Understanding your skin type
Understanding our skin and what active ingredients we need to nourish it is key to happy and healthy skin. Here we help you determine what type you have and how to navigate what you need.
Skin type
Skin type is what each of us is genetically born with. The skin type does not change throughout the years, but can be managed so that you have the best possible skin. This is why it is a starting point to find the right skincare regimen for you. Skin type is usually determined by the texture of the skin, the amount of oil production, and the size of pores. You only have one skin type, how easy is that? The four common skin type categories that are familiar to us all include dry, oily, combination, and normal skin.
Determining your skin type is a first step to maintaining healthy skin. Start by identifying your skin type and then focus on any possible skin concerns (e.g. rosacea, eczema) . Your skin type will direct your daily skincare routine.
Let’s have a look at how to determine which one you are, what each type looks like and how to live in the best skin possible using great skincare products that don’t cost the earth.
Determine your skin type
There is a simple way to identify your skin type. Just follow these four easy steps:
- Wash your face with a mild cleanser and gently pat dry
- Leave your skin bare without applying any additional skincare
- Wait 30 minutes and examine your cheeks, nose, forehead, and chin (T-Zone) to see if there’s any shine or redness
- Wait another 30 minutes and pay attention to the way your skin feels.
Normal skin tends to have a balanced T-zone without being too dry or too oily. Oily skin refers to skin with excess oil and is often prone to blemishes. If it feels tight, your skin is likely dry. Combination skin is characterised by areas that can appear dry or normal on the cheeks and oily in the T-zone.
Skin type characteristics
You can assess your skin type easily by combining the method above with the most common characteristics of each skin type.
Normal Skin
- Finer pores
- Smooth texture
- Radiance
- No blemishes or dry patches
- Not too dry and not too oily (the “Goldilocks Zone”)
Normal skin loves our Adios Aging range. The aim here is to preserve the perfect balance and prevent skin damage. Combining an infusion of vitamins: A, B C and E, hydrators like hyaluronic acid, rosehip and macadamia oils and the antiaging properties of resveratrol and CoQ10 protects and preserves our skin. Click here to get started.
Dry Skin
- Lack of elasticity
- Visible fine lines and wrinkles
- Tightness, flakiness, and sensitivity
- Absorbs moisturiser almost instantly
Dry skin also loves our Adios Aging range too because it helps to reset the skin and moisturise from the bottom up. The biggest trap with dry skin is to put a thick moisturiser onto it to rehydrate. Instead, it needs an infusion of vitamins to promote moisture and balance the oil and an exfoliant. When an exfoliant is used on dry skin, rather than dry it out, it gives it a boost of natural moisturiser from below by acidifying the skin. Click here to get started on maintaining and protecting your skin.
Oily Skin
- Shiny skin, especially through the T-Zone
- Enlarged pores
- Blackheads and blemishes, congestion
Oily skin that is prone to breakouts is a long-term commitment. Those of us with this type of skin can get easily disheartened. Perseverance is the key and remembering too that this may be a chronic skin condition we have to manage over the course of our lifetime. Oily skin responds well to our Bye, Bye BlemishesTM range.
Activated charcoal to attract oil and dirt trapped in pores and rich in exfoliants like bilberry, cranberry and AHA ingredients help to gently cleanse skin and reduce pores. Vitamin B3 balances the oil while Vitamin A helps cellular turnover to reduce congestion and assists with reducing scars. Consider adding something like Nurture and Repair where the skin is compromised and needs the barrier reinstated. This red, dry and itchy skin is often the final outcome of products that rely on benzoyl peroxide as their key ingredient. You know the ones, your pillowcase is bleached when you use these. They work well for a while and then your skin gets worse as it rebounds from such harsh ingredients 🙁
Click here to get started on the solution for oily skin and breakouts.
Combination Skin
- Normal or dry cheeks
- Oily T-zone (forehead, nose, and chin)
- Prone to breakouts and blackheads
When you have combination skin you have the best and worst of all of the skin types and will need different products for different areas of your face and at different times. You really need to understand what the active ingredients are in your skincare and tailor your regimen to suit. You generally can’t go wrong with a Gel Cleanser with potent anti-inflammatories like Aloe Vera and the calming Vitamin B5 (Panthenol) and Vitamin E. If you are dry and tight, use the Hydra Cream, if you are slightly oily use the Hydra Lotion. Vitamin B3 loves combination skin too because it is the hero of balancing oil. An Exfoliant will clear pores and moisturise.
