What Is Double Cleansing? – Korean Beauty

In Asia, Korean beauty has always been a huge thing. Furthermore, Asians are a little bit facile. Therefore, they all care about appearance and skincare. Besides in Asia, Korean beauty is also getting more famous and more popular in the western countries. However, in Europe and the USA, we tend to conceal everything with a lot of make-up instead of taking care of our skin. I have already told you about the 10 steps Korean skincare routine, and with this article, we will have a closer look at the foundation of the Korean beauty and skincare: the double cleansing.

Last summer, when I visited Seoul for the first time, my whole view on skincare changed because I learned so much, and almost everyone had perfect skin in Seoul. I wished I would have started so much earlier with taking care of my skin. But in the end, I would say better late than never, right?

W H A T   I S   D O U B L E   C L E A N S I N G?

You probably can already assume it from the name; double cleansing means you have to wash your face twice. However, before you stop reading because you are thinking “when on earth you do have time to wash your face twice”, I will you something! You would better make time for it!

Cleansing your face correctly is necessary for maximising your skincare routine because then your products can absorb better. The critical fact to consider is that K-beauty’s essential step is more than just washing your face with water and soap twice. There are two different products you have to use. The oil cleanser will remove all the dirt, make-up and sunscreen, but also the pollution, sebum and sweat. Following this step, it is time for the water-based cleanser.

1.   O I L   C L E A N S E R

I know that just thinking about cleansing your face twice already feels exhausting. I assumed that the morning’s oil cleanser is unnecessary since I do not wear make-up and sunscreen when I am sleeping. On the other hand, the skin also produces sebum while you are sleeping, and it is essential to get rid of the leftover of your sleeping mask. As a result, you have to do a double cleansing twice a day.

Even though you have oily skin like me, there is still no excuse for skipping this step. There is the misunderstanding that oily skin should avoid fatty skincare products, but this does not go for the oil cleanser, because oil likes oil.

From my own experiences, I can tell you that in the beginning, I just cleaned my face with a water-based cleanser, but since I started to do Korean beauty’s top-secret, my skin got softer, and it looks clearer within a week.

Start with a dry face and dry hands. I prefer the oil cleansers in a tangible form more, because when I used the liquid oil cleanser, it always got dropped down my arms and my bathroom became a total mess. Massage the oil cleanser into your face and also eyes and jawbones. Then, add a little bit of warm water. Due to that, it will turn milky then. After massaging it in, clean it all off.

2.   W A T E R – B A S E D   C L E A N S E R

The second step is pervasive in the Western countries, and you all probably already know about it. After you cleaned all your make-up, sunscreen and sebum, it is time to remove the rest of the oil but more importantly, all the dead skin cells and any dirt that’s left behind.

The water-based cleanser will be more useful now since you already cleansed away all your oil. It comes in the form of a foam cleanser or a gel cleanser. As you can see in the photos, I am using both types. Most of the time, I am using a foam cleanser as my daily routine. But when I just got a facial treatment and my skin is even more sensitive, I use a gel cleanser. With doing the double cleansing, you will get the most out of your skincare products and avoid that your pores are getting clogged, which leads to fewer breakouts and acne.

Since this is a super personal and important topic for me, I also wanted to mention that you definitely should still do not skip the oil-cleanser even if you struggle with acne. Even though oil and sebum is the primary cause of breakouts, as I already said, oil likes oil, and so you can reduce your acne and breakouts by doing the double cleansing.

Last but not least, after double cleansing, your face, ton it up! With a face toner, you avoid that your skin gets too dry because of all the cleanup. After these steps, have fun and enjoy your following skincare products. In my 10 steps Korean beauty skincare routine, you can find out about all the next steps.