Clarisonic Plus Skincare System $225 Review

The Clarisonic is a facial cleansing system that uses sonic technology to loosen dirt and oil for clearer pores. It's from the same makers of the SoniCare toothbrush.

I got this a little over a month ago during an online Sephora promotion. Before the promotion came along I had recently visited Sephora and the SA showed me both the Clarisonic original and Plus mode. She had the original model herself and insisted that I get the Plus model. I wasn't sure I really wanted to fork over the add'l $30 but I caved.

The regular models can be bought a a number of stores: Sephora, Nordstrom, Saks and Ulta. It even has a pink model! The PLUS model is only being sold at Sephora for now and only comes in white - Boooo! Of course you can also get both models at their website and get free engraving.


The Plus model has a body brush attachment and a second button to vary the intensity of the sonic vibrations (low, medium and high).

To use, you divide your face into 4 zones: Forehead, Nose & Chin, Left Cheek and Right Cheek and move the Clarisonic over your face in this order.

There's 3 different timer settings you can choose from and the Clarisonic will turn off automatically after the time is up. The default timer is 1 minute and it beeps at 20-20-10-10 second intervals to let you know to when to move on to the next zone. There's also a 2 minute timer for 40-40-20-20 second intervals and a 2 minute timer that just goes contiually with no beeps. There is also a timer for the Spot Therapy brush that's a continuous 3 minutes, but I don't get how to set it. I think when it senses that you have the Spot Therapy brush on, it will default to this setting.


A shot of the box with the top flap opened. It lists all the Benefits of Clarisonic which is also on their website.

This is my cat Nemo and he is THE nicest cat in the whole world! Seriously. He comes when he's called and he talks back when he's talked to :) O and he is super nosy. As soon as I set this down he zoomed in to give it the once over. He's just finished his official inspection in this pic.


Here's what came in this kit. The Clarisonic Plus appliance itself which is cordless. The charger which is supposed to have a universal plug, but I would never travel with this. It's pretty hefty and takes up a good amount of space. I would carry my Dove SkinVitalizer (Clarisonic wannabe) for travel.

The brushes it came with were 1 sensitive brush head and 1 spot therapy brush for the body. It is recommended that you replace the brush head every 3-4 months following daily use. You'll be able to tell if you need a new brush because the bristles start to splay out like the bristles on a toothbrush. They sell replacement Delicate (light blue), Sensitive (white) and Normal (grey) brush heads for the face. There is only 1 Spot Therapy brush head and I've not seen the replacement for those yet. It also included sample sizes of 3 facial cleansers and 1 skin polish.


Some shots of the manuals and registration card that it came along with.

The Verdict: A+
I was so worried that my skin would go through a purging period, but that did not happen at all! I only use this once a day because it gives me a super scrubdown but it's still very gentle. I've notice my pores getting clearer day by day. Also if I do develop acne it's not deep rooted like before. The acne clears away in about 3-5 days and it used to take it a good 7-10 days. I'm hopeful my cystic acne will be gone with continued use.

I love that the creators made a brush cover to protect the bristles. It's such a small detail but it's such an important one! It protects the bristles when it's stored so that they don't fray as quickly.
Cap on brush.


Cap alone.


This is the appliance itself without the brush attached. The brush is kind of screwed on and it gives a "snap" when it's in place.


Here's a pic of the Sensitive brush head up-close. You can see on the left how the black bristles are already starting to fray. Also the only bristles that vibrate are the black bristles and the white bristles inside the black ones. The outer ring of bristles do not vibrate. Since they are stationary they actually keep the foam and water from flying all over the place when you're using this. Again - the creators paid attention to details!

I really have NO complaints about this wonderful tool (well maybe if I could have chosen a different color, I just think the white will yellow over time). It leaves my face so supple and I can feel the moisturizer I follow-up with soaking in fully.