Cleansing Balm

Ive never had luck with salicylic acid because it usually dries out my face. But I decided to give this cleansing balm a chance because of an excess of clogged pores during the summer.

Ive used this twice so far and I have to say my face feels clean and not dry after I use it. It also has been working incredibly well with my tret. Im so happy that ive introduced this into my routine.

Let me state a small criticism up front: the first time I used this, I used it as a first step "wash" to remove my zinc oxide based, non-water resistant sunscreen, and it only did an OK job. I had to use quite a bit of product to remove my sunscreen completely. It occurred to me right away: "maybe this isn't its best use?" So then I started using it as my morning, pre shower cleanser, and wow! is it amazing in this capacity. This balm is extremely gentle, and exfoliates gently too; most impressively, it diminishes redness SIGNIFICANTLY on my face, and leaves it feeling softer than any cleanser I have ever used. I have adult acne, which is under control, so I use products to keep things under control. I have been using BHA products for 2 decades, but this is among the best I have used (the way it's formulated in this balm, it almost acts like a cleanser and gentle moisturizer in one step, which is no small feat for an acid). When you aren't removing sunscreen, only a small amount of the balm is needed to cleanse skin, so--while this is expensive--it's a good value. Highly recommended.

Feel like this was the step in my skincare routine my skin was missing! Love this cleanser and my skin is so soft after using.

Love the way this leaves my skin. Goes on smooth, and doesn’t make your skin feel dry.

I love cleansing balms but most of them hate me and make me break out. I don’t have fungal acne, but started a fungal acne safe skincare journey as a way to try to avoid more breakouts. This is the first cleansing balm that does not break me out! It also cleanses very well and helps to remove blackheads and sebaceous filaments! This is a definite winner and I will be repurchasing soon. Thanks F. C.!

I've never tried a cleansing balm before out of the fear that I would absolutely break out from using them. But I've been following the brand creator's blog for a long time and trust their knowledge behind skincare and skincare formulations. So I decided to give this a go and I'm super glad I did! It's so enjoyable washing off my sunscreen and make up with this balm. It really does dissolve everything immediately. And the best part is, it will pull out the plugs from clogged pores which is the most satisfying thing. Deeper congestion is still there, but I definitely feel like this balm is helping to clear those stubborn clogged pores that nothing else has worked on. I use it every night and don't find it irritating and I have sensitive rosacea skin. I find this as a great non-drying first step in my double cleanse routine. It does rinse off impressively well, but I still feel some slip on my fingers so I'd say there is a slight residue. I'm sure that would dab off with a cloth and may be harmless but I feel most comfortable using a hydrating water based cream cleanser afterwards to be sure there's nothing left behind. My skin barrier is happier and my acne is clearing! 😊 Fingers crossed I don't get any breakouts from this long term but I'd say Malezia has made a really phenomenal cleansing balm. Five stars for the effectiveness, user experience, and minimalist ingredient list that's safe for us fungal acne folks. Thank you for making this!! ☺️

After a few weeks of use, here's where I've landed...

Pros:
- simple, fragrance-free formula that will not exacerbate fungal acne (pretty much a unicorn when it comes to cleansing balms)
- packaged in recyclable aluminum
- comes in a generous size; you don't have to be precious with it but it's still small enough to meet TSA restrictions
- price per ounce, this product costs about the same as those from brands like Good Molecules and Naturium (which are quite affordable compared to many others on the market)
- pleasant to the touch, not too thick and spreads nicely over skin
- seems to hydrate skin and help with acne -- blemishes are healing and fading faster (presumably thanks to the salicylic acid)

Cons:
- does not remove daily mineral SPF and makeup as well as I would like
- does not emulsify and rinse as cleanly as I would like -- I can still feel a slight slip on my fingers and face, which is not ideal. However, my very dry skin has seemed more hydrated and this cleansing balm is the only change in my routine, so I'm not convinced this is a bad thing.
- develops a scent while I rub it on my face -- the only way I can describe it is that it smells faintly of garage, maybe oil or rubber or metal? At first I thought it was reacting with my rings, which are sterling silver, but I removed them and it continues to happen. Perhaps it's my mineral sunscreen or just the chemistry of my face, but it happens every time I use it.

General feedback: It would be great if the cap were larger so the tube could be stored upright. Two example packages that come to mind are from rephr and Dieux.

Personally, the pros of this product have been outweighing the cons so I will continue to use it.