All Abuzz About "La Brush"

The Clarisonic is about to arrive in France (!)

As we know, the French are beauty addicts. They are mad about their secret creams, their special treatments, their latest finds. And, they are open-minded in the realm of "whatever it takes to look the best we can; we're onboard."

It's not surprising then that even before the amazing (my editorial comment) Clarisonic is widely available here, Elle magazine did a two-page article posing the question: Oui ou non, the Clarisonic is the latest greatest beauty tool to soon land on these shores?

Dermatologists were interviewed, Elle editors did their own tests, and reference was made to women hooked on la brosse --Madonna, Lady Gaga, Oprah Winfey and Gwyneth Paltrow to name a few.

Minor quibbles were offered regarding choosing the correct brush head for one's skin type. For extremely sensitive skin a dermatologist suggested an every-other-day routine.

Dr. Isabelle Catoni, a Parisian dermatologist who tried it herself, offered the following advice for women who will run to their favorite stores the second the Clarasonic is available in France:

1.) Never use a harsh cleansing product. Avoid fruit acid formulas.

The antiseptic product suggested by  French Elle editors to clean the Clarisonic brush head.

2.) One must be obsessive about cleaning the brush head (remember, Marsi told us about this recently). Elle editors suggest a quick "bath" in an antiseptic, followed by a thorough rinse.

3.) Follow the cleansing -- of your face -- with one's favorite hydrating product. (Those of us who cannot live without our magic brush know how much more efficacious products are after we wash our faces with the help of our Clarisonics.)

4.) How-to: every night for normal skin, every-other-night "insist" on the T-zone area and never use if skin is irritated.

Et voila.

After I heard that a famous French blogger was told by her "famous" Parisian dermatologist never to use la brosse because it's too invasive, I became quite concerned and took mine in to show my "famous" Parisian dermatologist to seek her opinion. She loved it. She simply cautioned me to make certain I clean it properly.

Ed. Note: I'm over at Women's Voices For Change today talking about one of our favorite subjects -- Frenchwomen and their snacking habits. You've read about the subject before in this space, but I've added new comments at WVFC.