Rankings - Cleanser Edition
Now that I've had a chance to try out several different cleansers I wanted to start ranking and comparing them and sharing with you my personal thoughts and experiences with the various products not just individually, but in contrast to one another.
I will continue to update these rankings as I try more and more new cleanser (I have like 5 new cleansers lying around still waiting to be tested), but I feel like I have a good amount under my belt to kick off this ranking series so here we go!
Coming in at # 1 is [drum roll please]...
...a tie between the Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Cleansing Foam and the Garnier Clean+ Balancing Gel Exfoliator
I know it's no fun to have a tie..not gonna lie I complain about it too sometimes cause it's like there is no real winner, but I honestly love both of them an equal amount and had a hard time deciding so I decided to make them both my #1 cleanser, BUT I will say this...depending on the season they do switch off.
Right now during these super hot summer months (carrying over into fall), Garnier does take the lead to claim the number one spot because it really does a great job of balancing my combo skin. The hot sometimes humid summer months make my t-zone a lot oilier than normal so this does a great job of handling that issue for me.
Its a nice light weight gel cleanser with an awesome, very summer appropriate (in my opinion), sweet citrusy grapefruit scent that just wakes you up and invigorates you; but most importantly it takes care of my t-zone without drying out the rest of my face and just leaves my face feeling really nice and balanced and clean and smooth and velvety.
However, once we transition into the colder dry winter months (carrying over into spring) then Innisfree takes the lead to claim the number one spot because I love how hydrating this cleanser is, and we can all use an extra boost of hydration during the winter am I right?
First of all, I love how luxuriously creamy and whipped it becomes once you lather it up. Secondly, its got this soapy sweet scent to it that I feel like is perfect for the winter. Lastly, and most importantly though, it just leaves my skin feeling clean yet hydrated and silky soft and smooth...just like a baby's bottom.
Next up in the # 3 spot...
...First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser
I find this to be somewhat, but not really similar to the Innisfree cleanser. It's not whipped, but it is a very creamy cleanser that does a great job of cleaning your face whilst keeping it hydrated. It also leaves your face soft and smooth and is a very nice gentle yet effective cleanser.
It does a great job of removing makeup as well if you'd like to use this for that (it removed my Benefit They're Real eyeliner and mascara no problem). I mainly just use this as a straight facial cleanser, but I have used it a few times to take off makeup and it does it well. It is on the pricier side though =(
Coming in at #4 we have...
...Julep Love Your Bare Face Detoxifying Cleansing Stick
Honestly, when I first tried this I didn't think much of it. I though it would end up being a blah not so good cleanser, but I was very pleasantly surprised. Despite having no lather or bubbling or foaming action, it does a really good job of cleansing the face and leaving it soft and supple. Also, being in stick form this is travel friendly and so easy to use.
I thought about putting this in the #3 spot, given how great and easy and travel friendly it is, but this thing is expensive. Full price this is $28 and you only get 1.94 oz worth of product. That's not even half the average size of a cleanser which is 5 oz and above. Not only that, but I feel like this cleanser will go faster than a normal cleanser as well because with a normal cleanser I just take a dime sized amount and lather it up, but this melts down rather quickly as you swipe it all over your face (probably due to all the delicious oils in the ingredient list) so I feel like it won't last for very long. Because of that I did knock it down to the #4 spot.
At #5 we have...
...CosRx Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser
A lot of people seem to love this cleanser, but I'm not one of them. Not that I don't like it or that it's bad, but it wasn't amazing either, in my opinion, to make me love it. This is a gentle cleanser that gets your face clean and nice, but it didn't go above and beyond to leave my face feeling silky soft and smooth or anything like that. Just nice and clean...but people with sensitive skin and/or acne prone skin would probably like this a lot better than I do because of how gentle it is while still getting your face clean. I, however, want more from my cleanser. Plus, it doesn't smell good. Not bad, but not good. It's got tea tree in it.
Next up at #6 is...
...Ciracle Anti-Blemish Tea Tree Face Wash
This is an ok cleanser. Not bad, but nothing special. Smells of tea tree which is not my most favorite scent, but manageable. I had gotten this strictly for it's anti-blemish properties to combat the hormonal acne that I usually get that special time of the month, but unfortunately it did nothing to help/stop that. It just does it's job of cleansing the face and that's about it. Doesn't leave my face super smooth and soft or anything like that. Has no effect on the amount or severity of my hormonal acne. It's just leaves my face clean. The thing I love most about this product is the packaging. I love that this is in a sturdy clear bottle with a pump. Once I'm done using this I will definitely keep the bottle and rinse it out to use with a different product.
Rounding out the list at #7 is...
...Biore Deep Pore Charcoal Cleanser
This would be ranked higher on this list, but it ended up at #8 because of the irritating menthol that is in here. This gives off a strong minty tingly feeling on the face that doesn't dissipate and go away. It is nice and refreshing at first, but then it starts to get irritating and it actually lasts for quite a bit so that is a big con for me. Even though it may be a better performing cleanser than some of the other cleansers above, at least those don't irritate...but if you're someone who doesn't mind a good minty tingly feeling and has skin that doesn't get irritated by anything (and don't mind some questionable ingredients like SLS and parabens) than you might like this because aside from the menthol I actually found this to be quite a nice performing cleanser. It cleansed the face really well without stripping it of moisture and left my face feeling soft and smooth which was nice.
