This skin type has got to be my favourite to talk about because I had oily prone skin for years and years without the knowledge on how to handle it. 

Let me start first by saying, if you just get an oily T-zone throughout the day, this doesn’t necessarily mean you have oily skin. (refer back to my dehydrated skin blog). When you have an oily complexion, you are generally oily all over.

The natural instinct when you have an oily complexion is to pile on skincare which is heavy in alcohol that dries it out. However, this may not be the way to go. 

Oily skin is an over production of sebum. Sebum (oil) is produced to protect and lubricate the skin. So when “drying skincare” is used, your skin naturally wants to produce more sebum. Therefor making you more oily. Trust me, I have gone through it all!

Do’s for oily skin:

1. Moisturise your skin well using water or gel based moisturisers. Just because you are oily, it doesn’t mean you don’t need moisture.
2. Don’t be afraid of using the right oils as an evening treatment. (e.g. Rosehip & jojoba oil) This will help to balance the oil production in the skin.
3. Cleanse with lightweight products that are gentle and non foaming.
4. Have a healthy diet. Vitamin A, D & zinc are great to help regulate sebum production. 
5. Drink lots of water! This will help to hydrate the skin allowing to regulate the sebum production and cleanse your internal system.

Oily skin dont’s:

1. Use drying products that are high in alcohol. This will dry out the skin which in turn will send a message to produce more sebum therefore making your skin more oily.
2. Over cleanse or scrub the skin. Again, this will dry out the skin (which is not a good thing).
3. Constantly touch your face. We hold so much bacteria on our hands throughout the day. You don’t want to transfer that to the skin.
4. Over consume sugar & dairy. These ingredients can both effect the sebum production and cause inflammatory responses in the body.

I know that all of these points seem crazy when you have oily skin. I mean, applying oil to an oily skin? Trust me, I have had many disagreements until I finally gave in and now my skin has never been better.

By regulating your sebum production, you will also find that makeup stays on so much longer throughout the day and you won’t find yourself having to touch up your makeup. 

Remember, OIL IS NOT YOUR ENEMY. It is there to protect & moisturise your skin, (which by the way, keeps you younger looking for longer!) Who doesn’t want that? It is just knowing how to regulate it. 

Hope this helped you on your oily skin journey! Until next time…