I love face oils...
This is not a sentence I could have imagined writing even five years ago. I had always considered my face all too adept at producing oil on its own. Indeed, there were times during my teenage years when I felt myself dealing with my own personal Exxon Valdez.
If there was one thing I thought I knew about skincare, it was that oiliness of any variety – even the sweet-smelling expensively bottled iteration – was to be avoided. Ditto the shininess that came with it.
What changed? I encountered not one, but two facialists who put oil at the centre of their treatments, and who each went out of their way to explain why the conclusions I had drawn – along with other oil-eschewers – were wrong. And even if I hadn’t listened to their arguments, my skin listened to their oils, or rather, drank them up avidly, as if it hadn’t had anything so delicious, so nourishing, in years… which, I now realise, it hadn’t.
First was Alexandra Soveral, whose Forever Young and Midnight Oil now lie at the heart of my daily regime. Soveral taught me that daily face massage is the best way to improve circulation to the face, which in turn addresses congestion and promotes lift. And it’s an application of oil that best facilitates it.
But that’s not all. ‘Pure vegetable oils are naturally rich in antioxidants and vitamins in exactly the right structure for your skin to easily recognise and absorb,’ explains Soveral. This means they can also penetrate more deeply into the layers of the skin than moisturisers, serums, ‘or any other product in which an emulsifier is used’.
An emulsifier’s raison d’être is to stop ingredients separating. Which means that although these products can be great for protecting and hydrating the top layer of skin, smaller active-ingredient molecules can’t break off in order to reach, and therefore feed, the deepest layers of the dermis.
Facialist number two is Sharon McGlinchey, whose MV Organic 9 Oil Cleansing Tonic showcases another oft-overlooked oil superpower, namely its ability to clean your pores. ‘Oils break down oils,’ explains McGlinchey, who recommends a deep-cleanse three times a week with the help of a hot compress. The fats in the product combine with and, over time, lift the top layer of sebum in your pores. No wonder McGlinchey advocates its use by ‘even the most oilphobic among us. It will deliver great results for everyone’.
I know that some of you phobics are still shaking your heads at this point. What does Soveral say to those of us who have oily skin and are convinced that more oil will make matters worse? ‘Oily skin has a waxy coating, so emulsified products cause congestion and blackheads. Oily skin needs to breathe for its sebaceous glands to be regulated. The right oil will tell these glands that there’s enough
oil on top, so there’s no need to make any more.’
By ANNA MURPHY Certainly that’s been my experience. We know about pouring oil on troubled waters; I promise you it works for troubled skin, too. The congestion that developed in my early 40s has disappeared. What’s more, my face no longer feels greasy to the touch, and has a complimentgarnering glow. (Yes, another fallacy I fell for: that ‘no shine’ is the way to go; my skin has been admired far more since I switched to oils.) Putting a shine on it; I wish I had taken that expression on board earlier.
The key for me has been to only use oils that are light and easily absorbed. ‘Our skin is very selective in what it allows in, and how quickly,’ says Sylvie Chantecaille, the founder of her eponymous brand that makes my favourite Rose de Mai Face Oil. ‘The best oil-based products penetrate skin much faster, preventing water loss, plumping skin, improving skin’s own moisture barrier, softening the look of fine lines and delivering active ingredients without irritation.’ As well as the Chantecaille face oil, I also like Wildsmith Skin’s Active Global Super Oil and Votary’s Intense Eye Oil. Then there are two options influenced by Chinese medicine: de Mamiel’s season-specific range and Katie Brindle’s Hayo’u Beauty Oil.
All of the above are delectable in the way that a moisturiser or a serum can never be: their scent is distinct yet subtle. You can – strange as it sounds – almost feel your skin smile as you apply them. In fact, I feel the need to write it one more time. I love face oils.