KEY POINTS:
Cleansing is for life and not just in the morning. Looking after skin means always taking makeup off at night - no excuses. I already do that but this year vowed to cleanse properly, not just throw a handful of cleanser at my face and follow up with a mandatory rinse. This lot encourages such virtuous behaviour.
1. Clinique Take the Day Off Cleansing Milk
$60 for 200ml
A brilliant cleansing milk that is gentle beyond belief and is, consequently, fragrance-free. It also has shea butter to help stop water loss and keep skin moisturised. The handy pump is also appreciated.
* From selected department stores and pharmacies.
2. Origins Plantidote Mega-Mushroom Face Cleanser
$54 for 150ml
Dr Andrew Weil, renowned integrative medicine man and guest on Oprah, helped come up with the Plantidote products, designed to keep skin from what he calls the fire within. That's dryness, redness, hyperpigmentation and lines to us. Special mushrooms along with ginger, turmeric and basil help look after skin. This is one gentle cleanser that still manages to get tough on makeup and impurities. Using this gives you the same done-good feeling as a yoga class.
* From selected department stores, Origins Botany Town Centre and pharmacies.
3. Laura Mercier One-step Cleanser
$75 for 200ml
A thick creamy cleanser, this is a one-man show acting as cleanser, toner and eye makeup remover. As such, it's a bit of a scene stealer.
* From Smith & Caughey's Queen St.
4. Dermalogica Precleanse
$67.10 for 150ml
Okay, so we may be getting a little obsessive about cleanliness now, but this plant-based oil is used before a milky cleanser to dissolve excess oil, waterproof makeup and sunscreen with a combination of olive and kukui oils among others, to really clean skin without resorting to that squeaky clean feeling you get when you've removed the skin's natural oils.
It's like a beauty therapist has given your skin a good going over.
* From selected beauty therapists.
5. Annabel Spa Face Mitt
$24
Reinforcements. This microfibre mitt helps your cleanser to get in there and remove any trace of makeup your fingers aren't able to. Think of the mitt as the cavalry coming to the aid of the foot soldier.
* From selected department stores, pharmacies and gift stores.
