Acne is a problem that hinders the style of almost every human being on the planet. Whiteheads can ruin a night and blackheads appear as often as morning wood.

Make no mistake about it, acne is here to stay.

In my years on earth I’ve had my fair share of pimples that make my head spin. I mean, I went through puberty for God’s sake.

If you’re currently living in the years of raging hormones and bacon grease as facial oil, then I’m going to be honest with you. No amount of acne wash or any type of facial cleanser will help. Your grains are here to stay. Everyone else is suffering, so you might as well deal with that.

Nobody has perfect skin. The only reason we think perfect skin exists can be attributed to the invention of the airbrush and its use in all popular media. I have yet to meet a real human being who doesn’t have some sort of wrinkle, pimple, or blemish on their face.

Enough ranting, as the point of this article is to introduce you to my new way of cleansing my face and how you can (hopefully) achieve similar results.

My story

I will not lie. I used to wash my face with countless products to get rid of the mini red mountains on my face. Usually I see an ad and then I go and buy the product.

I would love to tell you that my skin became the object of everyone’s desire and that girls literally jumped on me because my skin was as smooth as a baby’s bottom. But if I told you that I would be lying. The truth is, I kept spending my money on useless face products, filling tissues with pus, and dreading the day that Whitehead Mountain would come back in an attempt to ruin my life.

So here I am, a pretty light-skinned 22-year-old college guy. I will not say perfect because that is impossible. I am not immune to the creation of pimples, blackheads, whiteheads, blackheads, blemishes or whatever the hell you want to call them. But my good friend told me the other day that my skin was unusually light and that she was in a jealous rage because her skin was not like mine.

Mind you, this was after spending two months in Japan, where I will say, my personal hygiene was not at the top of my priority list.

What did I do?

I stopped using all soaps, creams, masks and wipes. And to be honest, I stopped caring about my face. I started doing the absolute minimum amount of work one could possibly do to take care of one’s face. All I did was apply a little common sense to my nightly routine and BAM clear skin.

Every day I do the same. I wake up and splash cold water on my face. Before I go to bed, I use a washcloth with cold water and rub my face for a few minutes and then splash some more cold water on my face. That’s it.

Oh, and by the way, my face is clearer than ever in my life. I honestly can’t remember the last time I had a pimple the size of a crater. They used to come with creepy regularity.

Why does this system work and what are you doing wrong?

Cold water closes the pores. When the pores are closed, dirt, oil and other crud can’t infiltrate and inflame the skin. Which then causes your body to send white blood cells to heal the area (yes, the whiteheads are just your body trying to heal itself).

A wipe, used correctly, is the perfect acne fighter. It is abrasive enough that it acts as an exfoliant for the skin. Which means that it not only removes dirt and oil, but also removes dead skin cells. However, it’s soft enough that it doesn’t tear the skin off the bone.

Once again, finishing the wash with cold water closes the pores and leaves the skin feeling revitalized.

Note: Do not Hulk-Out when using a wipe. The skin on your face is very delicate. Be gentle.

What are you doing wrong…

Using hot water. Hot water brings blood to the surface of the skin. Blood is red. Why would you want to bring a red substance to the surface of your skin so that it is visible? I guess if you went to a Twilight themed party I’d understand.

Honestly, hot water can bring so much blood to the surface of your face that your blood vessels burst. Leaving you with red spots on your face.

Using soaps, creams and other chemical cleaners. All of the products listed above contain chemicals. Most of which neither you nor I can pronounce. I don’t care what the ads say, putting any kind of man-made chemical on your body (especially the sensitive skin on your face) is not a good thing.

final thoughts

If you want to try to achieve the unattainable coverage of Cosmo, or just want the peace of mind that you’re doing more than just washing your face with water and a washcloth, then I recommend using all-natural products that don’t contain any ingredients you can’t pronounce.

Even better if you’re into masks and other girly things of that nature, try making things yourself. It will be much more fun and much better for your skin.