Last week, I shared with you my Sensitive Acne Prone Skin Journey & Regimen and I mentioned how . If you want to hear my story of how I suffered from adult acne and read my tips and favorite products for sensitive acne prone skin, you can read that post here. The brand I use is Now Foods Grape Seed Oil, 16 Ounce and it says to be 100% pure and perfect for sensitive skin. After I wash my face at night time, I warm 3-4 drops of the oil between my fingers and then massage all over my face. I then dab 1 drop around each eye, concentrating most of the oil to the area one can develop "crows feet". Finally, I massage another 5 drops to my neck and decolletage. It never feels heavy on my face nor do I wake up with an oily complexion (or oily pillow cases). My skin looks so refreshed, dewy and renewed in the morning! There was a week I ran out of my daily moisturizer and used this instead and had no problems whatsoever! I think I will add a couple drops to my moisturizer during the dry winter months.
I've also added a drop to my foundation for an extra dewy look. I would highly recommend anyone with sensitive, oily, acne prone skin, dry skin....really anyone with skin to try it out! Again, I'm not an expert so use at your own discretion. Are you a fan of natural alternatives to skin products? If so, what are your favorites? Ginger Snap Crafts, House by HoffSuburbs Mama, Soho Sonnet, Carrie This HomeAFFFILIATE DISCLOSURE: In order for me to support my blogging and social media activities, I may receive monetary compensation for links to products from this post. However, I only recommend products that I personally love and use myself!.The final and one of the most important steps in the facial cleansing process is moisturizing. It's a common misconception that those with oily skin don't need more oil to moisturize their face, but in fact, their skin is overproducing oil because they aren't getting and keeping a good moisture cycle. It is beyond simple to create a moisturizer for any skin type using just carrier oils and essential oils!
Though you can create a complicated moisturizing lotion using a ton of ingredients and time, one of my most favorite moisturizers (that takes less than 30 seconds to create) for my own face is just a simple mixture of nourishing carrier oils and essential oils. If you are new to the essential oil and natural beauty world, you might be wondering what the difference is between essential oils and carrier oils. They are TOTALLY DIFFERENT! While an essential oil is a volatile and extremely concentrated oil derived from steam distillation of flowers, barks, grasses, and leaves of a certain number of botanicals, carrier oils are base vegetable oils (many of which are in your own pantry already) that are cold-pressed and used to dilute and “carry” essential oils, used in cosmetics for their moisturizing and healing properties, and used in massage for their natural slickness. Any lotion, butter, or soap that you own contains some form of carrier oil in its ingredients. If you haven't yet heard about the oil cleansing method, you might be new to the hippy world or just living under a crunchy rock (isn't that like granola???).
If you are like me, you might be skeptical at the idea of cleansing your face with oil, but it turns out, chemistry says it works! One of the most basic principals of chemistry is that “like dissolves like.” The best way to dissolve a non-polar solvent like sebum/oil, is by using another non-polar solvent similar in composition: Other oils. By using the right oils, you can cleanse your pores of dirt and bacteria naturally, gently and effectively, while replacing the dirty oil with beneficial ones extracted from natural botanicals, vegetables and fruit that heal, protect and nourish your skin. You can utilize the knowledge from this post to pick out the oils you wish to use while using the oil cleansing method, or you can use these oils as your moisturizer. The choice is up to you! If you would like to learn more about the oil cleansing method you can read more here. Base carrier oils are less intense than the specialized carrier oils. These oils are great as the base of the recipe because they aren't as thick and concentrated.
Base carrier oils are the oils that we will use the most amount of in our recipes. These oils should all be organic and if at all possible, pick the unrefined oil rather than refined, that way you keep the most amount of healing nutrients for your skin. You can utilize this chart for the oil cleansing method as well as how to choose what oils to use in all of your other facial care products. Rather than going over the many benefits of each of the base carrier oils (there's just so many oils!), I am categorizing them by skin type so that you can look up your skin type, pick an oil, and create your own moisturizing serum! These carrier oils below are extremely rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Many of these oils are prized oils for repairing and healing skin as well as erasing scars, fine lines, and wrinkles. These oils are very rich oils and are meant to be used in smaller amounts when added to our skin care products. In combination with the right base carrier oil for your skin type, you will see great healing benefits from these oils!
All of these special oils should be stored in the refrigerator and have a shorter shelf life than the base carrier oils, so should be purchased in smaller amounts that you can use up in a 3-6 month period of time. Argan oil – Extracted from the kernels of the argan tree, argan oil hails only from Morocco. This “liquid gold”, as dubbed by some, is extremely rich in vitamin E, and absorbs fairly quickly. Used for hair, skin, and nail applications, argan oil delivers deep hydration for ALL SKIN TYPES and is great at helping to prevent and remove scars, stretch marks, fine lines, and wrinkles. Blueberry seed oil – Pressed from the little itty bitty seeds found inside of blueberries, blueberry seed oil is just as rich in antioxidants as the fruit it bears. This oil is great for ALL SKIN TYPES and is used for anti-aging, fine lines, wrinkles, and sun damage. A little bit goes a long way with this stuff! Evening Primrose oil – It takes 5,000 little seeds to make enough oil to fill a small capsule.
This precious oil is well known for its healing abilities and works great for sun-damaged skin, eczema, rosacea, psoriasis, aging skin, sun spots, and acne. Not only is EP oil great for hyper pigmentation, it's so healing that it's great for ALL SKIN TYPES. Pomegranate seed oil – Pomegranate seed oil is commonly used in cosmetic products to revitalize DRY & MATURE SKIN TYPES, assist with wrinkles, and to soothe minor skin irritations. Not only does pomegranate seed oil contain high levels of antioxidants that fight free radicals and skin aging, but the oil is also a potent source of punicic and ellagic acids. Because of these properties, pomegranate seed oil is used to renew, protect, and moisturize dry, cracked, mature, and irritated skin, and bring elasticity back to the skin. Raspberry seed oil – One of the most popular oils to use for sun protection, raspberry seed oil is jam-packed with a huge amount of antioxidants, and has an estimated SPF of 28-50, protecting from both UVA and UVB rays.
This oil is rich in vitamin E and great for ALL SKIN TYPES because it is able to sink in quickly without a greasy feel. I love to use this in my homemade natural sunscreen too! Rosehip seed oil – This is one of my favorite “special” oils to keep on hand. A “dry” oil, it's extremely awesome for ALL SKIN TYPES, is chock full of vitamins (especially Vitamin C and E). This oil is great at getting rid of scars and uber healing irritated skin. Great at helping diminish scars, wrinkles, and fine lines, I usually always put a dash of rosehip seed oil in each of my skin care applications. Sea Buckthorn oil – Yet another omega and fatty acid rich carrier oil, Sea Buckthorn oil has been known to help heal many skin conditions including rosacea and acne. This oil is great for ALL SKIN TYPES and chock-full of carotenoids, as well as vitamins A, C, and E; so this oil will fight free radicals and keep your youth in tact as your skin ages. Tamanu oil – Great for scars and known to help with healing acne, Tamanu oil contains a number of specific lipids not typically found in other carrier oils, including calophyllolide (helps stop inflammation), lactone (a natural antibiotic), and calophyllic acid (an uncommon type of fatty acid that specifically aids in healing acne).
Though Tamanu oil is great for all skin types, it is especially good for ACNE SKIN TYPES. These recipes are of my own Foxy Face Moisturizing Serums that can be found in the Etsy shoppe. You can customize yours to your own liking, based off of the oils that you have on hand, and your skin type! Add a dash of one or more of the extra special carrier oils to give your skin a luxurious healing boost! TO USE: After cleansing and toning your face, dispense 1-3 drops of moisturizing serum onto the palm of your hand, rub hands together, and massage onto your face. I personally use one drop of oil for my morning application and 2-3 drops of oil for my evening application. All information on The Hippy Homemaker is meant for educational and informational purposes only. The statements on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Products and/or information are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent any disease. Readers are advised to do their own research and make decisions in partnership with their health care provider.