Philosophy’s Purity Made Simple was my only cleanser for six years. I had a love/hate relationship with it and sometimes felt that there were better cleansers out there and I just couldn’t find them. Mostly, what I loved is that when I used it with my clarisonic brush, it didn’t sting my eyes.
Mia’s review: Purity is on a lot of “best of” lists. I have never experienced any irritation or break outs. I have noticed that it doesn’t always remove all my foundation because after drying my face, I sometimes find makeup on my towel.
Even though it has a milky texture, it still foams up just a little. It is very gentle (despite it having essential oils) and not drying at all. I have combination skin with a very oily T-zone and very dry cheeks and thought the cleanser worked well. If you really prefer foaming cleansers, Philosophy sells a gel formula that they advertise as foaming and a make-up remover. I haven’t tried it, though.
If you can commit, it also comes in many sizes and the larger sizes are a good deal. For example, the 44 oz costs about double what the 8 oz size costs.
Update Nov 2018: Reviews of other cleansers I like: make p:rem Moisture Cleansing Foam, COSRX Low pH, First Aid Beauty, Hada Labo Hydrating Cleanser
pH Level: 5.5
Ingredients*: Water, Sodium Lauroamphoacetate, Sodium Trideceth Sulfate, Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil, Coco-Glucoside, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Alcohol, Peg-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Aniba Rosaeodora (Rosewood) Wood Oil, Geranium Maculatum Oil, Guaiacum (Guaiacum Officinale) Extract, Cymbopogon Martini Oil, Rosa Damascena Extract, Amyris Balsamifera Bark Oil, Santalum Album (Sandalwood) Oil, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Oil, Cinnamomum Cassia Leaf Oil, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil, Piper Nigrum (Pepper) Seed Extract, Polysorbate 20, Glycerin, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Citric Acid, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Yellow 5 (Ci 19140)
Testing the pH of Skincare Products 