Why Makeup Wipes Aren't The Best Method To Cleanse Your Face
If you were to take a glance at my skincare stash, you'd see a wide variety of cleansers, serums, essences, sheet masks, clay masks, oils and AHA treatments. The one thing that many women swear by that you won't find is makeup wipes, or facial cleansing wipes.
Cleansing wipes are my least preferred method of cleaning my skin.
It wasn't always this way, though. In fact, there was a time in my life when I used cleansing wipes religiously. Once upon a time, when taking off my makeup at night was one big struggle, I just used a cleansing wipe, slapped on some sort of moisturizer afterward and drifted off to bed. Though I took the time to make sure I "removed" my makeup every night, my skin looked just as bad as when I didn't remove my makeup at all. This should have raised a red flag for me, but at the time, cleansing wipes were the new big trend, and I wanted to be one of the cool kids.
What Makes Cleansing Wipes Bad
Don't get me wrong, I totally get the appeal of using cleansing wipes, and that's why I started using them in the first place. They are easy to use, require zero clean-up and when you stumble home from a night out with your friends, you can just wipe and go to bed. It's literally every makeup-wearer's dream. But here's the thing: chances are, your cleansing wipes aren't getting rid of all the traces of makeup on your skin and they usually contain ingredients that may be harmful to the skin, such as alcohol and preservatives that are typically omitted from traditional makeup removers.
While it's definitely better to do something rather than nothing at all, I still cry a little on the inside when I see people wiping their face with a cleansing wipe and then just moving on with the rest of their routine. Though many cleansing wipes are advertised to remove makeup in addition to dirt and oil in the skin, your dermatologist would agree that cleansing wipes are not a substitute for actually washing your face and should be used sparingly.
Yes, they are saturated in ingredients that help to remove your makeup and dirt from the skin, but in order to make sure your skin is actually clean, you still need to cleanse your face afterward and preferably with a facial cleanser and water. Rinsing your face with water is what helps to remove all the dirt and makeup grime from your skin. If you are using a cleansing wipe but not properly washing your face, or at the veryleast rinsing it afterward, you're sort of just using the wipe to move makeup, dirt and bacteria all over your skin.
Properly removing makeup sets the tone for the rest of your skincare regimen. If your skin isn't really clean after using a cleansing wipe, all of the serums, moisturizers and oils you put on afterwards aren't really able to do their job effectively. Instead, everything just sits on top of the skin, instead of penetrating and absorbing. This can result in clogged pores, breakouts and dry skin. Since cleansing wipes have a long shelf life, most contain high amounts of preservatives and harmful anti-bacterial ingredients, which are not great for your skin.
What To Do Instead
If you love using cleansing wipes, the best way to incorporate them into your routine by using them to remove makeup, and then following up with a gentle cleanser to ensure your face is fully clean. I personally remove makeup with an oil cleanser and follow up with a gentle foaming face cleanser, and I am loving the results of it!
If you, too, are not satisfied with cleansing wipes as a method of cleaning your face, here are some great alternatives:
- Micellar water, made up of tiny balls of oil suspended in soft water, is an excellent cleansing option for those who wear lightweight makeup or have sensitive skin. Popular brands include Bioderma, Simple and Garnier.
- Cleansing balms are solid, silky cleansers that transform to a soft milky cleaner. They are great removing makeup, leaving the skin smooth and hydrated. Balm cleansers are great for those with dry skin. I love Clinique Take The Day Off and Banila Clean it Zero.
- Cleansing oils are just that, oils that are used to clean your face. It sounds counterintuitive, but when you use oil cleansers to cleanse your face and remove makeup, the oil binds to the oil and dirt in your skin. When you rinse your face, the good oil rinses off, taking all of the gross oil and dirt with it. Magic! My favorites are plain ol' argan oil or the Sulwasoo Gentle Cleansing Oil.
Cleansing wipes are extremely popular and will probably be around for centuries to come, but just make sure if you do decide to use them that you aren't jeopardizing the health of your skin in the process.
How do you feel about cleansing wipes? Let us know in the comments.
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ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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You've Never Seen Luke James In A Role Quite Like This
Over the years, we've watched Luke James play countless characters we'd deem sex symbols, movie stars, and even his complicated character in Lena Waithe's The Chi. For the first time in his career, the New Orleans-born actor has taken on a role where his signature good looks take a backseat as he transforms into Edmund in Them: The Scare—a mentally deranged character in the second installment of the horror anthology series that you won't be able to take your eyes off.
Trust us, Edmund will literally make you do a double take.
xoNecole sat down with Luke James to talk about his latest series and all the complexity surrounding it—from the challenges taking on this out-of-the-box role to the show's depiction of the perplexing history of the relationship between Black Americans and police. When describing the opportunity to bring Edmund's character to life, Luke was overjoyed to show the audience yet another level of his masterful acting talents.
"It was like bathing in the sun," he said. "I was like, thank you! Another opportunity for me to be great—for me to expand my territory. I'm just elated to be a part of it and to see myself in a different light, something I didn't think I could do." He continued, "There are parts of you that says, 'Go for it because this is what you do.' But then also that's why it's a challenge because you're like, 'um, I don't know if I'm as free as I need to be to be able to do this.' Little Marvin just created such a safe space for me to be able to do this, and I'm grateful for everything I've been able to do to lead to this."
Courtesy
Them: The Scare, like the first season, shines a light on the plight of Black Americans in the United States. This time, the story is taking place in the 1990s, at the height of the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles. While the series presents many underlying themes, one that stands out is Black people and the complicated relationship with the police. "For the audience, I think it sets the tone for the era that we're in and the amount of chaos that's in the air in Los Angeles and around the country from this heinous incident. And I say it just sets the tone of the anxiety and anxiousness that everybody is feeling in their own households."
James has been a longtime advocate against police brutality himself. He has even featured Elijah McClain, the 23-year-old Colorado man who died after being forcibly detained by officers, as his Instagram avatar for the past five years. So, as you can imagine, this script was close to his heart. "Elijah was a soft-loving oddball. Different than anyone but loving and a musical genius. He was just open and wanted to be loved and seen."
Getty Images
Luke continued, "His life was taken from him. I resonate with his spirit and his words...through all the struggle and the pain he still found it in him to say, 'I love you and I forgive you.' And that's who we are as people—to our own detriment sometimes. He's someone I don't want people to forget. I have yet to remove his face from my world because I have yet to let go of his voice, let go of that being [because] there's so many people we have lost in our history that so often get forgotten."
He concluded, "I think that's the importance of such artwork that moves us to think and talk about it. Yes, it's entertaining. We get to come together and be spooked together. But then we come together and we think, 'Damn, Edmund needed someone to talk to. Edmund needed help... a lot [of] things could have been different. Edmund could have been saved.'
Check out the full interview below.
Luke James Talks Ditching Sex Symbol Status For "Them: The Scare", Elijah McClain, & Morewww.youtube.com
Featured image by Getty Images