Why Using the Right Cleanser for Your Skin Type Matters

If you want to know the truth, the right cleanser is the foundation of any good skincare routine. A good cleanser needs to remove all the external and internal elements that create havoc with your skin throughout the day—and for it to be truly effective it needs to be the right cleanser for your skin type. Doing so will help maximize your skincare routine and you’ll not only remove the pollutants that collect on your skin during the day but will also address other concerns such as acne or aging. Accurate skin analysis is the key to any effective treatments and home care regimens. So, if you want your cleanser to work for you and not dry out or properly prepare your skin for the rest of your skincare products, make sure you know your “true skin type.” (Remember: the type of skin we are born with is determined by the characteristics it displays; not by gender, ethnicity, color or condition.)

Before diving into what may seem like a never-ending sea of cleansers, formulas, and ingredients, take a few minutes to determine your skin type which starts with analyzing your pores. You may think you have dry or oily skin, but analyzing the pores along your jawline, nose, and other areas of your face will help you correctly determine your skin type. It’s as simple as four easy steps:

Step 1

Take a look at the skin on your jawline. See how it’s smooth and relatively pore-free? This is your baseline for measuring the size of your pores.

Step 2

Compare that to the skin next to your nose. Do the pores look bigger or the same?

Step 3

Now examine other areas of the face. Are your pores bigger than what’s on your jawline? Don’t pay attention to your nose—this area always has larger pores, no matter the skin type.

Step 4

Now determine your skin type based on the first three steps. Our guide offers helpful diagrams to help find your skin type, but here is an overview:

• Dry Skin = Moisture Line: If you have smaller pores on most of your face, with larger pores near the sides of your nose, you should focus on nourishing and hydrating the skin. Milk cleansers are ideal for dry skin. They work to clean yet, nourish the skin with all-natural products such as vitamin E, green tea, and mandarin.

• Combo/Oily Skin = Balance Line: Are you seeing larger pores in the T-zone area of your face? Then bring your skin back to balance by refining pores. Gel or milk cleansers both work on combo skin. Each offers strong capabilities to balance out the skin, refine pores, and clarify where oily.

• Reactive Skin = Calm Line: If redness is a bigger issue than the size of your pores, you’ll need products that use targeted botanicals to relieve irritation, calm, and soothe. If you suffer from sensitive, red skin then you’ll definitely want to use a milk cleanser. Look for a product that uses the natural anti-inflammatory properties of aloe Vera, green tea, and vitamin B5 to relieve and heal irritated skin.

• Acne Skin = Detox Line: Anything goes here…dry, combo, oily, or reactive skin with chronic breakouts. The Detox products are focused on healing and clearing existing blemishes while preventing future breakouts. A gel cleanser works best for this skin type. One formulated for acne will include a natural astringent which will help clarify breakouts and prevent future ones.

• Mature Skin = Rescue Line: Mature skin can be any skin type that that just got older. Prove time is on your side with tightening and brightening skincare products designed just for beating the clock. You guessed it…nothing prepares mature skin each day better than a milk cleanser. It will thoroughly cleanse without stripping the skin and soften the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.