Clarisonic Mia

I don't have acne.  Breakouts are rare.  When my rosacea is kept under control, I don't typically have any problems.  I'm a pretty lucky lady when it comes to my skin and acne.  But I am starting to age.  And I'm getting tired of red, uneven skin.  And dry skin in the winter makes me uncomfortable.

In the last 2 years, I've started wearing a lot more makeup than I used to wear.  Although I don't cake it on and I still prefer a pretty natural look, I am growing increasingly frustrated at my rough, red, uneven skin.  I am a healthy lady... I want my skin to show it!  So, after some debating back and forth, I decided to just bite the bullet and order the Clarisonic Mia... and I'm really glad I did!

At first, I did not use the Mia every night, but now I have put it into my regular nightly routine.  The Mia comes with the gentle brush head, and that's the one I use.  So this is what I do each night:

1. Remove makeup with a makeup cleansing cloth.  I like to use the generic Target brand wipes in the purple pack - it's supposed to be gentle and soothing at night.
2. Remove eye makeup using a cotton round and a micellar solution such as Bioderma Crealine H2O Micelle Solution.  I find placing the round over your closed eye and holding it for a few seconds helps remove eyeliner and mascara without as much pulling and tugging.
3. Run warm water and hold Mia, brush-side down, and get it wet, swirling the brush head in the palm of my hand.  Then I use a gentle cleanser (for now, the Clarisonic face cleanser, but when that's done, I'll use my green tea cleanser from Vivant), putting a dime-sized amount in the palm of my hand, then dabbing it on the brush head.  Turn the Mia on, then wash away!
4. The Mia rotates for a minute per power cycle.  I spend the subscribed 20 seconds on my forehead, 20 seconds on my nose and chin, especially around the jawline, and 10 seconds on each cheek.
5. Rinse the Mia in the palm of my hand, laying on its side to dry, and rinse my face.  Pat dry.
6. Complete my routine with a generous slathering of Lush's Celestial face cream.
7. Ahhhhhh!

Immediate results were that my face was softer and a little smoother.  In the past month, I have gotten used to the feeling of truly clean skin and look forward to using the Mia.  It felt a little rough at first, but you do get used to it.  My skin is so much smoother and softer, and tone is started to even out.  I have noticed that my liquid foundation is applying more smoothly and evenly, and I'm not seeing rough terrain that made my skin look old and cakey.  I have had one minor blemish, but it's easily covered with concealer and smoothed out.  That's something I wasn't expecting - normally blemishes sort of stick out like craters on my face, but now my skin is being cleaned and exfoliated properly, so they're much easier to cover up.

I am starting to see commercials for other products that are similar... Olay and Pro-active have both put out their own versions of this cleaner.  I haven't tried them, but I imagine anything is better than nothing at all.  It's so nice getting all your makeup off your face at the end of the day!  And it's nice that you don't have to tug and pull on your skin to do it.

Do any of you have the Mia or something like it?  What do you think?