Facial Oils
In addition to the moisturizing properties that oils provide, due to their fatty acid contents that fill in the barriers between your skin cells, oils also come packed with a ton of vitamins and antioxidants to nourish your skin. The best part about facial oils is their range and ability to benefit all skin types. Some are rich in linoleic acid and best for oily, acne prone skin types while others are rich in oleic acid that are better suited for dry skin types.
How to Use Facial Oils
I often see people ask - do facial oils go on before moisturizers? This depends on the type of oil and your skins preference. I typically apply my lighter facial oils before moisturizing because, if applied after an occlusive moisturizer, the occlusive would prevent the oil from being absorbed into the skin. However, some oils are more occlusive than the final moisturizer I plan to use, so then I’ll apply my oil after moisturizing instead. During my night routine, I like to apply oils on their own by patting them into my face. During the daytime, I love just mixing in a few drops with my moisturizer to avoid a greasier look that comes with applying them separately. Remember that your routine is totally customizable, so just feel it out! If you have particularly oily skin already or are in a hot/humid climate or time of the year, you can even use an oil in place of a moisturizer!
Plant Oils
The oils I’ll be referring to in this post are plant oils. All plant seeds have fats and oils in their seeds that are rich in antioxidants and vitamins that, when processed, can be applied topically to nourish and strengthen the lipid barrier.
Other Oils
Some other oils that I won’t be discussing any further than this section are mineral and essential oils. Mineral oils can be found in the ingredient lists of lower-end skincare moisturizers because they’re cheap, easy to obtain, and give moisturizers emollients. Essential oils are those fragrant oils that you can put into a diffuser and make your room smell like a spa. With some rare exceptions, that should be where they stay. When using essential oils on the skin, like tea tree oil, be very cautious because they have the potential to cause serious irritation and sun sensitivity.
linoleic vs. oleic acid
In order to understand oils, you’ve got to understand their basic building blocks - fatty acids. Fatty acids are what makeup oils and are also part of the oil that our skin naturally produces - sebum! The two types of fatty acids to keep in mind for facial oils are linoleic and oleic acid. Linoleic acid has a thin consistency and can absorb into your skin quickly, while oleic acid is thicker and tends to sit on top of the skin. Our skin should have a balanced amount of linoleic and oleic acid or else our sebum goes nuts. Studies have shown that people with less linoleic acid in their skin are more prone to acne because when the skin has too much oleic acid and not enough linoleic acid, our sebum becomes stickier, thicker and much more likely to clog pores. This is why, although it seems contradictory, facial oils are good for oily skin and acne prone skin! Applying a linoleic acid based facial oil can help to balance your sebum and fight acne. Here are a few:
Rosehip Oil
Maracuja Oil
Grapeseed Oil
Apricot Seed Oil
Hemp Seed Oil
Tea Tree Oil (technically an essential oil but is safe when used in a diluted form)
Oleic acid-based oils are amazing for dry skin because they’re richer and more occlusive so they seal moisture into your skin. These are the types of oils that are great for replacing your moisturizer with. Here are a few:
Argan Oil
Marula Oil
Camellia Oil
Safflower Oil
Sunflower Oil
Sweet Almond Oil
Olive Oil
There are also oils with a balanced linoleic/oleic composition that are known as skin identical face oils because they most closely resemble our sebum. This makes them safe for those with acne prone skin!
Squalane Oil
Jojoba Oil
Comedogenic factors of Oils
Comedogenic factors (the tendency to clog pores) are often referenced when it comes to oils as they’re thought to provide a good idea of whether or not an oil is likely to break you out. The comedogenic scale ranges from 0-5, where an oil rated a 0 isn’t likely to clog pores and an oil rated a 5 is highly likely to. However, be just because an oil has a comedogenic factor of 0 doesn’t mean you’re safe from a breakout due to the fact that many oils on the shelves these days have other ingredients in their formulas that could cause your skin to react.