It comes in a pump bottle and I use 2-3 pumps of it on my face in the morning. It glides over my skin like a refreshing, slightly cooling lotion and is not thick enough to be considered a true cream cleanser. I spend a few seconds massaging it in because the sensation of this cleanser on my skin is a little like Biologique Recherche’s VIP O2 Mask – like someone’s pumping oxygen into my face. It smells faintly and pleasantly herbaceous but I think that’s just me – some of my friends don’t smell anything at all. It rinses off mostly clean though if you’re not used to creamy cleansers, it might feel like this cleanser leaves a little something behind. My skin has been quite dry lately so I don’t mind that. My face feels plump, cool, happy. So does my mood.
Aveeno Calm and Restore Nourishing Oat Cleanser: I first found out about this cleanser through Gothamista’s youtube videos and after hearing her rave about it, and this cleanser’s miraculous price point ($8.99!), I couldn’t help but pick it up on a CVS run. And let me tell you – all the rumors are true – this is the best thing in CVS right now (next to glow-in-the-dark face masks and Easter candy) and you should run and get one to try before it starts selling out everywhere. The texture is the true pull here – it’s a non-foaming, very thick, semi-transparent gel that feels a little like aloe gel but without any of the stickiness. This glides on (and feels) like a silky cream on my face and really helps to pare down the inflammation and redness after a workout. This also elicits a cooling sensation and smells faintly of bananas and oats – I don’t love the smell but I can live with it. And finally, this rinses off absolutely clean. Like I said, run and snatch one up – I cannot think of any skin type that won’t like this offering from Aveeno.
Tatcha The Rice Wash – Skin Softening Cleanser: The creamy sibling to Tatcha’s Classic Rise Enzyme Powder, the magic of this cleanser is in its transformation when it mixes with water. I squeeze it out of a tube and it comes out as a sticky, slightly grainy, soft dough and then with just a touch of water, as I start to rub my palms together, it mixes with the water and turns into a deliciously silky, sensorially bombastic cream that feels very expensive both in my hands and on my face. I could play with this texture all day. It smells of Tatcha – earthy, rice-based, faint scents that I don’t love but definitely don’t mind either. This cleanser is non-foaming (mostly), and washes off perfectly clean, leaving my face feeling very bright and smooth almost instantly. A keeper.
Kate Sommerville Eradikate Daily Foaming Cleanser: While this cleanser is truly my long-standing hero product for when I’m having an acne meltdown or post a particularly pore-clogging, sweaty workout, what I really want to talk about is it’s visual and textural glory. This is a beautiful, chalky, thick, pale pink paste that could honestly be mistaken for old-school toothpaste in a bathroom. I always feel like I am applying some vintage home remedy for acne when I use this – which of course, it is not. In fact, this powerful acne and clogged pore buster is a very modern formulation that spreads like a dream and can be used both as a morning cleanse or a second cleanse at night and leaves me just a touch exfoliated. I can’t use this more than once or twice a week when I am using other chemical exfoliators but that’s all you need for it to do the job. I have had this tube for over a year(if not longer!) and there’s still almost half left. As a safeguard against my once-in-a-while bout with acne, I would not be want to be without it ever.
Milk Makeup Vegan Milk Cleanser: This was, unexpectedly, one of the most comforting, soothing blanket of a cleanser I have ever found for my face. It comes out like a creamy, thick, milky yoghurt , which sort of stretches in a silky concoction all over the face – very little goes a long way. As you massage it into a damp face, it starts to transform into a silky, creamy, microfoam that rinses off completely clean and leaves my face feeling utterly nourished and protected – in an expensive way that completely belies its price point. I cannot overemphasize the brilliance of this cleanser. You can use it as a first or second cleanse at night, you can use it in the morning, or both – it has not once dried me out, is completely fragrance-free, and in fact, when my skin is feeling over sensitized, this cleanser has become my first port of call – my quintessential safety blanket and I trust it completely to not make things worse. Another cleanser, for completely opposite reasons to the Kate Somerville, that I never want to be without.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel: Like Aveeno, this one’s another drugstore find that I feel lucky to have discovered. A clear, transparent, lightweight, almost watery gel, this cleanser comes in a pump bottle and in terms of hydration and comfort, this is the gel counterpart to Milk Makeup’s cream cleanser. Just like the Milk offering, this cleanser leaves my skin incredibly hydrated and comforted and I can trust it to never feel tight. For those of us who may prefer gels to creams, or lighter formulations (especially in the summer!) but still want their cleanser to be sensitive skin-friendly and hydrating, the Hydroboost Hydrating Cleansing Gel is perfection. This one foams quite a bit on my damp face and rinses off completely clean. To me, it was a little surprising to find a gel cleanser that foams that much and yet leaves my skin perfectly supple, hydrated, and de-sensitized. Another drugstore star to grab as quickly as possible if you can find it!
