EP 18 | Why Harsh Cleansers Could Be Damaging Your Skin Barrier

Cleansing: the skincare step that makes or breaks your results

Think your cleanser doesn’t matter? Think again. In this episode, we uncover why proper cleansing is the foundation of any effective skincare routine—and how skipping or rushing it could be wasting your serums and moisturizers.

You’ll learn the power of the double cleanse (oil first, then gentle cleanser) with the perfect analogy: you have to sweep before you mop. We also cover when to exfoliate, how to listen to your skin’s changing needs, and what to avoid if your face ever feels tight or raw after washing.

If you’re ready to get the most out of your products and finally see results, start here.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
If someone is struggling with acne, or even if
they want prejuvenation justsay they're in their 20s or 30s,
you know or even if they wantanti-aging and a little reversal
, like what's a good at-homeskincare routine that you often
recommend.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Yeah, so you know the .
You know your bread and butteris going to be a good double
cleanse.

Speaker 1 (00:19):
What's a double cleanse?

Speaker 2 (00:20):
Yeah, so double cleanse is honestly one of my
favorites.
It's the best way to start yourroutine.
You always start with like anoil-based cleanser to get rid of
all that dead skin, the oil,the buildup of makeup.
That's kind of like yoursweeping, and then you'll go on
with your second cleanse.
That could be any cleanserthat's good for your skin type,

(00:40):
so a glycolic or just acream-based one, and that's
going to be your mopping.
So you want to brush.
You know you want to sweepfirst and then you want to mop
the skin.
So it's a little analogy.
I always like to tell my clientsbecause you got to do both to
get a good slate to your skin.
So you'd always start with thecleanse, go in with your toner
next.
That could be whatever goalyou're trying to reach And's

(01:04):
very customizable with that.
And then, of course, serums andthat's what the fun part is
serums.
You can do so many differentmixology, so many different
combinations.
Um, moisturizer, of course,keeping up with the skin's
moisture, hydration, and thenour number one, sunscreen at the
end for your day-to-dayoperations.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
That's really nice.
Yeah, so do you do a doublecleanse in the morning or just
at night to get the makeup offand the environmental?

Speaker 2 (01:32):
Yeah, you know I typically just do a double
cleanse at nighttime.
You can do it in the morning.
If sometimes people sweat alittle bit more when they're
sleeping or they just feel thatlayer on.
I personally just like to do agood first cleanse in the
morning time with either a gelor a lactic acid type of

(01:53):
cleanser and really get deep inthe pores to prep my skin for.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Yeah, I think that, like your point about the
cleansing, is so essential,because I think you know we
don't talk about cleanser a lot.
Everybody wants to go to likethe targeted, directed serums.
But, like, having a goodcleanser is so important in
order to prep the skin to absorbthe actives in the products and
if we're not using the rightcleanser, to your point, we can

(02:18):
strip the skin barrier.
So what I don't like people tofeel is that tight feeling on
their skin.
So, like I like a creamycleanser that actually is active
and the way I can tell so, moonand Skin has created this kale
protein cleanser that actuallycleanses the skin.
But when I take tonerafterwards and I sweep the skin,

(02:38):
I don't see much dirt left.
So that's how I know mycleanser is doing a good job
without feeling tight and raw orburning, because we want to
listen to our skin and know it'snot burning afterwards.
Right, yes, yeah, we want totreat it and keep it hydrated
and protect that microbiomehealth because, yeah, exactly,
if we strip it, your productsand your serums aren't going to

(03:00):
really do much for it afterRight, there's such a fine line
where we're walking, where we'reexfoliating and removing the
dead skin cells so things canpenetrate, but yet not stripping
the skin barrier, so it's rawand irritated and we're getting
a dermatitis.
That's what I'm hearing fromyou.
Yes, yes.
So how do we know that we're inthat spot?

Speaker 2 (03:20):
I think, just like what you said, if you're feeling
that burning or that drynessand almost feeling like you're,
if you like open your mouth andyou feel it like tug, that's
when I tell clients I'm like youknow that might be not the best
cleanser for you.
You know you want to keep thathydration, you want to feel your
skin kind of have that bounceback to it, and if it's feeling

(03:41):
too tight or almost flaky, thenthat might not be the one for
you.

Speaker 1 (03:46):
And how about with exfoliation?
So with exfoliation, I mean,I've been doing this so long,
right?
So for myself, I know my skin.
We actually have to get to thepoint where we look for advice
externally, but then we listento our own body and how our own
body responds, and listen toourselves and intuitively know
what we need.
How do you direct your clientsto determine that they need a

(04:10):
little more exfoliation or alittle exfoliation?
Because with the seasons, withthe seasons of our life, with,
uh, our hormonal cycles, likeall of those needs are going to
change.
Different geographicenvironments like when I go to
california, I need moreexfoliation than in, than in
Arizona, where it's dry and myskin doesn't tolerate it.
So how do you guide people asfar as when to exfoliate, like

(04:32):
what's a good rule?

Speaker 2 (04:34):
I always like to go in and feel the skin because I
think that's how you're going toknow what's best for your
clients is feeling the skin,what it feels like and what it
looks like.
Sometimes if they have thatbuildup of texture on, then I
would like to recommend aphysical exfoliant.
It could have some differentbeads or different properties in

(04:54):
there to give a good scrub.
But that also goes back to ouracne clients, because if you
have that inflamed acne youdon't want to do a scrub on the
skin because that's just goingto irritate it, spread more
bacteria.
So then you would go in with adifferent type of exfoliant,
like a chemical or I'd mainly gowith chemical for sure for the

(05:15):
inflamed acne.
But yeah, I guess, just feelingthe skin and seeing the texture
and what would be a best one.