Cleansers I’ve been enjoying lately

Skin Type: Oily, prone to closed comedones (also known as whiteheads), sebum/keratin plugs. My acne is 99% of the time comedonal.

Climate: Tropical / hot + humid Southeast Asia

Age: Late 20s

I am an absolute cleanser fiend, and usually have 4-5 cleansers on my bathroom at all times. They all serve different purposes in my skincare routine as my skin basically likes different variation of CLEAN depending on what stage of skin cycling I’ve been doing.

****Caveat about repurchasing: I think my criteria for repurchasing is extremely high, so please take that with a grain of salt. I love trying out new things and products that I think are genuinely exceptional happen quite rarely. I would say 1 out of 20 things I purchase I will immediately repurchase, as the options out there are numerous and nothing is truly innovative in the oversaturated beauty market.

THE DAILY DRIVER: the **Isntree Green Tea Fresh Cleanser** (120 mL)

Review: This is my typical morning cleanser, with a very fresh feeling. Mornings after nights of tretinoin or hard-hitting exfoliation, I reach for this as it basically cleanses my oily skin of all residue without being stripping in any way. I was a fan of the Isntree Green Tea Toner and this cleanser has the same scent as the toner which I like very much. I do not care much for the bits of tea leaves in the cleanser as they do jack shit for the performance of the cleanser, but it is easy to wash off and at least it smells nice.

Cleansing Power: 🫧🫧🫧 (3.5/5) – good for a morning/gentle cleanse

Texture: A tea-colored gel with specks of tea leaves. There is foam, but wouldn’t say it’s very foamy.

Smells Like: Green tea, very natural and to me quite nonoffensive

Recommended for: Normal / Combo / Oily skins who enjoy a gentle but effective cleanse in the summer. If you are not someone who can handle a gentle foaming cleanser, I would give this one a miss. Green tea is a natural astringent and can be drying, so that’s something to take into consideration as well.

Similar to: LAGOM Gel to Water Cleanser, Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Cleanser

Overall Rating: 8/10, WNRP (I prefer the bLab Matcha Cleanser as the price point is better and the cleansing power is better than the isntree)