8 Things You Never Knew You Could Do With Your Cleansing Brush

Sonic cleansing devices are now so sophisticated they do much more than enhance the cleansing process – although that use alone boasts multiple skin benefits. With interchangeable brush heads for the face and body, plus various speed options (some of which auto-adjust) they claim to be the canniest weapons in our beauty arsenal. To help you get more from yours I took the all-singing, all-dancing Clarisonic Smart Profile into the Cosmo Beauty Lab where makeup artist Shehla Shaikh showed me multiple ways to use it.

1. Makeup removal

This one's pretty obvious, but here's how to prove to yourself that sonic cleansing is actually worth it. As Shehla instructed, I wet one half of my face and used a pea-sized amount of cleanser on the wet brush. "Move the device in slow circular motions to really lift the makeup and flush the pores", she instructed, using light pressure (don't push or press down on the skin with the device, because you'll interrupt the oscillations). On the other half of my face I did a manual cleanse, removing the same cleanser with a cotton pad.

The toner test:

After cleansing I wiped separate cotton pads soaked with toner over both sides of the face and - surprise surprise - the fingers-only side showed up more makeup residue. Eww. Shehla explained that if you use cotton pads to cleanse with they can absorb the product making you use a lot more compared to brush cleansing. My skin felt much cleaner on the Clarisonic side (even before the toner).

2. To get flawless makeup

As well as acing removal, by cleansing pre-makeup application, a sonic brush can help your foundation and concealer sit better on the skin. Why? "You'll create a perfect canvas for any base" Shehla says – it lies evenly on the skin, which I think these pictures capture:

3. Face mask enhancement

All your skin care products should be absorbed deeper after sonic cleansing; so following up with a mask is a good idea. Plus you can then use the brush to remove a regular cream or mud mask (which you might already do). But what's really is cool is using it to enhance a scary-looking sheet mask – as the sonic waves from the device help the serum penetrate more effectively into your skin. Why wouldn't you then?

4. To exfoliate before self-tanning

Any self-tan fan will know the importance of prior exfoliation, and the 'turbo' function on the Clarisonic Smart Profile can give you a body brush all over without the use of a scrub (other cleansing brushes will have specific exfoliating brush heads you can use). The result should be a less patchy placement of tan.

5. On dry skin patches

This applies to dry patches of skin all over. Your elbows, knees, ankles… Shehla advises giving them the weekly once-over with a head designed for the body. This should shed dead skin cells gently.

6. To tackle red bumps (a.k.a. 'chicken skin')

Sufferers of Keratosis Pilaris – which can look like bumpy chicken skin on the arms, thighs and bum – is notoriously tricky to treat but the turbo function on the Clarisonic Smart Profile can help. It increases the fluid force, which helps to flush out the blocked hair follicles.

7. To remove self-tan

Just as body brushing can prep your skin for faking it, the exfoliating functions of cleansing brushes can help to remove self-tan effectively. Perfect for banishing the 'break-up' stage of tan, it can also help erase pesky mistakes.

8. For a post-workout massage

The Clarisonic Smart Profile has a pulsing function (as do other sonic devices), which delivers a soothing massage to aching muscles. Shehla says "it's a great post-workout trick, especially on the shoulders and backs of legs".

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