How to Wash Your Face Like a Pro

1. “Rinse your face with warm water to moisten the skin. If you’re using an oil, shake your bottle, apply one pump into your palms and rub hands together. The liquid will start to emulsify.

2. Massage the cleanser into your skin and slowly add more warm water to create a lather. (Insider Tip: add tiny handfuls of water from the faucet, keeping your face low in the basin.) I like to use the first three fingers of each hand and work them together, in symmetry. Think about massaging the muscles under the skin rather than the skin — you don't want to be so gentle you can't really feel anything, but you don't want to pull on the skin either. It may take a few times to really figure out the right pressure and rhythm.  

3. Work the cleanser all over the face; begin with the nose and cheekbones, moving outward. Try rubbing back and forth over the bridge of the nose, and down and around the nostrils. Then draw circles around the eyes, work up and outward on the forehead, around the ears, down the sides of your face, jawline/chin, and do small circles up the neck. I like to apply a little pressure and work the circles on my lymph nodes under my jaw and top of neck for a while (about two minutes). 

4. Rinse your hands in running water and follow the same pattern with water, slowly removing the cleanser; this can be repeated multiple times. 

5. If you’re wearing heavy makeup, soak a warm muslin cloth in water and gently swipe across face, removing any residue and drying the skin. Or some people opt to just rinse off their oil cleansers with water. 

6. After the face is thoroughly cleansed and rinsed, pat dry with a soft towel. You can also moisten a cotton pad with a hydrating facial mist and swipe across face as a quick alternative to the double cleansing technique.”