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"  Your grandma made do with a jar of cold cream and little else. So why do you use 11 products a night in the name of a clean face? &amp;quot;Between all the oils, serums, toners, and lotions out there, it&amp;#039;s easy to do more harm than good when cleaning your skin,&amp;quot; says New York City facialist Diane Higgins, who takes a back-to-basics approach to skin care using natural ingredients cultivated on her Hudson Valley farm. Here, Higgins reveals how to keep it simple when you wash your face. Opt for a Cleansing Balm or Milk Cleansing balms and milks have multi-purpose ingredients that exfoliate skin, remove makeup and decongest pores. Choose a balm with nourishing plant-based oils like calendula and coconut. &amp;quot;They bind to dirt and dissolve oil much more effectively than soap and water,&amp;quot; says Higgins. If you&amp;#039;re particularly prone to clogging, look for a version containing salicylic acid. Avoid soaps and gels, which tend to dry out skin and will still have you clamoring for the eye-makeup remover.  Photo: Courtesy of Dianehiggins.com, Clinique, darphin.com Clinique Take the Day Off Cleansing Balm, $49; amazon.com Darphin Aromatic Cleansing Balm with Rosewood, $45; amazon.com Diane Higgins Artisanal Cleansing Balm, $44; dianehiggins.com Use a Washcloth &amp;quot;Washcloths remove dead skin cells and help get cleansing ingredients deep into pores,&amp;quot; says Higgins. At night, steep a washcloth in warm water, wring out and apply to your face, neck and chest to open up pores. Work a cleanser into those areas, and don&amp;#039;t forget the forehead and the back of the neck. (&amp;quot;Those places are often overlooked and are prone to deep lines and wrinkles,&amp;quot; warns Higgins.) Wipe cleanser away with the washcloth in a downward sweeping motion. Remove eye makeup last, sweeping washcloth across the tops and bottoms of the lids, starting from the outer edge of your eye and working towards the bridge of your nose.  Photo: Getty Images Apply a Toner (Not an Astringent) &amp;quot;The purpose of a toner is to add moisture back into your skin with essential anti-inflammatory ingredients,&amp;quot; says Higgins. Look for an alcohol-free version with naturally antibacterial ingredients like rosemary and sage, as well as Alpha hydroxy, which helps break up oils and slough away dead skin cells. Astringents, which typically contain alcohol, should be avoided unless you have extremely oily skin.  Photo: Courtesy of Dianehiggins.com, Walgreens, LaRoche Posay La Roche Posay Physiological Soothing Toner, $56; amazon.com Diane Higgins Herbal Blend Astringent, $27; dianehiggins.com Moisturize &amp;quot;No matter your skin type, you need to hydrate,&amp;quot; Higgins says. Women of any age can benefit from a night cream with peptides (which aid in collagen synthesis) and anti-inflammatory properties. Look for naturally soothing ingredients like lavender, arnica, vitamin E, and rosehip oil. If anti-aging is top of mind, opt for a moisturizer with retinol built in. Forgo the eye cream unless you have excessive puffiness. &amp;quot;Eye creams are not necessary for fighting wrinkles if you&amp;#039;re already using a really good moisturizer on the rest of your face,&amp;quot; Higgins says. Note there&amp;#039;s not much difference between moisturizers and face oils. The former simply contains water. In the daytime, apply a zinc-based sunscreen over your regular moisturizer (yes, even if it has SPF). &amp;quot;I always tell people to apply more sunscreen than they think they should,&amp;quot; Higgins says. &amp;quot;Which is why you need a sunscreen that you&amp;#039;ll put on without hesitation. It&amp;#039;s that important.&amp;quot; Start on sides of the face and work your way towards the center, without scrimping on the nose or neck.  Photo: Dianehiggins.com, soap.com Neutrogena Clear Face Break-Out Free Liquid-Lotion Sunblock, $30; amazon.com Bosali Ultra Soy Peptide Creme, $45; bosali.com This article orginially appeared on Elle.com "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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