favorite facial cleansers.

I was late to the skincare world. Later than I should have been. When my thyroid was malfunctioning (still does), and it took years of my life to resolve those issues (finding the right doctor, and slowly finding the right amount of thyroid replacement drugs), I really needed to feel some sense of personal control. And then I found my skincare guide, Caroline Hirons. Affectionally called Lady Hirons (She is British, but not yet a Lady.) or the Queen of Skincare, she taught me all things I wish I had known as a teenager with acne.

I started small. Learning the order in which products are applied and when to use products (night v day), how to cleanse my skin (double cleanse forever), and learned more about SPF. Thankfully, as a very fair redhead, I had long been slathering on the SPF, but now I learned to up the SPF as I age. (minimum is 50 for me. every single day on my face, at a minimum.)

Caroline’s blog history has everything you need to know, or you could buy her books. I have both the original version and the new edit. It is a skincare bible. If you do not know what to do or where to start in skincare (and you should take care of your skin. It is your body’s largest organ.), start with Caroline’s book.

Caroline is amazing, generally. She founded Beauty Backed (now the Beauty Backed Trust) in the UK to raise funds to support beauty industry workers who were impacted by the UK shutdown during covid and seemingly let out of government relief packages despite being a large contributor to the overall UK economy. Before the UK reopened, the Beauty Backed team held free, online classes to assist beauty industry workers.

She started her own line of skincare and a skincare app to answer questions - Skin Rocks.

She has always and continues to support other estheticians, including Dija Ayodele, who published Black Skin: the definitive skincare guide (another skincare bibe) and curates the Black Skin Directory on her website.

So, on to the cleansers I love.

one love organics botanical b enzyme cleansing oil. one of the options for my first cleanse. a great make-up remover.

votary super seed cleansing oil. one of the options for my first cleanse. a great make-up remover at a higher price point.

indie lee’s balm cleanser. one of the options for my first cleanse. removes the make-up and dirt after the day.

jane scrivner’s the nourishing cleanser. a lush cleansing balm with bee’s wax or without. the second cleanser of my nightly cleanse.

indie lee’s brightening cleanser. my go-to every morning in the shower for a light wash after a night’s sleep.