Using oil to clean my oily skin is one of the most counter intuitive things I’ve read about in a long time. But if people on the internet jump off a bridge…
Actually, some of the arguments made sense (oil dissolves oil, using products that strip away all your natural oils makes your skin produce more oil, etc…) and when I mentioned it to Dave, rather than looking at me like I was crazy, he started going on about the Romans and how they used oil in their baths, and used a special tool to scrape it off and blah, blah, blah… That he didn’t immediately think it was a stupid idea was enough for me, I didn’t need any further details about ancient cultures and why does he know all of this useless information about ancient cultures when he can’t remember that I want cream cheese to spread on my bagels?
I started doing research about the appropriate oil mix for my skin type, but laziness and fear of making a royal mess and commitment threatened to end this oil cleansing experiment before it began (didn’t feel like shopping for different oils and mixing a proper concoction myself seemed like a recipe for oil spilling disaster and would leave me with a lot of oil). Then Cave Girl came to the rescue and suggested a premade product. She warned that it would be more cost-effective to mix my own oils, but since I’m skeptical about this thing and I’m lazy, I opted for ordering a small amount of Touchy Oil Cleanser for oily skin. Hopefully, the amount I ordered will last me long enough to decide whether or not it’s working for me. Some of what I read online about this is repulsive, yet strangely fascinating. Apparently after a few minutes of massaging the oil into your skin, you will start to feel sebum plugs that have been released. Repulsive, no? Oh, but how I had hoped this would actually happen. Die blackheads die!
I had a feeling that this would either be one of the stupidest things I’d ever done or one of the greatest things ever, but so far (about a week in) it just seems like it takes a lot longer to wash my face than it used to and that I need to buy more washcloths (neither Dave nor I use washcloths, so we only have a few for guests and I’ve already gone through them all this week). I’ve done the oil cleanse three or four times since I started (I’m doing it every other evening as much of what I read online suggested). I had sort of convinced myself that my skin might look a minuscule amount nicer after the first few days, but by the end of last week I realized it looked the same. No blackhead improvement and actually a few small break outs. I am also disappointed that I don’t seem to be getting that sebum plug removal that many online reviewers mentioned. It’s not that I’m not being thorough, the first night I massaged the oil into my skin for 15 damn minutes. I thought I’d give myself carpal tunnel. My arms started to feel the weight of holding them up so long. I’ve since been doing it for about 10 minutes each time. Then I steam with the hot washcloth 3-4 times and wipe my face. My face feels clean after, so think I’m getting all the oil off.
I had been hoping I’d produce less oil, but so far no dice. In the mornings, my face is as oily as ever, perhaps a little more. I think I might look a little less shiny though.
I’m also confused about this process in terms of skin care overall. In the mornings, I’m OK with just rinsing with warm water, but in the evenings I really need to wash my makeup off. So if I’m not supposed to oil cleanse every night and I’m not supposed to use soap, then what? One night I did a very abbreviated oil cleanse but that’s still a pain because of the time (and washcloth!) it takes to remove the oil. A couple of other nights I just used my usual Dove. I also assume that I can still use my regular sunscreen, but I couldn’t find guidance on this (what I’ve found online is to use a tiny bit of the oil as a moisturizer if your skin feels tight, but I haven’t found guidance about sunscreens that are compatible with this method).
I hate when I get all excited about a new personal care product (Biore strips anyone?) and then it doesn’t deliver, but I plan on giving the oil cleansing method a couple more weeks, at least every other night, no soap, no Oil of Olay, just my sunscreen in the morning. It needs to show much better results than it has to this point if I’m going to stick with it though, because it’s pretty time consuming.
Boo! I’m sorry you’re not having success! I have to say though, I also ordered Touchy and it was no good for me either. Bummer to realize CP had a product I wasn’t TOTALLY obsessed with. Possibly the essential oils just don’t mesh with my skin. I much prefer pouring a blob of castor oil in my hand, followed by a bigger blob of grapeseed oil. It definitely is quite the process, though I never spend more than a few minutes rubbing it in and about 2 brief (1 minute) steam sessions. I’ve even rubbed the oil in while hovering over a saucepan of steaming water to get the steam effect without having to drown myself in a washcloth. If I’m feeling lazy I will go ahead and cleanse with my Neutrogena. I’m not a “no soaper!” I do SOMETHING every night. I’d say use a layer of oil, briefly rub in, and wipe off makeup; then start fresh to really get into the pores. Sound miserably complicated?
I do swipe some baking soda across my face in the morning. I have had success with my blackheads, especially those on my nose, but the real success for me has been in the oil balance of my skin. I moisturize with either coconut oil or jojoba oil, which I think has also played a part in that. I never moisturize with the cleansing mixture – I think the castor oil would be drying, but jojoba is a wax ester that’s the closest thing in nature to the skin’s natural sebum. So it’s very un-confusing and has really helped me combat the oil slick.
I don’t wear sunscreen for various reasons but before I gave it up completely I switched to non-chemical sunscreens per my derm’s recommendation. She said the rays coming into contact with the chemical sunscreens actually create carcinogenic compounds. WHAT??? Non-chems, unfortunately, aren’t always easy to rub in. But my skin was happier.
Ramble ramble ramble! Good luck!
Thanks for stopping by! I’m glad to hear you didn’t like the Touchy, it makes me feel better to know it’s not just me. I’m still intrigued by oil cleansing, especially since it hasn’t been making my skin any worse (that was my big fear about it). So maybe if I found the right blend of oils it would work better. Do you have oily skin? If so, I guess my next step would be to try the castor/grapeseed combo and the jojoba for moisturizer. The castor will be at any drug store, right? I assume the grapeseed is a grocery item, but what about the jojoba? Thanks for all the help!
For breakouts, I recommend seeing a doctor or dermatologist and asking for perscriptions for Clindamycin Phosphate External Swabs & Differin External Gel. The first gets rid of bacteria on the skin. The second clears and improves the skin (more of a spot treatment). I had great success with my skin totally changing. I rarely get a break-out now, when before I used to spackle my face with cover-up. (Dr. may recommend something else, but I know a few people who got this combo.)
Not sure about oily skin, but I did have success with products at the Chanel counter once. However, they are ridiculously expensive, so I was unable to afford to return! But don’t use regular soap on your face, if that’s what you meant by Dove? Why not try a facial cleanser like Cetaphil for washing & removing makeup? http://www.drugstore.com/cetaphil-daily-facial-cleanser-normal-to-oily-skin/qxp86118?fromsrch=cetaphil
Thanks for stopping by, Allison. That’s awesome that you’ve found something that works for you. My issues are predominantly large pores that continually fill up with gunk and blackheads. And I don’t like how shiny I am by the end of the day (who am I kidding, by lunchtime!). I don’t usually breakout a whole lot. I’m going to try to create my own blend of oils and see if I like that better than the pre made stuff I bought. I don’t want to do that every day though, cause it’s kind of a pain. Maybe I’ll get some Cetaphil to use on the off days, to spare my skin from soap, that’s a good idea.