Review: Clarisonic Cleansing System: Just Buzz?
September 16, 2009 | by Brett Blumenthal | 7 Comments
I’m sure my husband would disagree, but if you were to compare me to most women, my beauty regimen would fall into the “low-maintenance” category. Don’t get me wrong, I HAVE a regimen…but I tend to keep it simple and stick with the basics. I DO believe in getting facials every six to eight weeks or once every season, at the very least. And, I DO believe in investing in a good skin care line that is made of good ingredients, helps with anti-aging and protects against free-radicals. However, when it comes to buying lots of different products and gadgets, that is not me. So, when my aesthetician recommended I try the Clarisonic Skin Care Brush, you could say I was a bit skeptical.
What convinced me, however, was one simple thing: It was touted as being a great makeup remover. For years, I found that unless I washed my face with a washcloth, I didn’t get all of the make-up residue off my face…and that was frustrating. So, I made the $200 investment and brought home my new shiny brush eager to find out if it worked. Here is the scoop:
What it is…
Developed by the same people who developed Sonic Care Toothbrushes, the Clarisonic Cleansing System uses a patented sonic frequency of more than 300 movements per second to clean your skin.
Specifics
The Clarisonic system comes in four types – Mia, Classic, Plus and Pro. Here is a comparison:
| Mia | Classic | PLUS | PRO | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $149 | $195 | $225 – White $250 – Limited Edition Model |
$195/$225 |
| Good for |
Compact, for at home or on the go (1 speed) |
Original Skin Cleansing System (2 speeds) |
For face and body (3 speeds plus Spot Therapy mode) |
Exclusive model used and sold by skin care pros (4 speeds plus Spot Therapy mode) |
Additionally, there are four types of brushes you can use:
- Normal: For normal skin, shaving prep and use on body.
- Sensitive: For sensitive to normal skin types.
- Delicate: Ultra-soft brush for delicate or extra-sensitive skin.
- Spot Therapy: For cleansing areas of the body needing extra care and attention, including the décolleté, hands, arms, elbows and feet. Works with Clarisonic PLUS and PRO models.
And lastly, they sell cleansers and skin-care products that you can use with the Clarisonic.
Benefits
Here are the benefits that Clarisonic claims it provides and how I thought it stacked up against its claims:
- Removes 6x more makeup than manual cleansing: TRUE. Although I can’t measure “6x,” I definitely get all of the makeup off of my skin, without the need for rough and irritating wash-clothes.
- Leaves skin feeling and looking smoother: TRUE. Be sure to use the right brush for your type of skin so you don’t overdry!
- Products absorb better: TRUE. Because dry patches are diminished, I find that my products smooth on more easily.
- Gentle for use 2x daily: TRUE. If you have sensitive or delicate skin, however, you MUST use the right brushes. Using Clarisonic twice a day with the wrong brush may irritate your skin.
- Helps reduce oily areas, dry skin patches and blemishes: PARTIALLY TRUE. I have combination skin, and although I have found that my skin is smoother and that dry patches have diminished, I would not say that my oily areas have reduced.
- Helps reduce appearance of visible pores: PARTIALLY TRUE. Again, texture is improved, but in certain areas (chin), I have not seen diminished pores. In other areas (nose), I have.
- Reduces appearance of fine lines and wrinkles: PARTIALLY TRUE. I would argue that Clarisonic makes a difference with fine lines, but not with deep wrinkles.
Overall Review
I HIGHLY recommend using the Clarisonic as part of your beauty and skin care regimen. A few points, however:
- Make sure you purchase the right brushes for your skin type. This is very important in ensuring you don’t irritate your skin.
- Don’t buy their cleansers. Frankly, you can use your own cleanser and their products contain ingredients that I recommend you avoid.
- Purchase the model you think you will most benefit. There is no need to buy the most expensive model. The technology is the same…and if you are a simple person (like me), you most likely won’t use the extra bells and whistles of the Plus or Pro models.
Where Can you Buy?
Clarisonic at Beauty.com
Clarisonic at Amazon
CLARISONIC Skin Care Brush Limited Edition Pink, Breast Cancer Awareness + 2 oz Cleanser
So I finally bought a Clarisonic after debating it for almost a year, and I’m ready to kick myself for waiting so long! I love this thing! I bought the delicate brush head since I have such fragile skin, and I haven’t had any problems with irritation. My skin feels amazingly clean and smooth.
It took me a bit of getting used to the vibrations on my nose (for some reason, it made me sneeze the first few times!) but I’ve adjusted. I also got the ‘Plus’, which came with the spot treatment brush head for the body. I had an area of ingrown hairs on my upper thigh that I used the spot treatment on, and it’s almost completely healed now. Great product!
Hi Brett! Great job with the review. For my job I make it a point to try as much of the equipment, supplies and products that I would recommend to clients. Over the years, overstated or false claims have made me very skeptical about the effectiveness of these items.
One of the few things that I have found to work and do what it claims is the Clarisonic. Admittedly, it took awhile to get me to try another gadget but I love my Sonicare toothbrush so I understood the concept. You’re totally right about 100% makeup removal. That alone makes it worth it.
Ok, for those of you who don’t know me I promise that I don’t work for Clarisonic or receive any type of commission from them. Plain and simple, I’m just a huge fan of their product, completely love it and use it almost daily (including while traveling).
Thanks Christi…I’ll be writing a review on the new Clarisonic system soon! Stay tuned! (PS>..great seeing you!)
Thanks, Brett. I see a cosmetologist who is supervised by a physician for occasional microdermabrasions-I’ll run it by her. I travel a lot for my job so I’ll probably try the Mia first and if I like it I’ll buy the full sized one and save the Mia for the travel bag.
I do love the idea of super-clean skin. I’m a slave to the sonicare toothbrush that they make.
Thanks for sharing-I’ve seen this and wondered about it. I have SUPER sensitive skin, however and I’m worried that even the ‘delicate’ brush would damage my face. A washcloth is impossible-it tears up my skin and then I break out from the bacteria that enters the tears. I have issues with acne mainly because I’m horribly allergic to most of the treatments (no salicylic acid, no benzoyl peroxide), but I wondered if this would help.
Brooke,
To be safe, you might want to consult your dermatologist or an aesthetician who knows your skin. It sounds like your sensitivity is especially high. You can always return it too…
Nice review! I’ve been skeptical about this product too, but the way you compared “benefits” to actual experience was very helpful. Thanks!