10 Oily Skin Routine Tips Recommended by Estheticians

Oily skin can be frustrating.

It’s a delicate creature.

Striking the right balance can feel like a quest for the Holy Grail.

You are often advised to go hard with your skincare routine to eliminate oiliness.

But then find that you kickstart your sebaceous glands into overdrive,

But if you overload the emollient train, you risk suffocating your skin.

Because most oily skin folks have a combination of symptoms.

So our advice is to have a customised approach to your oily skin routine.

Oily Skin Routine Tips

1. Your Matte Morning Routine

You’ll need a cleanser to cut through all the oil your skin produces overnight.

We recommend washing with a cleanser that’s not too stripping – avoid any ingredients with the word ‘sulfate’ in them.

The next step in your oily skincare routine is to use a toner, one that has been specifically formulated for your skin type to help neutralise its pH.

Next up your serums:

• follow with a balancing serum, and use one with niacinamide, such as B+ niacinamide complex, to encourage your skin to produce less oil; this will help to prevent excess oil from clogging your pores.
• if your skin is dehydrated, a hydrating serum such as H20 hyaluronic complex is excellent to include in your oily skin routine, especially around the areas your skin tends to get dry.

Once your serum has sunk in, apply your moisturiser.

It is best to layer with a water-gel moisturiser, preferably a medicated gel moisturiser, that will hydrate your skin and won’t clog pores.

Equilibrium balancing gel which is lightweight, balancing yet highly hydrating, is an excellent example of such a treatment.

2. Every Night Before Bed

Double cleanse! Start with an oil cleanser first, then wash again with your morning cleanser.

Normalise your oily skin using a toner and a balancing serum, topped off with a water-gel cream.

A is for “absolutely, you should be using Vitamin A.

It has been researched and proven to improve almost any skin issue and works exceptionally well for oily skin.

Start with a low-strength serum and gradually build up to a higher strength if needed.

We recommend using twice a week at first, then gradually working towards every other night. A+ retinoid complex is a great place to start, and then top off with your water-gel moisturiser.

3. Good to Have as Required

Every week or so, apply a clay mask for 20 minutes.

Masks containing clay like kaolin help to reduce oil, leaving your skin soft, smooth, and shine-free.

Remember that over-drying can lead to more oil.

4. What to Avoid

Be knowledgeable about your ingredients, and don’t rely on marketing jargon to tell you if something will make you break out.

Look out for these common irritants in your product’s ingredient list: fragrances, propylene glycol, menthol, peppermint or eucalyptus.

5. Alpha-Hydroxy Acids

If you are very oily and suffer from breakouts, glycolic and salicylic acid are great additions to your skincare routine.

They help flush out the lining of your pore and prevent oil overload in your skin, leading to more breakouts.

6. Extract Breakouts & Blackheads

Even if you do all the right things for your oily skin, you may still need some extractions occasionally, especially if you suffer from blackheads.

We recommend that you don’t do it yourself as your skin can easily scar, and this can cause dark spots at the injury site.

Instead, find an experienced medical esthetician, and book a facial a few times a year with them, one that includes steaming your skin and careful extractions to keep your skin clear and get your skin’s health back on track.

The article on how to get rid of blackheads for good is a great go-to guide if you struggle to eliminate them.

7. Embrace Blotting Paper

Whilst it may seem trite, it’s true. These little blotting pares help to soak up excess oil throughout the day and won’t strip your skin, so it’s almost impossible to overuse them.

8. Don’t Ignore Internal Supplements

Get cosy with omegas, fatty acids, vitamins, nicotinamide, and zinc, including nicazel forte, as this study demonstrated (1), all of which will help to stem the oil flow in your skin.

9.Treat Breakouts with Care

If you are prone to breakouts, it is essential you treat them carefully.

This study (2) on acne found that in an attempt to dry out lesions, patients often use too many products or apply excessive amounts all over their skin rather than just carrying out spot treatments, which can cause inflammatory acne and further irritation.

Resq anti-blemish complex is the perfect spot treatment.

10. Don’t Over Exfoliate

Vigorous scrubbing and harsh exfoliants can cause tiny micro-tears, leading to long-term sensitisation and an impaired barrier.

It can also rupture your breakouts and spread bacteria, making them red and painful.

It is important to remember no matter how satisfying it is to pick and pop your pimples, this will only increase inflammation, reinfection, and PIH.

To conclude. The naked truth

I’m often asked about peels, but although I run a skincare clinic, I’m not a big fan unless a client has oily skin with no sign of inflammation or if they have mature thick skin without any signs of sensitivity.

Here at the NC, we are all about keeping inflammation out of your skin, preferring to focus on restoring your barrier function.

Achieving this with a good oily skin routine is possible if you avoid harsh ingredients and too intensive treatments.

The cons far outweigh the pros as far as I am concerned, and the long-term damage can be irreversible if administered incorrectly.

So start today, implement a good routine, and look after your skin; after all, it’s the only one you have.

References

1. Inflammatory acne management with a novel prescription dietary supplement.

2. A review of diagnosis and treatment of acne in adult female patients.