And now for something completely out of character for me: not only talking about my face but inviting you to look at it quite closely. I posted this picture on Instagram a couple of weeks ago and quite a few people wanted me to elaborate on what I was talking about. In short, the Oil Cleansing Method. I've been doing it for just over a month now and feel like a long enough period of time has elapsed for me to pass opinion.
If you're unfamiliar with the Oil Cleansing Method, the basic principle is that using traditional chemical-based products to cleanse, tone, and moisturise strips away the natural oils in your skin, which in turn responds by either over-producing oil or generally becoming dry and / or irritated. With OCM, you eschew chemical products and instead use oil to cleanse, tone and moisturise on the basis that oil cleans oil. I researched it for a very long time, watched friends try it (with and without success I must add), but the idea of massaging oil into my skin was so terrifying to my with-oil-comes-acne mindset that I was too nervous to try. And then a couple of things convinced me it was worth a shot. This neverending winter, our freezing house, and my natural tendency to be cold all the time meant that central heating, calor gas heating, and my electric heater got more than normal-usage this year. I was gifted a facial for my birthday last year and the beauty therapist was (a polite version of) oh dear god your skin is so dry you must exfoliate. I did exfoliate but then my face was painfully dry and pinched, the default condition of my skin since forever, which I would attempt to treat by slathering on moisturiser for temporary relief, and repeat. I also have problem skin, exfoliating and moisturing generally irritate it and if I don't have a couple of spots on the go at any given time (including a stubborn cystic one) is a rare and glorious experience. Add this to my (not proud of it but hey) increasing vanity about lines as I'm marching into my mid-thirties, and I finally decided I had nothing to lose if I gave OCM a try. My skin couldn't get any drier, and I had enough spots that what was a few more?
Rather than invest in pricier oils from the off, I started with just extra virgin olive oil. You massage about a five pence piece (dime size for Americans) into your skin in circular motions and then hold a piping hot washcloth against your face once or twice, and then use the same circular motions with your washcloth to exfoliate and rub the excess oil off. I did this before bed, and after a week off nothing terrible happening, and actual soft skin that didn't hurt to move, I invested in some extra oils. All of the research I read suggested that it can take a bit of experimenting to get the balance of your oil mixture right so I bought quite a few: jojoba, sweet almond, apricot kernel, grapeseed, and castor. The former are all 'carrier' oils, and the castor is a beast of a different nature: it's an oil that draws out all of the yuck in your pores but is too drying to use without combining with a larger proportion of carrier oil. From what I've read, the typical proportion of carrier to castor is 66% /33% (or 75% / 25%) although everyone is different and it can take some experimenting with which oils to use and in which proportions. At the moment I'm using 25% olive oil, 50% jojoba, and 25 % castor (a third castor was too drying so I added a bit more carrier to my mixture). Although my skin gets a bit drier than than the straight-up EVOO I started with, I'm happy to continue with this mix because the castor is a natural cleanser. If I feel I need it I'll rub a couple of drops of straight almond oil in just before bed, or a couple of drop of apricot kernel or grapeseed oils in (both lighter than Almond) during the day.
And now for my completely un-scientific picture comparison; obviously the left is taken in bright light and the right in more flattering light so it's not really like-for-like-holy-sh*t-will-you-look-at-that. But to the person who is most au fait with my face (ie me, sorry mum you were a close second!), the fine lines around my eyes which I attribute to lack of moisture and definitely not getting old look improved. And even if they don't look any different at all, my face feels so much better. Softer, smoother, more evenly toned, a bit glowier, and not at all tight or sore. I've gotten precisely one cystic spot in a month (gigantic improvement) and it went away in a couple of days with neat castor oil. Not lying. Overall, OCM is been the absolute best for me and the £20 I spent on oil should last more than six months.
Next up on the hippy train is no-poo (not at all what it sounds like, it's about aschewing shampoo). Anyone have any advice or anecdata? Have you tried Oil Cleansing and how did it work for you?
Addendum: I'm not an expert nor do I play one on TV. Almost everything I learned about the Oil Cleansing Method is from Crunchy Betty, which is the awesomest site, and then trial and error. Her introduction to oil cleansing is essential reading if you're new to the idea, and there are even forums if you need advice.
