I am firm believer in thoroughly removing makeup thoroughly each evening before I cleanse my face. I want to apply cleanser to a relatively makeup free face because I believe that a cleanser’s role is exactly that: to cleanse and not to remove makeup. I’ve been working on getting my makeup removal routine on lock and I’ve gotten to that point now where I have the right products and techniques that get the job 100% done.

I have been a believer in double cleansing for a while so I aim for my makeup removal routine to be gentle but effective because I don’t want to strip my skin before cleansing it and these are the products that I use.

Wipes
I went through a phase of not using makeup wipes because I thought they were team too much but I’m back to loving them again. I feel like all my other products work better once the bulk of the makeup has been removed using the wipes. I just make sure to be gentle when I use them and I haven’t seen an negatives effects on my skin. I don’t have a brand preference, I look for ones that are alcohol free and for sensitive skin and I’m good to go.

Cleansing balms
This is where the magic lies! Cleansing balms are at the heart of my makeup removal step. I have gone through a number of types of these products from oils, milks, balms and creams and I can safely say that balms are my favourite. Most of these products have to be rubbed into the skin (I do it for 60 seconds) and then you add water, when the product gets in contact with water it then emulsifies and is easily rinsed off. The current products I have on rotation are: The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter, Banila Co Clean it Zero Cleansing Balm (a firm favourite) and L’Oreal Fine Flowers Cleansing Cream.

Micellar water
I’m sure I’ve said this countless times before, when micellar water hit the SA scene I was so keen to use it. I followed the instructions: adding some product to a cotton pad and using it to remove my makeup pre-cleansing… I hated it! I eventually gave away the the first bottle I bought because I felt like the product didn’t work for me at all and it was a waste of my cotton pads. I tried using it again to remove the bits of left over makeup *after* cleansing my face and that is where I hit the jackpot – this method worked so well for me and I’ve been in love with micellar water ever since. I’ve recently cracked open this one from Ponds and well see how I like it.

60 seconds rule
So this is a technique I’ve been using for the past 4 months and it works! So the premise is that you cleanse your skin for 60 seconds, the person who came up with it says that most people wash their face for a average of 15 seconds (this was me!) and that this is not enough time to ensure that your face is properly clean. Since using this technique I find that my skin has felt so much smoother and I hardly ever get any makeup left over on my skin after cleansing even stubborn eye makeup, I don’t even need to use a separate eye makeup remover anymore. Choosing the right cleanser is the best way to ensure success with this method, you need to find a gentle cleanser that will not strip the skin.

Let me know which products / techniques you use to remove makeup