So I do get quite a few questions on a weekly basis, and I try to answer all of them to the best of my ability but sometimes I get swamped and tend to forget a handful along the way. That’s why I decided to create a weekly column called “Skin care FAQ”…I’m going to take some of your most popular questions and answer them (simple, huh?)! Last week I got a really good question from one of my readers to get the ball rolling, and today I’m going to talk about why your cleanser and toner should almost always be paired off (so your Clinique cleanser better be used with a Clinique toner). This one’s a good one, so I urge you to stay tuned for an absolutely essential skin care crash course!
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“I buy most of my skin care from The Bay, but I get worried because a lot of products recommend a line of products or a certain product to work in conjuction with them…do I have to use products from the same line to achieve flawless skin?”
The answer (for the most part) is no, aside from your cleanser and toner whatever else you use can come from wherever! The only reason why it’s so important to keep your cleanser and toner in the same family is because when used in conjunction they help to ensure that your skin is returned to the proper pH balance after the cleansing process…now, keep in mind that depending on your skin type a proper pH level is anywhere from 4.5 to 6.5 (the measure is out of 14, 0 being the most acidic and 14 being the most alkaline). Typically cleansers are alkaline while toners are more acidic…this means that if you’re using a cleanser from Clinique and a toner from Vichy that the products weren’t formulated to work together and there’s a possibility that they’re going to imbalance your skin’s pH levels and compromise the acid mantle sitting on the skin.
The acid mantle is like a film on the face that’s made up of amino acids, urea, minerals, sweat and the like…it prevents bacterial invasion into the skin, locks in moisture, helps to protect the skin from UV rays, cold, heat and pollution…guess what happens if you’re compromising that? That’s right, you’re exposing your skin to a ton of elements that are going to speed up the aging process, possibly cause bacterial infections (even pimples are bacterial infections) and the list tends to trail on…It’s so important to keep your cleanser and toner paired off simply to ensure that you don’t risk any of these implications and don’t have to worry about throwing your money away.
Important note – This also goes to show you why you need a toner. So many people like to think that they’re outdated, and this is a completely untrue perception of them. A toner helps to remove anything left behind by your cleanser (including the cleanser itself) and helps to restore acidity to the skin, thus balancing your pH levels…so to anyone (this is especially true for bloggers) saying that toners are an outdated method of cleansing, you’re on your own.
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I’m still looking for questions, feel free to send them to jake@tressauvage.com
Thank you so much for this post. I’m guilty of never using a toner, but after seeing what you have to say it looks like I’ll need to get one! I had no idea how important they were.
Hey Denise, thanks for the reply! I was finding that a lot of people didn’t know WHY they needed a toner, which is why I found this post to be so important. I’m trying to really stray from product reviews and things like that and focus more on education…mostly because I feel like a lot of blogs don’t really get into the science of things enough, y’know?
So glad you posted this I was curious about this myself!
That makes sense! Nice to read something with a proper explanation.
Just what I needed, an excuse to go out and buy some more beauty products. I’m not currently using a toner, but it looks like I’ll be going out to get one. Makeup is still fairly new to me, and I’ve always been under the impression that I don’t need to use a lot of primer, toner, etc. because my skin is naturally so oily (I’m sure you know where I’m going with this) and I’ve always been too worried about using too much product and giving my face a literal shine.
Obviously I know this now to be untrue, so long as I’m using the right products… anyway, I’ll be reaching for a toner now. Thanks for explaining it accurately!
Actually, because you skin is oily (so is mine) it’s even more prevalent for you to use a toner! A toner will help to constrict the pores and balance oil production (depending on the one you’re using)…if you have oily skin the pores in your t-zone are typically a lot bigger than the rest of your face, allowing dirt and debris EASY entry due to their size. That’s why for oily/acneic skin a toner is so much more important (in my opinion). If you live in Canada and you’re by a Caryl Baker Visage, invest in their Citrus cleanser and toner. It’s one of my favorites because it’s all natural, and really helps to dissolve dead skin cells and balance oil production…if you’re not, I’m a big fan of Murad’s cleanser/toner as well!
Thanks so much for reaching out, Alyssa! <3
Great post :) Toner is my favorite part of my face routine, haha.
Question: I use Witch Hazel as toner (pH 3.3) and castile soap as cleanser (pH 8.9) right now–do you think those work together? Just curious, as I’ll probably have to get stronger stuff for the summer cos my skin gets awfully oily in warm weather!
So think of it this way, let’s say your skin is sitting at 6.0 (proper pH being between 5.5 and 6.5) and you use the soap as a cleanser…you’re now sitting at a pH level of about…14, that’s the most alkaline your skin can go. Then you’re applying your toner that’ll bring it down to about a 10. That’s definitely not within the proper pH spectrum, and you might want to invest in a cleanser that’s less stripping. That was the way my old teacher taught me to look at it anyways, does that make sense to you?
Oh, ok! Yeah, it makes sense. Thank you :)
Huh. This is AWESOME information, I never knew this! I was aware about the pH levels in skin and how important it is to keep them balanced, so this totally makes sense! Excellent post, thanks a ton for this! :)
No problemo! I find myself explaining this to clients and friends almost daily, so I’m surprised I didn’t post it on my blog sooner actually! Thanks for stopping by! ;)
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