Dry Skin Tips and Secrets, Skinesode I
Oh dry skin what a woe you can be!
I have had dry and dehydrated skin since I can remember. Yes there is a difference between dry and dehydrated and I happen to have both! I can’t complain since my skin is usually very nice when it is happy but when it is not it is flaky, red and hurts to no end.
I have collected a few tips and tricks regarding both of these skin concerns and thought it might be interesting for some of you to share the things that have or haven’t worked for me over the years.
All of the tips apply to both dry and dehydrated skin unless stated otherwise so I hope that any of you that fit in either category might be able to help diminish the woes of dryness.
First of, we need to establish the difference between dry and dehydrated.
The easiest and most basic way to remember is that dry skin lack oils and dehydrated skin lacks water. It is completely possible to lack both of course.
Generally dry skin is a skin type and dehydrated skin is a condition, so yes you can stop having dehydrated skin but once you have dry skin you will likely not be able to change that but simply learn how to manage it so it is not so obvious any more.
Any skin type can be dehydrated, yes even oily skin.
Unfortunately it isn't as simple as just adding oils and or water so that *poof* skin is suddenly smooth and nice. Our skin is such a complex little creature that simple solutions are usually unsatisfactory. And as usual, all of the little creatures are different so unfortunately not all the things work equally well for each of us.
Todays tip for dry and dehydrated skin is simple but makes a crucial difference in the happiness of my complexion.
Avoid water at all cost!
My skin hates water, it really does. When I use it, my skin gets dry, itchy and generally unhappy.
So every time I avoid it my skin starts feeling better.
Of course I cleanse, after all cleansing is one of the most important steps in a skincare routine but not all cleansers require water. I will touch on the subject of alternative cleansers that use water in another skinesode since today I want to focus on waterless cleansers only.
But let me tell you the differences of cleansing without water to the way my skin feels and acts when I use a cleanser that requires water (even a gentle, moisturising, PH friendly one!) is quite large.
Even when I have a lovely routine that makes my skin plump and happy and the only thing I switch is to an non waterless cleanser, boom my skin gets drier again.
And this happens every time!
So what does one do? Explore waterless cleansers!
There is a few ones and I have experimented with all of them.
Milks, creams, oils and waters are a great option depending on your skin type and preferences.
And yes one can double cleanse with these as well!
My favourite to use are cream cleansers followed up with a water cleanser or micellar water.
What I like about cream cleansers is that they remove dirt and makeup really well while still being gentle and non stripping. I also like them since creams are perfect for facial massages.
Since one uses quite an amount of cream cleanser and they generally have a good slip to them, one can massage their face without worrying about tugging on ones skin.
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| Well, there is many different massage techniques I suppose |
One could simply wipe off the cream and call it a day but I like to follow it up with a cleansing water or micellar water to make sure there is no residue left.
Cleansing milks are similar to creams only that they are thinner in texture. They often contain less oils and are easier to wipe off. So in the end I prefer the creams since they are better for massaging.
If you aren’t into thick creams or oily products, a Cleansing Milk would be a good way to start using waterless cleansers.
Oils are oils!
But they are not the same as the Asian Cleansing Oils that some are used to. Asian Cleansing oils are meant to be rinsed with water and I will talk about them in another episode. The oils mentioned here are just regular oils or oil mixes. Some people like to massage their faces with such oils and then wipe them off with a towel. That is certainly a way to cleanse but I feel like this method leaves too much residue on my face. Especially when I wore makeup during the day I would like to feel properly cleansed. Maybe I just never knew how to wipe the oils off properly but to me this method is too heavy.
It is the easiest to try out though since most of you probably have some skin friendly oil already, be it olive, coconut or almond etc.
Last but not least are Cleansing or Micellar Waters. They are touted as all around miracle worker that magically make all makeup disappear and apparently to other amazing tasks such as doing your taxes and massaging your feet.
Oh wouldn’t that be wonderful!
Unfortunately they do no such thing but that doesn’t make them any less convenient. They double as a toner in a pinch and actually do have a certain amount of cleansing power. Also they are generally gentle and even though the word water is in the title it still doesn’t equal to the water that comes out of the tap. (To find out how Micellar waters work read here)
Some people use cleansing waters as a sole cleanser but since it doesn’t remove my makeup and also doesn’t enable me to massage my face with it, I still prefer to double cleanse.
Cleansing water works great to remove any cream, milk or oil residue that you might have left on your face and it also shows you if your face is properly clean or not. I simply use cleansing water on a cotton pad until the cotton looks completely clean. It has never been more than two so far so I usually just use two from the get go.
I am actually out of cleansing water and am not too happy with the cleansing cream I am using so I have been washing my face with a foam cleanser at night.
My skin is not happy, let me tell you.
It is desperate for my cleansing water to arrive so I can switch back to a waterless cleanser asap.
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| My face is as tight as this ladies mask! |
What are your cleansing methods and have you seen any differences in your skins condition when you switch to a new one?
I hope you will join me next time on Dry Skin Tips and Secrets, Skinesode II!
