I never imagined that I would like a facial cleanser enough to buy an economy size, 500ml, bottle of it.  I REALLY never thought that I would buy two bottles, but I did…and the winner was a product by Dermalogica  “a skincare system researched and developed by the International Dermal Institute.”

I have used a great variety of cleansers over the years – well, since I became a teenager and got blessed with fluctuating hormones.  I was never one to have crazy breakouts, and my friends were constantly reminding me of how lucky I was.  Eventually though, I did start getting minor blemishes here and there.  What bugged me the most though (and continues to) were- you guessed it – black heads!  Yuck! (Am I sounding like a cheesy Clearasil commercial yet?)

The last product I was using before I switched to Dermalogica was a Murad foaming cleanser that my esthetician recommended.  It was “OK”, but not good enough to get me to buy another bottle.  New esthetician means new cleanser, and Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel hit the spot.

I am the kind of person that has to wash my face in the morning and at night, and this product was light enough to allow you to do that.  It also never dried my skin out (even during the winter).  Here is what Dermalogica has to say about the product:

A soap-free, foaming gel designed to thoroughly remove impurities without disturbing the skin’s natural moisture balance. Calming Balm Mint and Lavender extracts soothe the skin, while natural Quillaja Saponaria gently foams away toxins and deep-cleanses debris. Contains no artificial fragrance or color.

The verdict?  I am a believer.  I use this product religiously.  In fact, I recently attempted to try something new (don’t ask me why, maybe I was just bored with looking at the same bottle every morning), and it was a BIG MISTAKE.  Within a week it was breakout city.  I humbly went back to my Dermalogica and a couple of days later I was completely clear.  Use it alone or with other products.

This product gets an A from me (I am reserving the A+ for the miracle product in my imagination – because hey, you never know).

Try it with Dermalogica’s Precleanse for an even more thorough wash.  You can get this as a sample with some of the larger bottles of the Special Cleansing Gel.  It’s a lemony smelling oil-based cleanser that they tout as being “the professional’s deep cleaning weapon.“  You put it on before using the Special Cleansing Gel to melt through oil and oil-based toxins that have accumulated on your skin throughout the day.

Qwowi recommends drugstore.com where shipping is free on orders of $25 or more.

Special Cleansing Gel (8.4 oz)

Special Cleansing Gel (16.9 oz)