When my facialist Pam handed me a bottle of Clinisept and told me to apply it to a cotton pad and wipe my face with it after my morning and evening cleanse, I was momentarily baffled.
Toner is much-maligned among beauty experts, you see, and they accuse it of being surplus to requirements, a fancy water that won’t affect skin one iota, bottled – and with a hefty price tag to boot.
There is some truth in this accusation – though those who work surrounded by air con, heatings, or windy, dry environments and experience tightness might find relief in a spritz of water containing surface-hydrating ingredients. I certainly have.
There is a second camp of experts who are all for the acid toner, the belief being that abrasive exfoliants damage skin and that wiping skin with an acid will break away dead skin cells without any micro scratches.
Until switching to PHAs under Pam’s watchful eye, I belonged in that latter group, but having seen my skin become healthier and more robust than ever as a result of lots of PHAs and minimal AHA/BHAs, I’ve now conceded that my acid regime was a bit much for my skin and left it vulnerable.
So what’s the point of Clinisept if it neither exfoliates nor scents/hydrates? It is an antibacterial, anti viral, anti sporous and anti fungal spritz, so it works wonders on acne or cuts or abrasions or anything that looks nasty and red and sensitive and in need of appeasing. It works well for men too on shaving rash and what not.
Wiped over skin after cleansing, it helps to minimise further spots and keep things under control. Pressed onto a particularly problematic patch, it eases the redness and takes the sting away, prepping skin to regenerate without as much risk of infection. Think of it as that Windolene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding for skin and just put it on any bits of skin that look ropey before your skincare goes on.
As I’ve always got some sort of scab/scar/spot on the go, my bottle is used within about two months, but at £15 its infinitely cheaper than many.
There is a caveat (there always is). It smells like chlorine. Pam has assured me that it is ‘non-cytotoxic’ so the intense smell is a bit of a lie. But whiff of swimming pools as a child it does. If you’re after serious skin results, you should overlook the smell for the benefits.
Where to buy? Pam sells it at her clinic, Mortar & Milk, and you can buy it online through her here.