It’s widely common among women and men to not take cleansing seriously. While some of them use cleansers that are either too harsh or too drying for their skin, others use body soap to cleanse their face. It’s completely understandable that life can be busy at times, but that shouldn’t mean that you dismiss cleansing as just a task that needs to be marked off your to-do list.  

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If you think of cleansing as an insignificant part of your routine, you are making a huge mistake that may just end up damaging your skin. Though your cleanser goes down the drain 30 seconds after you’ve washed your face, it forms the most important part of your skincare routine. Cleansing, in fact, serves as a foundation for the further layers of skincare and ensures better absorption of the products. So if you’re not cleansing your face properly, it’s almost as good as not doing anything that comes under skincare. 

If you are serious about skincare, start by getting your cleansing routine right. I have curated a list of cleansing mistakes that you might have been making unknowingly along with the ways to fix them. Be sure to take note of these points and extend a little more love to your skin: 

1. Using Hot Water For Cleansing

The biggest mistake most people make while washing their face is using the wrong water temperature. While hot water strips your skin of its natural oils, cold water makes it hard for those clogged pores to open up. 

So what’s the best water temperature that you should be using while cleansing your face? 

Dermatologists suggest that you must go for lukewarm water or water that is neither too hot nor too cold. This rule applies even when you are washing your face in the shower. 

2. Cleansing Too Often

Many people believe that washing their face too often keeps it dirt-free and clean, but that’s not true. Cleansing more than twice a day can leave your skin feeling dull and dehydrated. Why take that risk when you only need to cleanse twice a day to retain your skin’s moisture? 

Ideally, you should be washing your face first in the morning before or after taking a shower and then in the evening while going through your nighttime skincare routine. Anything more than that is a recipe for skin damage.  

3. Using An Abrasive Towel For Face-Drying

Even the best cleansers will fail to show results if you have bad face-drying habits.  

If you’re wondering what a bad face-drying habit looks like, think of using a harsh or abrasive towel to wipe your face after cleansing. Using harsh towels, besides leaving the skin dehydrated, ends up damaging the skin barrier thereby making it feel itchy and sensitive. Pick a very clean, soft washcloth and gently pat it on your face until it’s damp enough to apply the moisturizer.  

4. Using The Wrong Cleanser

In order to choose a perfect facial cleanser, it’s important to have complete knowledge of your skin. If you are a dry skin person using a gel-based cleanser, it can cause your skin to dry out more and lose its elasticity.  

So what type of cleanser would be perfect for your skin? 

I have combination skin that gets extremely dry during the day and feels oily at night. Needless to say, I use a hydrating cleanser in the morning and a cream-based salicylic acid cleanser at night. 

If you have oily skin, CeraVe’s hydrating cream-to-foam cleanser might work great for you. And if you have dry skin, consider trying Forest Essentials Kashmiri Saffron Face Wash, CeraVe Hydrating Face Wash or KIEHL’s Calendula Foaming Face wash. 

5. Applying Cleanser Incorrectly

Many people do all the right things when it comes to cleansing. They get a cleanser that perfectly suits their skin type, double cleanse regularly and use a soft towel to wipe their face, but they unknowingly apply the cleanser in an incorrect way. 

The right way to rub in the cleanser is by massaging it on your skin in round circular motions. This not only improves blood circulation but also helps unclog the pores. While 30 seconds is enough to rub in the cleanser, feel free to double it up if you are trying to get rid of makeup or sweat after a gym session. Anything more than that can possibly dry out your face. 

6. Not Double Cleansing

With everything that your skin goes through during the day, it’s incredibly important to double cleanse in the evening. Double cleansing consists of two rounds of face cleansing, first with an oil-based cleanser or micellar water and then with a gel-based cleanser. This two-step cleansing process ensures that your skin is steer clear of any impurities or makeup products that might have been clogging the pores.  

While it’s okay to use just a gel-based cleanser in the morning, don’t ever make the mistake of skipping double cleansing at night if you want to keep your skin healthy.  

I use either Bioderma Micellar water or DHC deep cleansing oil to cleanse my face before washing it with CeraVe hydrating facial cleanser.  

As double cleansing can leave your skin feeling dry, make sure that you use a high-quality hydrating cleanser for the purpose and apply moisturizer immediately after.  

7. Exfoliating Too Often

Exfoliation helps in getting rid of dead skin cells, impurities and flaky patches. Though it’s incredibly important to exfoliate your skin, doing it too often can end up doing more damage than good. Besides stripping your skin of its natural oils, over-exfoliation can end up damaging the natural oil barrier of your skin. So no matter how clean and polished your skin appears to be after a nice session of exfoliation, try not to do it more than once in 4 or 5 days. That’s all your skin needs to stay clean and healthy. 

There you have it! Cleansing your face is a significant part of your daily skincare routine, so make sure that you don’t leave any room for mistakes.  

Happy cleansing!