Do I use Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil on wet or dry skin?

Dry skin and dry hands. Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil is an oil cleanser, and adding water first stops it from dissolving sunscreen and makeup the way it is designed to.

Do I still need a second cleanser?

Yes, an oil cleanser is the first half of a double cleanse. A foaming or gel cleanser normally follows it to finish the job. That holds true whichever size or variant of this product you buy, so the same placement in a routine and the same answer apply across the line.

How do I rinse it off?

Add a little water to the face while massaging, which turns the oil milky, then rinse fully with warm water before the second cleansing step. That holds true whichever size or variant of this product you buy, so the same placement in a routine and the same answer apply across the line.

Mainly night, after sunscreen and makeup have been worn all day. Some people also use it in the morning if their skin feels congested. That holds true whichever size or variant of this product you buy, so the same placement in a routine and the same answer apply across the line.

A cleansing oil is designed to be rinsed off completely rather than left on skin, so it is formulated to wash away rather than sit on the surface. That holds true whichever size or variant of this product you buy, so the same placement in a routine and the same answer apply across the line.

innisfree

Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil 150ml

Name: innisfree Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil 150ml
Brand: innisfree
SKU: 9950608902
Price: 27.5 USD
Availability: InStock

innisfree's Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil lists Salicylic Acid alongside Volcanic Ash and Madecassoside, used as a first cleanse to dissolve sunscreen and makeup before a water-based second cleanser.

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$27.50

150 ml

$18.33 per 100 ml

Korean-market formula
Ships from California or direct from Korea
Korean barcode and batch code intact

Suited to: normalcombinationdryoily

Helps with: dissolving sunscreen and makeupthe first step of a double cleansea full rinse before the second cleanser

One-time purchase

$27.50

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$24.75

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How it works

Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil is a cleansing oil, the first step of a double cleanse. Oil dissolves oil, so it is built to break down sunscreen, makeup and the day's sebum before any water touches the face. Massaged onto completely dry skin and dry hands, it stays an oil until water is added, at which point it emulsifies into a milky texture that rinses clean. It is not the step that finishes a cleanse on its own; a water-based cleanser normally follows it. Used at night, or in the morning if sunscreen was worn the night before, it comes off with warm water before the second cleansing step.

Key benefits

What it is: a 150ml cleansing oil from innisfree, for the first cleansing step.
On the ingredient list: Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Salicylic Acid, Madecassoside, confirmed on this product's own manufacturer list rather than assumed from the category.
Fits into the routine: melts sunscreen, sebum and makeup so a water-based cleanser can finish the job.
Original Korean Formula: the version sold on Korean shelves, not a US reformulation.

Inside the formula

Ingredients declared

#10

Fragrance on the list

1 of 3

28 of 34 explained

Cetyl Ethylhexanoate emollient: Cetyl Ethylhexanoate is a synthetic ester used as a dry-feeling emollient. It spreads easily, leaves a silky rather than oily finish, and helps disperse pigments and UV filters evenly.
Isopropyl Palmitate emollient: One of the oldest cosmetic emollient esters. It softens skin and thins a formula, and it is more occlusive than the very light modern esters.
Sorbeth-30 Tetraoleate emulsifier: Sorbeth-30 Tetraoleate is an emulsifier used in cleansing oils so the oil can be rinsed off with water rather than wiped away.
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride emollient: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride is the light fraction of coconut oil, with the heavy parts removed. It is the workhorse emollient of modern formulas: it softens skin, dissolves oil-soluble actives and absorbs without the greasy weight of a whole plant oil.
Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil emollient: Olive Fruit Oil is high in oleic acid and plant sterols. It is a rich emollient that suits dry skin and is heavy enough that blemish-prone skin often does not get on with it.
Dicaprylyl Carbonate emollient: Dicaprylyl Carbonate is a light, fast-spreading emollient with a notably dry finish. It is chosen where a formula has to spread thin without leaving a heavy film.
Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil emollient: Coconut Oil is high in lauric acid, which makes it a rich emollient and partial occlusive. It is well known to be poorly suited to blemish-prone skin.
Diisostearyl Malate emollient: Diisostearyl Malate is a thick, glossy ester used to hold pigment in suspension and give a cushioned shine. It is the standard emollient in lip products.
Fragrance/Parfum fragrance: Fragrance, or Parfum, is a single declaration standing for a whole scent blend, which can be dozens of materials. Regulators allow it as a trade secret, so a list showing only this word does not say what the scent is made of. It is the most common trigger named by people with reactive skin.
Coco-Caprylate/Caprate emollient: Coco-Caprylate/Caprate is a coconut-derived ester used as a light, dry emollient in place of silicone. It spreads far and leaves a soft finish.
Salicylic Acid exfoliant: Salicylic Acid is a BHA, and the only common exfoliant that is oil soluble, so it can work inside a pore rather than only on the surface. It loosens the dead cells that block pores and is used for the look of congested, oily skin.
Silica absorbent: Silica is finely milled mineral, essentially very pure sand. It absorbs oil, stops powders clumping and soft-focuses the look of pores and fine lines.

16 more explained

Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone fragrance component: A soft violet and woody aromatic. It is one of the 26 fragrance components EU labelling requires to be named.
Linalool fragrance component: Linalool is a floral aromatic found in lavender, bergamot and coriander. It is one of the 26 fragrance components EU labelling requires to be declared by name.
Citronellol fragrance component: Citronellol is a rose-geranium aromatic and one of the 26 fragrance components EU labelling names individually.
Madecassoside active: Madecassoside is the centella triterpene most associated with the look of redness, and the one brands lead with in cica products. It is water soluble and stable, so it appears in essences as readily as in creams.
Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil emollient: Jojoba Oil is a liquid wax rather than a true oil, and its structure is close to human sebum, which is why it absorbs so readily. It is an emollient that leaves a soft, non-greasy finish.
Zinc Pca active: Zinc PCA pairs zinc with the humectant PCA. It is used in oily and blemish-prone formulas for the look of shine and visible pores, and it hydrates at the same time.
Water/Aqua/Eau solvent: Water is the base almost every serum, toner and cream is built on. It dissolves the water-loving ingredients and sets how light the finished texture feels. On an INCI list it is usually first, which only means it is the largest single ingredient by weight.
Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract plant extract: Bilberry fruit extract, the European relative of the blueberry and one of the richest anthocyanin sources. It is used as a plant antioxidant.
Polyquaternium-10 film former: A cellulose polymer carrying a positive charge. It deposits from a rinse-off formula onto hair or skin and leaves a smooth, anti-static film.
Tocopherol antioxidant: Tocopherol is vitamin E. It is an oil-soluble antioxidant that protects the oils in a formula from going rancid and works on skin as an emollient, and it is regularly paired with vitamin C because each keeps the other going for longer.
Propanediol humectant: Propanediol is a plant-derived glycol used in place of propylene glycol. It hydrates, carries actives into solution, and gives a lighter, less sticky slip than glycerin at the same strength.
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Fruit Extract plant extract: Sweet orange fruit extract, carrying fruit acids, sugars and flavonoids. It is used as a conditioning extract.
Citrus Limon (Lemon) Fruit Extract plant extract: Lemon fruit extract, carrying citric acid, sugars and flavonoids. It is the water-based fruit extract rather than the peel oil, so it brings the fruit acids without the aromatic terpenes.
1,2-Hexanediol humectant: 1,2-Hexanediol is a glycol used for two reasons: it holds water like glycerin, and it makes a formula harder for microbes to live in, so less traditional preservative is needed. Korean formulas use it heavily for that second reason.
Ethylhexylglycerin preservative booster: Ethylhexylglycerin softens skin and boosts a preservative system, which is why it is nearly always sitting beside phenoxyethanol or 1,2-hexanediol. It also cuts down the odour bacteria produce, so it turns up in deodorising products.
Disodium EDTA chelator: EDTA is a chelator: it locks up trace metal ions from water and packaging that would otherwise turn a formula cloudy, off-colour or rancid. It does nothing to skin and appears at a fraction of a percent.

How to use

Apply it to completely dry skin with dry hands, before touching any water, and massage for thirty to sixty seconds to break down makeup and sunscreen. Add a small amount of water to emulsify it into a milky texture, then rinse fully and follow with a water-based cleanser.

Worth knowing

Apply it to dry skin and dry hands first; adding water too soon stops the oil from breaking down makeup properly.
Follow it with a water-based cleanser at night rather than relying on it as the single cleansing step after a full day of makeup or sunscreen.

Complete the routine

This iteminnisfree Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil 150ml$27.50
From the same Korean-market lineinnisfree My Hair Recipe Strength Shampoo 330ml$17.50
The treatment step of this routineinnisfree My Hair Recipe Strength Tonic Essence 100ml$15.00

Total for 3 items$60.00

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Innisfree Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil 150ml

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innisfree, Korean-market original

Volcanic BHA Pore Cleansing Oil 150ml from innisfree: a cleansing oil in the Original Korean Formula, not the US-shelf version.

Verify your unit when it arrives

Korean-market stock with the original barcode and batch code intact, exactly as it left Korea.

On the unit itself

The Korean-market barcode, unaltered from the retail package.
The manufacturer’s batch code, exactly as the maker printed it.

정품Genuine article, Korean-market stock

What professionals say

What skin-care professionals say about skin care, quoted from the medical sources linked beside each.

Your skin barrier is basically your outer layer of the skin.
Melissa Piliang, MDDermatologist, Cleveland Clinic
Pretty much every step of a Korean skin care routine is going to have some component of hydration.
Alok Vij, MDDermatologist, Cleveland Clinic