Oil-based cleansers are nothing new. But using olive oil—yes, the cooking oil—to wash one’s face isn’t something we heard of until Moretz came in the picture. In 2016, Moretz told Allure that one of her “unorthodox” skin-care steps is washing her face with olive oil, which she credits with healing her cystic acne and clearing her complexion.
“I wash my face with olive oil. I swear my skin is so much clearer because of it,” Moretz said.
Body washes and faces washes are usually kept separate. But for Ciara, they’re one and the same. In a 2018 interview with Allure, the singer revealed that she uses a body wash from Dove as her main face wash. And though her dermatologist frowns on it, if it works for her, it works.
“It’s really bad, but I wash my face with my body soap,” Ciara said. “I was telling a dermatologist that, and they thought I was crazy. They were looking at me like I had four eyes or something. Whatever I wash my body with, I will use for my face. I don’t know if that’s the smartest thing.”
Cox has good point when it comes to her using baby shampoo as face wash. “I’m not as chichi as I appear. I wash my face with baby shampoo,” she told The New York Times in 2018. “It’s really weird, but if it’s gentle enough for a baby, then it’s good enough for me.”
Turns out, Cox isn’t the only celebrity who swears by baby shampoo for her crystal-clear complexion. In 2018, Heidi Klum told Hello Giggles that she also uses the infant-appropriate product to wash her face. “I use baby shampoo from Johnson and Johnson to wash my face,” Klum said. “I think that whatever you give children has to be good for adults. I feel like some of the products out there are too harsh, taking out all of your natural oils out and everything. Products that are for kids are great because they go through so much more testing. We shouldn’t forget that.”
When she’s without her usual cleanser, Shahidi has two unconventional products she uses to wash her face: aloe vera and vitamin E oil. The actor told E! News her beauty secret in 2018 when she revealed that she sometimes uses fresh-cut aloe vera and vitamin E oil as face washes.
“I use anything from foam cleansers to Burt’s Bees Oil Cleanser. Sometimes I use pure cut aloe vera or vitamin E oil,” Shahidi said.
Though apple cider vinegar doesn’t have the most pleasant smell, Johansson swears that it’s the reason for her breakout-free skin. “If your skin is problematic or you’re having a lot of breakouts, it’s really healing. It’s a little bit stinky, but if you’re not sleeping over at your boyfriend’s, it’s really effective!” Johansson told Elle UK in 2013.
The actor considers ACV a natural alternative to chemical-filled face washes one might find at the drugstore.“A while back, I started researching natural skincare,” she said. “It’s a nice way to treat your skin if you don’t want to use all those harsh chemicals that a dermatologist would recommend.”
When we think of face washes, we either think of soap or oil-based cleansers. But for Hudson, her favorite morning face wash is more like a cream. Though Hudson uses an oil-based cleanser at night, in the morning, she uses La Mer’s The Moisturizing Cool Gel Cream, which—get this—she doesn’t wash off with water. Instead, she simply leaves it on and continues with the rest of her skin-care routine.
“If cleansing in the morning, I use La Mer’s The Moisturizing Cool Gel Cream, usually followed by an antioxidant serum, and I always finish with sunscreen,” Hudson told People in 2018.
In 2017, Hayek told The New York Times that she never fully washes her face in the morning. Instead, she uses rose water to refresh her skin and do a mild clean before continuing with the rest of her skin-care routine.
“I never cleanse my skin in the morning. My grandmother taught me that at night your skin replenishes all the things you lost during the day,” Hayek said. “Also, if I cleanse very well at night, why would it be dirty when I wake up? It’s for companies to have you use more products. I spritz rose water—it’s so gentle and wakes the skin up.”
Avocados are delicious, but Nyong’o has discovered that the fruit is also excellent at cleaning skin. In a 2018 interview with BuzzFeed, the actor revealed that she uses avocado oil as a “gentle” cleanser to take off her makeup and clean impurities from her skin. “I try and not wear makeup when I don’t need it and then I’m very religious about taking my makeup off. [I use] avocado oil to take off my makeup because it’s gentle,” she said.
Though coconut oil is one of the oldest tricks in the book, most people use it to take off makeup before going in with a store-bought cleanser. Not Potter, however. In an interview with InStyle, the Parenthood star revealed that she uses coconut oil to do the entire face-washing ritual, which includes slathering coconut oil on her face before taking it off with a hot towel with lavender or peppermint oil.
“I’ll come home from work, dip my hand into the coconut oil, and make a little paste and put it on my face. Then you put a hot steam cloth over your face—you could even put a couple of drop of lavender oil in the washcloth, or peppermint oil if you want to wake up—and just press it gently on your face. It will take out all the impurities,” Potter said.