Growing up, I had the worst skin. I was prone to breakouts, redness, and anything applied on my face would cause a reaction. At that time, my mission was to dry my skin out as much as possible, but now, I realise that it was perhaps the worst thing I could have done. A bit of oiliness is good for the skin, because it works as a protective barrier for the face. Decades later, in my late 30s, I now find that oil is my best ally — and it’s not just me. The past few years have seen the rise of facial oils that promise to solve all your skin problems, and surprisingly enough, some of them actually do.
The first time I used face oil was in 2011, when I had a particularly bad case of hormonal acne on my jaw. My dermatologist helped to quite an extent, but the prescribed creams and pills could only suppress breakouts and not remove the marks and redness that were part of the aftermath. Thankfully, I stumbled upon Decleor Aromessence in Rose d’Orient, which was miraculous — to say the least. I found a review for it on makeupalley.com, where I research all my products — if it hasn’t got a 4/5 on makeupalley, I’m not buying it! This miracle oil didn’t just shrink breakouts, but it also removed redness, marks and prevented new spots from emerging. Within a month, my skin transformed from red and blemished to pure porcelain.
After this, I became much more open to the concept of oils. Last year, I was wearing Kiehl’s Daily Reviving Concentrate, (basically a day oil) under my sunscreen and Purearth’s Illumine Face Elixir (which combines rosehip and sea buckthorn oils) on my face at night. Some people find that it’s difficult to apply a drop or two because it’s not easy to spread and end up putting on too much. The trick is to first spritz your face with a mist, like rose water, and then apply a few drops of oil, so it spreads easily.
Lately, I have moved on from branded oils to the pure, cold-pressed variety. I discovered that my skin could tolerate and love apricot oil after someone gave me a bottle they brought from Ladakh. I had tried massaging my face with coconut oil many years back, but my skin would just flare up. This could be because people who are prone to rosacea (like me) are sensitive and allergic to coconut oil. But I don’t have that problem with apricot, which I massage every Sunday into my face. Unlike coconut, this oil helps calm down the redness and makes my face look almost photoshopped.
Today, I have many oils in my beauty arsenal. I have St John’s Wort, which is miraculous if you have blemishes, sensitivity or scars, Manuka oil, a drop of which can shrink a zit overnight, cold-pressed avocado oil, which I use to remove make-up. And yes, my trusted apricot oil, which I’ve also started drinking on the advice of my friend Kavita Khosa, who is also the founder of Purearth. That’s not to say that all my skin problems have been resolved. Like everyone else, I still have good and bad days, but with oils in my cabinet, I at least have a solution to any complexion conundrum that may come up.
A fortnightly column to remind you
about all things skin deep
