The precleanse: how to easily remove stubborn makeup

If you struggle to get your makeup off easily and efficiently after a night out, think of what TV newsreaders go through.

Night after night they have to take off heavy TV makeup.

Sometimes this is an lighter or 'airbrush' version but it's still heavier than street makeup.

And anyway, all makeup is congesting to skin, no matter how much or little is applied, also whether it's mineral based makeup or not.

What's essential for clear, smooth skin is regularly cleaning makeup from skin and pores - but also, doing this gently, without stripping or drying out your skin.

The trick to easily removing stubborn makeup

Luckily, we can help. 

As long as you follow our three quick and easy steps:

Precleanse, cleanse, exfoliate

Pecleansing is the important first step in an evening cleansing routine because it makes everything else easier.

Taking a minute or so to precleanse is well worthwhile.

Why precleanse? 

You may groan at the thought of anything extra in a cleansing/nighttime skin care routine that gets between you and your head on the pillow.

But adding a very fast precleansing step ensures there won’t be leftover makeup smudges when you wake up in the morning.

This is because precleansing with oil loosens and emulsifies makeup. 

Then, a gentle cleanser will easily clean off this loosened makeup. 

Using this method ensures there is absolutely no need to use a harsh, stripping cleanser to remove makeup.

This alone will ensure you have healthier, better feeling skin.

How better cleansing gives better skin

Inefficient cleansing of makeup can create problems for your skin - that won’t be solved as easily popping a stained pillowcase into the wash.

Makeup is often blamed for causing many types of skin problems, from dryness, and early ageing to clogged pores, acne and breakouts.

Certainly, many types of makeup foundations contain ingredients that will clog and congest pores (more on that later) and practically all types of makeup will age and dehydrate your skin.

Makeup isn't the problem, it's how it's removed 

But it’s not actually makeup that’s causing the above skin problems. It’s because makeup isn’t being removed efficiently, gently and with kind-to-skin ingredients.

When makeup - any type of makeup - sits on the skin because it hasn’t been removed properly, skin suffers - whether this is in the short term (breakouts) or long term (clogged pores, dryness, ageing).

Efforts to clean makeup off thoroughly are often thwarted because cleansers and exfoliators are either too harsh, so damage skin, or ineffective - don’t clean properly.

And in a vicious circle, when incorrect cleansing of makeup causes skin problems the tendency is to use makeup to cover the problems.

Four ways to stop makeup congesting, dehydrating and ageing skin:

1. Cleanse it off effectively, including from within the pores.
2. Cleanse it off gently, avoiding harsh products that strip the skin’s natural oils.
3. Cleanse it off with nutritive plant extract ingredients that ‘feed’ the skin, not with ingredients that introduce ageing elements into the skin.
4. Plus this age old good skin advice:
   Don’t go to sleep without taking your makeup off. Because that’s never good for skin!

Is any makeup easier to remove than others?

 Makeup foundation brands vary in how thick they feel on the skin but even the lightest feeling makeup can be difficult to remove if the ingredients are of the types that tend to ‘cling’ to skin.

Three types of makeup:

1. Light
   Fluid makeup feels light but because it is usually silicone based and includes ingredients such as cyclopentasiloxane, isododecane, mineral oil and dimethicone it requires thorough removal to prevent it causing skin problems.
2. Medium
   Mineral powder makeups are based on zinc oxide which easily congests pores unless skin is cleansed and exfoliated after each application.
3. Heavy
   BB and CC creams, zinc based cream foundations, makeup based on beeswax, shea butter. For these, thorough cleansing is recommended.

For all makeup types, we recommend our quick, gentle and effective makeup cleanse:

1. Precleanse: with wet hands massage two or three pumps of Rosewood or Sage Face Oil over face and eye makeup, including mascara (rub with fingertips on lashes, don't rub oil in eyes).
   The fine-textured plant oils liquefy and loosen makeup without congesting skin.
2. Cleanse: follow with gentle and nutritive Plant Gel Cleanser or Sundew Cleansing Milk.
3. Exfoliate: in one step, gently exfoliate and clear pores with One Step Exfoliating Cleanser.
   
   *If you're time poor or tired (think last thing at night) combine steps 2 and 3.