The crucial step before cleansing to ensure you aren't 'washing your face wrong'

Dr Shereene Idriss / Woman taking makeup off

A dermatologist shared how to properly wash your face

TikTok / @shereeneidriss / GETTY IMAGES
Anna Barry

By Anna Barry


Published: 08/10/2024

- 12:55

Removing your sunscreen and makeup before cleansing is essential

While you likely wash your face at least once a day, according to an expert you could be getting this seemingly simple task wrong.

A dermatologist took to TikTok to share the correct way to cleanse, stressing the importance of removing your makeup first.


Dr Shereene Idriss (@shereeneidriss) said: "You guys have been washing your faces all wrong. I'm a 39-year-old board-certified dermatologist and this is how you wash your face.

"First things first, if you're wearing sunscreen, if you're wearing makeup or if you're wearing both, you have to remove that first." The expert recommended using a micellar water product to do this.

Dr Shereene Idriss

'You guys have been washing your faces all wrong'

TikTok / @shereeneidriss

She said: "As you gently swipe across your face, the micelles work like magnets, lifting the dirt and the makeup from your face and onto a cotton pad.

"This allows you to remove that first layer of gunk on your face so that when you go in with your cleanser, it can work better to remove the excess dirt and residues left behind."

Moving on to cleansing, the expert recommended grabbing a face cloth - a different one for every night of the week.

She encouraged ladies to take their favourite cleanser, squeeze it into their palm and then warm it up between their hands. You can add a drop of water before warming it up.

Dr Shereene continued: "At this point, you want to go in dry on your face to really break up all the residual oils left behind."

She explained that "anything left behind from the micellar water is now getting broken up by the cleanser".

The dermatologist told women to massage the cleanser into their faces for around a minute or so, focusing on around the nose and in places they may tend to forget, for example under the face and neck.

Then, she encouraged skin care enthusiasts to dampen their face cloths and wipe their faces.

Woman washing her face

Complete your cleansing routine by splashing your face

GETTY IMAGES

It's important to wipe your face rather than splashing it for more effective cleansing. She explained that this technique picks up any residual cleanser left behind.

The dermatologist then encouraged her viewers to splash their faces with water to complete the process.

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There's also a chance you're washing your hair wrong, with one expert revealing the important step you're likely missing out.

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