How and When to Use Face Oils

• Some oil treatments are better for certain skin conditions than others. So choose the correct ones to treat your skin needs and, in that way, hopefully avoid irritation and breakouts.
   
• Essential oils can’t be used neat and must always be diluted in a carrier oil. If in doubt, rather use just a carrier oil or one of the reputable pre-mixed facial oils.
   
• Use facial oils at change of season and to boost your moisture routine if your moisturiser just isn’t cutting it. Layer it on underneath, or mix a couple of drops in your moisture cream.
   
• Where do they fit into your routine? Go from lightest to heaviest texture – cleanser, serum, oil, then your moisturiser. You can also switch out your normal cleanser for a cleansing oil. 
   
• A pro tip: First hydrate your skin with a moisture mist such as a rosewater mist or mineral water spray (like Vichy Eau Thermale Mineralising Spa Water or Uriage Eau Thermale Spa Water) just before you slather on your face oil. This extra moisture helps deliver the oils nutrients into the skin and makes it feel less greasy. Natural floral mists we like: Sh’zen PhytoExquisites Floral Hydrating Mist and Argan Green Pure Rose Water Skin Toner
   
• Alternate facial oil with your face cream either at night or in the morning if you don’t want to use both at the same time. 
   
• You can also put a drop or two of face oil in your serum or foundation for an extra dewy, glowing skin. 
   
• With any oil, store them in a cool, dark place, and use them up within a few months, to prevent the oil becoming rancid with exposure to air.

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The Best Face Oils for Your Skin Type

Many of us focus so much on adding moisture back into our skin while not realising that it’s actually the loss of water (AKA dehydration) that is often more damaging to our faces. And yes, even though it sounds kind of crazy, that applies to oily skinned girls as well.

Adding face oils into your routine not only strengthens the outer layer of the skin but also acts as a protective barrier against water loss. And who wouldn’t want the result – glowing, healthy, hydrated and well-balanced skin. Face oils can also work wonders on a number of skin care woes, and if used right, set you on the path to the skin of your dreams...

It could be a case of trial and error to find the right combo for you, which may seem daunting – it’s your face, right? But our suggestions should see you right.
 

• Face oils for oily/combination and acne-prone skin
  
  While it may sound little strange, using a facial oil on oily skin shouldn’t cause a breakout; it can actually help balance your oil problem out. But it’s best to avoid oils like wheatgerm oil and oils that are solid at room temperature like coconut oil, which rank quite highly on the pore-blocking (comedogenic) rating. Look for carrier oils with a low rating that are also rich in omega-6 linoleic acid, such as grapeseed oil or rosehip oil, which are light and easily absorbed, without feeling greasy.
   
  Best facial oils for oily/combination skin: 
  Clarins Lotus Face Treatment Oil contains pure rosemary and geranium oils, lotus extract on a base of nourishing hazelnut oil to rebalance and purify skin. 
  Urban Veda Purifying Facial Oil for oily and acne prone skin includes healing Gotu Kola and anti-bacterial neem oil.
   
  Carrier oils for oily/combination skin and acne: Jojoba oil’s molecules are very similar to the skin's natural protective sebum (oil), so it absorbs easily and feels lighter and less greasy than some other oils. Both Soil and Windrose have jojoba oils in their ranges.
   
  Rosehip oil blended with tea tree oil helps exfoliate and deep clean the pores which is good for acne prone skin. Find both in the Soil range. Grapeseed, safflower and black cumin oils are also recommended.
   
  Essential oils for oily/combination skin and acne: Rosemary, tea tree, lavender, lemongrass and thyme are useful for oily and acne prone skin, research has shown. Big but: make sure you use them blended in the right dose or they could cause irritation. Try Soil Organic Essential Oils in tea tree, lavender and rosemary.

Read More. Here's How to Effectively Treat Every Type of Acne (And Hide Them Too!)

 

• Face oild for dry/dehydrated skin
  
  Your dry and dehydrated skin will love just about any plant oil as it will help the skin maintain its moisture barrier to prevent moisture escaping.
   
  Best facial oils for dry skin:
  Clarins Santal Face Treatment Oil uses essential oils of sandalwood, cardamom, and lavender to soothe and comfort dry skin, along with hazelnut oil.
  Payot Huile Elixir Enhancing Nourishing Oil with Oleo-Lipidic complex includes sweet almond virgin oil, raspberry seed oil, meadowfoam oil and vitamin E.
  Clarins Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil restores moisture, vitality and radiance to dehydrated skin. Patchouli and blue orchid tone and revitalize moisture-depleted skin.
  Bio-Oil is renowned for not only restoring dehydrated skin but also helping smooth out dry aging skin and even out skin tone.
  Palmers Cocoa Butter Skin Therapy Oil with argan, camelina and coconut oils plus retinol and vitamins C and E, is highly rated for immediately moisturising skin so it looks “plumper and smoother.”
  
  Carrier Oils for dry skin: If you want to reduce dryness, use oils like sweet almond, olive and avocado-based oils, which are oleic acid-rich. We recommend Afri Pure Sweet Almond Oil and Soil Organic Avocado Carrier Oil.
  
  Our own South African born marula oil is brim-full of omega fatty acids and powerful antioxidants, so it’s a genius at hydrating and soothing dry and irritated skin, without being greasy. It’s perfectly suited to sensitive skin too.
  
  Essential oils for dry skin: Neroli and evening primrose essential oils, which must be diluted with one of the carrier oils.

Read More. Want Glowing Skin? You Need to Exfoliate Like A Pro

 

• Face oils to treat aging skin and wrinkles
  
  We want to stimulate the natural regeneration process, help it against environmental stresses and visible damage sun damage as well as addressing loss of moisture in skin that’s showing signs of ageing.
   
  Cosmetics scientist John Knowlton recommends 'jasmine, neroli and rose essential oils. They are very beneficial for skin. Blackcurrant, borage and rosehip carrier oils have excellent omega 3 and 6 fatty acid content, and other properties that will improve the skin’s barrier function.


• Best facial oils for aging skin and wrinkles:
  • Elemis Pro-Collagen Rose Facial Oil is infused with English Rose Oleo Extract and a blend of hydrating marine actives to soften lines and wrinkles. Includes nourishing sweet almond, jojoba and coconut oils for a radiant and dewy fresh complexion.
  • African Extracts Rooibos Advantage Daily Repair Facial Oil tackles dryness, sun damage, uneven skin tone and dark marks with chamomile, jojoba seed oil, vitamin C, vitamin E, green rooibos, neem seed oil, olive squalene, geranium oil, rose oil and lavender.
  • Eucerin Elasticity + Filler Face Oil contains milk thistle oil, vitamin E and argan oil to improve elasticity, firm skin and support its natural resilience.
  • Nivea Face Oil Q10 Multi-action Youth Oil Booster with Q10 to protect and energize the skin, and argan oil to nourish and soothe. Use overnight, for a quick glow boost or as an intensive mask treatment.
  • Dermactin Tumeric Facial Oil. The anti-aging properties of turmeric help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Turmeric helps fight dullness from your face and gives your skin a fresh burst of luminosity.
  • Sh’zen PhytoExquisites Facial Essence uses rose, neroli and jasmine to stimulate, nourish, oxygenate and revitalise skin, while apricot oil hydrates, and rosehip, camellia, blackcurrant and baobab oils feed skin and help to minimise the appearance of fine lines.
  
  Carrier oils for aging skin and wrinkles: Blackcurrant, borage and rosehip oils which are full of omega fatty acids. Rosehip oil is also rich in a form of vitamin A, which helps cell turn over and stimulates collagen production. Our pick is Soil’s Organic Rosehip Oil. Argan oil is rich in anti-ageing polyphenol antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids which improves the skins brightness, tone, texture and elasticity. Try Soil Argan Oil or Windrose Argan Oil.
  
  Essential oils for aging skin and wrinkles: Jasmine, neroli and rose essential oils. Jasmine oil has long been used in skin care for its nourishing and healing properties, making it especially beneficial for dry (and sensitive) skin. Neroli is best known for calming and soothing irritated skin, but also contains powerful anti-aging antioxidants. Aside from its rich hydrating and moisturising properties, rose oil improves the skin’s tone and elasticity, making it look glowing and smooth. Try Windrose Rose Blend Oil.

 

• Face oils for sensitive and reactive skin
  
  If your skin is sensitive or reactive, you need to know which oils can be tricky. Best to avoid citrus oils and warming oils like cinnamon and ginger, unless you know you will be able to get the right concentration in a carrier oil. When shopping, go for reputable brands that are 100% pure and preferably organic. 
  
  Best facial oils for sensitive skin:
  Urban Veda Soothing Facial Oil includes healing avocado, rosehip and sea buckthorn oils to lock in moisture and calm sensitive skin.
  Victorian Garden Rosehip Healing Facial Oil from Faithful to Nature.
  Royale Pomegranate Seed Oil with Neroli, which helps soothe dry, cracked and irritated skin as well as eczema and psoriasis.
  
  Carrier oils for sensitive skin: Use grapeseed oil as a carrier – try the one from Soil Organic Oils. Marula oil is also perfectly suited to sensitive skin. It’s full of omega fatty acids and powerful antioxidants, so is perfect for hydrating and soothing irritated skin.
   
  Essential oils for sensitive skin: Rose oil, extracted from rose petals, has rich nourishing, hydrating and soothing properties. Suitable for all skin types, particularly dry, sensitive, and combination. Our product pick is Windrose Rose Blend Oil. Geranium, lavender, Roman chamomile and sandalwood oils are recommended to calm inflammation.


• Universal Heroes - Best Oils for All Skin Types:   
  
  Grape-seed oil is rich in antioxidants and linoleic acid. It won’t clog pores, and even the most sensitive skin can use it. Our pick is Soil Grape Seed Oil.
   
  Baobab oil, extracted from baobab seeds, is rich in vitamin D and omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids. Try Soil Organic Baobab Carrier Oil.
   
  Olive oil. There’s nothing wrong with grabbing a bottle of extra-virgin olive oil at your local store – look for First Cold Pressing on the label as it’s richest in antioxidants. It’s super-moisturising and rich in skin-essential polyphenols, squalene, and fatty acids.
   
  Bio-Oil. Well known for treating stretch marks and scars, its blend of vitamins A and E and botanical extracts (which include calendula, rosemary, and chamomile) can also help with acne scars, lines and wrinkles, uneven skin tone and dehydrated skin.
   
  Local site, Faithful to Nature, has pretty much every oil (carrier and essential) you need. Another well-known homegrown source for cold pressed oils is Still Pure.

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Cleansing with Oil - The Oil Cleansing Method

Oil cleansers are divine as they make your skin feel luxurious while cleaning it thoroughly of make-up, oil and dirt, because oil melts oil. This makes them great for oily skins, dry and dehydrated skin and sensitive skin. No more of a squeaky clean, tight feeling from a stripped moisture barrier, which can happen with harsh cleansers and soaps.

The oil cleansing method (OCM) is very simple. Just pour a generous amount of oil into your palm and rub your hands together. Gently massage it all over your face for about 2 minutes. Wet a face cloth under hot running water and gently wipe all the oil and grime off your face (you may have to do this a couple of times - but don’t scrub your skin clean of all the amazing benefits of the oil). Finally rinse in hot running water and the hold the warm face cloth over your face until it cools.

A carrier oil is best for cleansing – try hazelnut oil, olive oil or coconut oil (or blend a couple of them together). Otherwise try one of the pre-mixed cleansing oils products.

• Good for oily, acne-prone skin:
  Uriage Hyseac Purifying Cleansing Oiluses Sunflower Oil as its base with black seed oil and malic acid to unclog pores and help clear up blemishes.
   
• Good for all skins:
  Solal Oil to Milk Cleanser is a mix of moisturising olive and sweet almond oils plus Vitamin E which turns into a milky liquid upon contact with water.
  Clarins Total Cleansing Oil with organic yellow gentian and lemon balm even removes waterproof make-up whilst helping maintain the skin’s balance.
  Sensai Silky Purifying Cleansing Oil is a soft and smooth rinse-off oil with a blend of different essential oils that effectively removes make-up for a fresh finish.
  Skin Creamery Oil-Milk Cleanser is a soap-free and alcohol-free luxurious oil-milk formula that uses the power of plant-based oils – like sesame, shea and jojoba – to beautifully purify and condition your skin.
  Just Pure Cleansing Oil includes jojoba oil, cucumber extract, provitamin B5, plus essential oils of cedarwood, frankincense, myrrh and rose to soothe, soften and hydrate while dissolving dirt, pollution and makeup.


• Good for dry and sensitive skin:
  Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Replenishing Cleansing Oil with emollient, antioxidant apricot, safflower and olive oils to repair the skin’s barrier.
  Avène Xera Calm Cleansing Oil that nourishes and protects both the face and body. Contains synthetic oil and Avène Spring water so ideal for sensitive skins, including infants and children.


• Good for very dry and eczema-prone skin:
  La Roche Posay Lipikar Cleansing Oil is ideal for helping restore the skins barrier and soothe tightness in cases of extreme dryness and eczema-prone skin. It can be used by babies, children and adults on both the face and body.


• Micellar water for all skin types:
  If you’re not entirely comfortable using a pure oil to cleanse your skin, then try micellar water that’s an emulsion of water and oil. It’s made up of tiny balls of cleansing oil molecules called micelles, which are suspended in soft water. Once you’ve used this as your cleanser to remove makeup, you’ll never look back…
  For all skin types: Neutrogena Skin Detox Triple Micellar Water.
  For oily/combination skin: La Roche Posay Effaclar Micellar Water.
  For dry skin: Garnier Micellar Oil Infused Water.
  For sensitive skin: Bioderma Sensibio H2O Cleanser.
  For oily acne-prone skin: Ponds Pimple Clear Micellar Water.

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The Risks? What You Need to Know About Face Oils

Things are about to get a bit technical, but it's worth the effort to understand...
 

• What are the risks?
  While we’re crushing big time on facial oils, there’s also been negative feedback, especially about those containing essential oils - from bloggers, skin-care professionals and even some scientific studies. Reading the contradicting arguments from both sides can be confusing, so we decided to speak to our own expert, respected cosmetics scientist John Knowlton, to give us a balanced view. 
  
  'The risk of any reaction on our skin from carrier oils (e.g. marula, olive, rosehip, borage oil) is negligible. However, essential oils, by their very nature, contain a lot of allergens. It makes sense that if many more people are using facial oils now, that there may be more adverse reactions', says Knowlton.
  
  But, if the manufacturers of the oils follow industry guidelines, the risk of a negative reaction is significantly reduced. He explains: ‘The amount of essential oil used in a product is important and this is strictly regulated. The International Fragrance Association (IFRA) issues a toxicity threshold limit about the safe concentration levels for essential oils – above these limits, you shouldn’t go.’ Bergamot oil, for instance, is very beneficial, and safe – discloses Knowlton – ‘unless it is used above 0.2 percent toxicity level, when it can cause skin photosensitivity if exposed to the sun.’ 
   
• So how do you know that the oil you're using is following the safety rules? 
  Knowlton advises, ‘Do your research about the brand and product ingredient list, and choose reputable brands that have scientifically based formulations’. This is especially important for face products. And when shopping, always look for 100% pure essential oils (most have the Latin name as an ingredient).
  
  Another reassurance, he points out, is that allergens (ingredients known to potentially cause allergic reactions, such as limonene and linalool) have to be listed on the bottle if used in a concentration of over 0.01%. 
  
  Then, as with all substances, no substance is 100% guaranteed not to cause a reaction. ‘If you happen to be allergic to limonene, for instance, if you use lemon or orange oil (which contains it), you will get a reaction.’ 
  
  Bottom line - do your homework.
   
• Do dilute!
  If you are going to use essential oils, they can’t be used neat - not even lavender or tea tree oil. 
  
  This is powerful stuff you’re dealing with here and, if you’re going to make your own blend, you need to use between 1 and 5 drops of essential oil per tablespoon of a carrier oil like rose hip, sweet almond, jojoba, olive, etc. Dis-Chem has a pure sweet almond oil and you can find a rose hip oil and jojoba oil in the Soil Pure Organic range.
  
  You can read up on recommended dosages and facial oil recipes online, but make sure the recipes come from reputable sources. If in any doubt, do a patch test, applying a dab of the mix on the skin behind your ear or under your upper forearm and wait for 24 hours to see the reaction. 
  
  Rather than playing a guessing game with essential oil dosage in making up your own facial oil and risking irritation if you get it wrong, it's often easier to use a reputable, pre-mixed oil that has the right balance of ingredients, at the right dose.
  
   
• You're pregnant. Now what? 
  Some essential oils should be avoided completely during pregnancy, and some are safe. This site gives a good overview of both safe and to-be-avoided oils while you’re pregnant. 

There are hundreds of different oils out there so this is by no means an exhaustive list of the ones you can use. But their benefits to the skin, if used properly, can be so far reaching that it’s worth giving them a try to see what all the hype is about – even if you start off with just a cleansing oil.

We are huge fans of oils – they’re an essential part of our daily regimens. Maybe it’s time…

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