But is facial oil something your body needs? Is facial oil suitable for everyone? We’ll look into all of this today, and more. So, read on.
What is Facial Oil?
Facial oils are oil-based skin care products that do a variety of things, depending on the needs of their users. They can be used on their own, or they can be added to your usual beauty routine in order to improve on whatever it is you’re already using. Your body already produces its own oil, and it’s called sebum. They’re meant to prevent moisture loss through your skin, particularly the kind of dehydration you see during cold and dry weather. Face oils are simply skin care products meant to complement the natural oils your body produces. Basically, their overall purpose is to add an extra layer of protection for your skin, but also have other added benefits, such as stress relief.
Despite the name, facial oils can actually be used on your entire body. Although some people would claim that certain oils are better for specific parts of your body, there aren’t any studies to support this.
Different Types of Facial Oil
Facial oils can be divided into two different types, plant-based oils and synthetic oils. Plant-based oils are made from plants and are sourced from different parts of it, such as the leaves, flowers, roots and stems. These types of oils are a rich source of antioxidants as well as numerous nutrients that bolster your skin’s natural health. They’re great at making your skin feel softer, smoother, and a lot fuller, giving you an instant beauty boost after using them. You also get a natural glow, which is an added bonus. Plant-based facial oils can be further divided into two distinct types: fragrant and non-fragrant oils.
Fragrant oils, otherwise known as essential oils, have the same effect as non-fragrant ones. Unfortunately, they also include components that can cause irritation to particularly sensitive skin. Some oils you get from citrus plants, for example, can cause discoloration to your skin. This is why it’s important to check the ingredients of any particular product whether the oil they use are essential oils or not.
Although plant-based facial oil is really good at bolstering your body’s natural protection, they don’t do well with skin restoration or increasing hydration itself. So while they’re good at giving your skin a temporary boost, they’re not that good at improving your skin’s health in the long term. This is where synthetic oil-based products come in.
Synthetic oils, such as mineral oils, can help actually improve your skin’s overall health, instead of just complementing what your body already has. For best results, you can add one plant-based facial oil and one synthetic facial oil to your beauty routine.
Common Misconceptions with Facial Oils
Because facial oils became popular only recently, there are a lot of myths and misconceptions surrounding their use. We’ve listed a few of them, and we’ll be shedding light as to whether there’s any truth to them or not.
Facial Oil can Worsen Oily Skin
This one has a bit of some truth to it. Because facial oils simply bolster the oils your body already has, essentially “adding” oil to your skin, people believe oily skin can be made worse by using facial oils. It may be a bit counter-intuitive, but this isn’t actually the case. Although facial oils do the same job as the oil your body produces, it actually behaves differently.
Facial oils tend to be absorbed by the skin instead of leaving a film of oil on it. This means that while your skin still remains oily, facial oil actually doesn’t make your skin any oilier than it was before. As a matter of fact, because oily skin is caused by dry skin, facial oils, especially the ones that help moisturize your skin, can actually keep oil production in check.
Facial Oil Doesn’t Help with Dry Skin
Speaking of dry skin, it’s also a common misconception that facial oil doesn’t help improve dry skin. This is far from the truth. Facial oils, especially the plant-based ones, produce a lot of antioxidants. These antioxidants help fight off free radicals, which are a huge contributing factor to dry, unhealthy skin. Also, although oils don’t add moisture to your skin per se, barring certain products that actually have ingredients that hydrate your skin, facial oils can help a lot at keeping your skin from drying further.
Choosing the Facial Oil That Suits You
Now that we understand the effects of facial oil to your skin, we can start looking into which facial oils work best for you. Here are a few things you should consider when choosing:
For Oily Skin
One of the most common issues for oily skin is clogged or large pores. The best oils for this are lotus, rosemary, geranium and sage. These types of oils can help minimize pore size and also help with moisturizing your skin. They are also easily absorbed by the skin, so they shouldn’t add an extra layer of oil you’ll have to worry about.
For Sensitive Skin
Generally, the only thing that matters for facial oil on sensitive skin is whether it is made from essential oils or not. As we’ve mentioned previously, essential oils tend to have compounds in them that can irritate very sensitive skin. Avoid all types of citrus oils, lavender oils, eucalyptus, peppermint and sandalwood.
For Dry Skin
For dry skin, certain oils aren’t as effective, as they are used more at preventing dehydration of the skin rather than moisturizing. These oils include almond oil, apricot tree oil, sesame oil, avocado oil, and olive oil. You would want oils that have compounds that can help moisturize your skin, such as palm oil and coconut oil. These oils contain medium and long-chain fatty acids that play an important role at attracting moisture to your skin.
Three Most Popular Facial Oils
Coconut Oil
Coconut oil is a good source of saturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, lauric acid. These components are excellent at maintaining skin elasticity and strength, and also have antimicrobial properties. This makes coconut oil particularly effective at treating contact dermatitis as well.
Jojoba Oil
Jojoba oil has been found to have a very similar chemical structure as sebum, the oil your body makes. This makes it very hypoallergenic, which is excellent for very sensitive skin. On top of that Jojoba is also good at controlling acne, and also has components that help a lot with moisturizing your skin.
Argan Oil
Argan oil has recently had a surge in popularity as a hair product, but it has good skin care properties as well. It is nutrient rich and is excellent at keeping your skin hydrated. It’s also good at maintaining your skin’s elasticity and can minimize the number of wrinkles on your skin. Argan oil can be a bit thick, however, so it’s not recommended for oily or acne-prone skin.
How to Use Facial Oil
Use Facial Oil Instead of Essence
The most common and popular way of using skin care oil is for replacing essence. You can do this after cleansing your skin with your usual cleansing products. Simply add a small amount of oil on your hand, then gently rub it to warm it up. Afterwards, you can then gently massage it into your face to maximize absorption.
Using Facial Oil with Toner
Facial oil can help supplement the effects of your favorite toner. Simply add a drop of facial oil on a cotton pad that has been soaked with toner. You can then pat the skin with the cotton pad gently. You can then add lotion afterwards if you so choose. Make sure to use oil that isn’t too thick in consistency so as not make it feel greasy.
Use Facial Oil with Hair Care Products
Hair pretty much works the same way as the rest of your skin. You can combine oil with some hair care products, or you can even use oil as an alternative to hair conditioners. Oil not only helps with maintaining your hair’s texture, it’s also great at keeping it from drying out and becoming brittle. Argan oil is particularly good for this.
Add Oil to your Moisturizer
Adding facial oil to your moisturizer is a great way of boosting moisture on your skin as well as adding the benefits of oil to your skin. You can apply the oil with the moisturizer, or you can put the oil after putting on moisturizer. Either one works well.
Facial Oil and Makeup
Oil can help makeup blend to your skin better. Make sure, however that you’re not using any oil-based makeup, otherwise, it can make acne-prone skin worse.
Using Oil with Facial Masks
Facial oil can improve the effectiveness of facial masks by adding their innate benefits with it. Some oils can also improve the absorption of certain essences on the masks as well.
Use Facial Oils After Washing
Washing your skin tends to dry it out afterwards. To prevent this from happening, after taking a bath or washing, take 2-3 drops of skin care oil on the palm of your hand and gently rub it. This will apply heat to the palm. Simply massage it into your skin afterwards.
Q&A
Q: Can people with sensitive skin use facial oil?
A: Only non-fragrant oils are good for sensitive skin. Fragrant oils, or essential oils can have components that irritate skin. These components are generally harmless, but they can cause discomfort to sensitive skin.
Q: Can people with acne-prone skin use facial oils?
A: If you are acne-prone skin, you can choose skin oil containing tea tree oil or lavender ingredients, which can help the skin eliminate inflammation and accelerate skin repair and healing.
Q: If I use facial oil before going to bed at night, should I use facial cleanser after
waking up in the morning?
A: Regardless of whether you used oil the night before, cleansing your face in the mornings is always a good habit to follow. Of course, using cleansers can be a bit harsh during the mornings, so it all depends on your individual preferences.
Q: Facial oil doesn’t seem to get absorbed well by my skin, and it feels greasy. Can I do something to improve facial oil absorption?
A: Certain plant-based facial oils come in thick, so they generally are much difficult to absorb. Try to use oils that have a moisturizing effect on your skin, such as avocado oil or almond oil instead. You can also massage the oils gently into your skin. This motion can help improve oil absorption.
