My mentor insisted I stop using alcohol based toners on dehydrated skin

When I first started esthetics school last year in Portland, my instructor kept telling me to cut out alcohol based toners for anyone with dry or dehydrated skin. I thought she was being overly strict since I had been using one on my own combination skin for years without issues. During my first client facial, I used a rose water toner that had denatured alcohol in it on a woman with flaky cheeks. She broke out in red patches within an hour and I had to comp her next visit. My instructor pulled me aside and showed me the pH strips and how the alcohol was stripping the barrier completely. Now I only use hydrating mists or glycerin based toners for anyone with dryness or sensitivity. Has anyone else had a product you thought was harmless actually cause a reaction like that in the treatment room?

3 comments

3 Comments

gavin_allen481mo ago

Yeah, learning the hard way definitely sticks with you. I once used what I thought was a gentle witch hazel toner on a client and she looked like she'd been slapped by the time she left. Now I'm paranoid about ingredients I used to swear by.

emery9651mo ago

Read something similar in a skincare science blog last week that said alcohol based stuff can mess with your acid mantle for up to six hours after you wipe it on, which lines up with what happened to gavin_allen48's client too.

jade8851mo ago

Ive seen those same studies and I think they overstate things a bit. In my experience, the alcohol concentration and your skin's baseline tolerance matter way more than the blanket six hour rule.