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I picked up the Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser during the fall Sephora sale, and it has quickly become a holy grail face wash for me. I believe it’s been changed to now be called the Murad Clarifying Cream Cleanser. This cleanser is now a staple in my skincare routine, so I of course had to share my review to spread the news that this face wash is AMAZING for anyone dealing with acne prone skin!
Murad actually has a whole line of products for acne prone skin, and two different cleansers, both containing salicylic acid. The other face wash is their Clarifying Cleanser, with a higher percentage of salicylic acid.
I decided to try the Time Release Cleanser (Clarifying Cream Cleanser) first because I do have sensitive skin, and although I wanted to try an salicylic acid, I wanted to minimize any possible irritation or drying out of my skin.
From the Sephora site, the “Time Release Acne Cleanser’s low foaming formula delivers sustained-released acne medication and improves skin’s appearance. Encapsulated salicylic acid technology provides a long-acting acne treatment that stays active even after rinsing. Amino acids and hyaluronic acid bind moisture to skin to optimize hydration and restore suppleness while antioxidants neutralize free radicals to preserve a more youthful appearance.”
Seems like my skin responds pretty well to hyaluronic acid, as that’s also an ingredient in my beloved Pixi Hydrating Milky Mist, so I was glad this cleanser had that ingredient as well.
It has been reviewed over 771 times on Sephora, with a rating of 4.5 stars!
Now one thing I will note, and this goes with any skin care product, it takes time to see results. I had almost given up on this cleanser at one point because although it was improving my skin, it wasn’t happening as immediately as I wanted, but I’m so glad I held out.
I had a few more breakouts all the sudden and was convinced the cleanser wasn’t working. But, I thought maybe it had more to do with the fact that it was the holidays, and I hadn’t exactly been eating the best. Thankfully, I decided to give it a bit more time.
I honestly feel like it took me using up the entire tube for me to fully form my opinion, and fall in love with this cruelty free face wash.
It’s a creamier cleanser, which was perfect for my dry and sensitive skin. It’s formulated to be extra gentle, and I would say that it is.
I’ve never experienced any irritation from using this face wash at all. Not even around my eye area, which I typically try to avoid, but do get it there sometimes.
I will say though that for a few weeks during the winter my skin was a little extra dry, and it may have been from this cleanser, or just could have been the winter. I just added a few more drops of my Instanaturals Marula Oil in my skincare routine and that did the trick.
Because it contains an acid, I typically do not remove my makeup with this, and try to keep it away from my eyes and under my eyes. Lately I’ve been removing my makeup with the Farmacy Beauty Green Clean, it’s a cleansing balm and has been working well for me.
Every once in a while I do use the Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser (Clarifying Cream Cleanser) to remove my makeup with it, and it does a really good job of it!
It has a tingly cooling sensation to it, which often makes me nervous with my sensitive skin, but like I said, it hasn’t ever irritated my skin.
It has significantly decreased my breakouts, which is of course the main reason I love it, and I’m very embarrassed to do so, but going to put a before and after below just to show you how much of a difference this cleanser has made in my skin.
Truthfully, these pics don’t even fully represent the worst of it. It was like 2 solid years of my chin consistently being covered with spots. Not cute.
As you can see, a BIG difference. I still have scarring and dark spots from dealing with so many breakouts, and I know that will take plenty of time to go away. But still, such a big improvement to what it was before.
And I do still have breakouts here and there, I think that will take time. But, they’re much more infrequent, they go away quicker, and don’t turn from 1 breakout to a whole bunch, which they often had before.
So there ya go. If those pictures don’t prove that the Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser (Clarifying Cream Cleanser) is truly one of the best cruelty free cleansers out there for acne prone skin, I don’t know what will!
