Why you Should Wash your Face with Oil
October 20th, 2011 by Roxanne | Filed under Eco & Toxin-Free Living, Holistic Lifestyle, Natural Beauty & Personal Care.
Yes, you read that correctly. I never use soap to wash my face, I use oil.
I have been interested in natural beauty for a long time. My interest peaked when I got pregnant because I didn’t want to use anything that had chemicals or additives while I was pregnant. You might think I am a bit crazy but actually make my own lotions at home and I’ve made many other personal care products myself as well. I came across the Oil Cleansing Method of washing your face and when I gave it a try I loved it. I will admit it sounded a bit strange when I first read about it but I gave it a whirl. Cleansing products I used in the past were very drying. The weird thing is they were drying my skin but also making it more oily. My skin tends to be on the dry side but when I would use a regular soap cleanser it stripped my skin of the natural oils and then my body was overcompensating and producing more oil leaving an oily film on my skin. I remember having to blot the oil off my face mid-day but still felt like my skin was dry and tight. If you can relate to this, I would give the oil cleansing method a try.
How does it work?
Something I never knew was a little bit of chemistry that says oil dissolves oil. Whether your skin is dry, normal or oily, there is a certain amount of oil on your skin. Using the oil cleansing method dissolves the oil on your face and carries away any dirt that you don’t want on your face to clog up your pores and replaces it with clean oil from the cleanser to re-nourish your skin. When you use harsh soaps on your face, or even soaps that aren’t as harsh it strips your skin of all the oils – even the good oils – and creates more dryness and more oil which is why many people have “combination skin.”
What is the Oil Cleansing Method?
The oil cleansing method involves two main ingredients – Castor oil and olive oil. The caster oil is an extremely good cleanser. It will remove dirt and dead skin cells from your pores without stripping the natural oil balance of your skin. The olive oil is a great skin nourishing oil that provides lots of anti-oxidants.
The amount of extra virgin olive oil and caster oil will depend on your skin type. Personaly, I use a ratio of 3:1 (3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon of caster oil). The first time I did it I used a ratio of 1:1 because I wasn’t sure about how much to use and I found my skin to be slightly dry so I switched it up to this ratio and it works great. Here are the general rules for mixing the oil according to skin Type:
| Skin Type | Extra Virgin Olive Oil | Caster Oil |
| Dry | 3 tablespoons | 1 tablespoon |
| Normal | 2 tablespoons | 2 tablespoons |
| Oily | 1 tablespoon | 3 tablespoons |
You can also add other oils to the mixture for other healing properties like tea tree oil, lavender oil, rose hip seed oil, or any other essential oil. I add a few drops of tea tree oil to my cleanser which is great if you have acne prone skin.
How to use the Oil Cleansing Method?
Once you have your oil mixed up you are all set to wash your face. I keep mine in a small glass bottle with medicine dropper (shown in the photo) to dispense the cleanser neatly. Here are the steps:
- Start with a dry face and put a a generous amount of the oil mix into the palm of your hand then gently massage it into the skin on your face and neck.
- Once you have massaged the oil onto your face, get a wash cloth and run it under hot water in the faucet. Lay the cloth over your face as a bit of a steam treatment to let the olive oil soak into your skin.
- After a minute or so, use the cloth to wipe off the excess oil from your face.
That’s it! You’re face is clean. Some people feel they do not need any moisturizer after they do this cleansing method. Personally, since my skin tends to be try I feel I do need a little moisturizer. I use a moisturizer that I make myself at home which is also a mixture of a few different oils or sometimes I use my own homemade lavender lotion which smells awesome.
I started seeing a difference in my skin within a week of doing this cleansing method. Some people do this every night and some people only do it 4-5 times a week. I have been doing this most nights but if there is a night when I feel I don’t need to then I just use a warm wash cloth and gently wipe my face.
Trust me, I’m not the only weird one. Read more about using the oil cleansing method at these blogs:
If you use this method and love it, I would love to get your comments about it below. If you think I’m nuts, I would love to hear your comments too!
Check out some of my homemade organic skin care products in my skin care shop.
This post was shared at Simple Lives Thursday and Things I Love Thursday
Tags: beauty recipes, crunchy betty, High on Health, homemade, keeper of the home, oil cleansing method, simple mom, sorta crunchy
I use it in the winter. My skin gets soooo dry in the winter, and this is just the ticket. In the summer, it’s not so bad as I’m not wearing make up for work and it’s very humid where I live, so my skin evens out.
If you’re thinking this is weird, give it a try it really does work.
Hi Paula,
Thanks for your comment! Just curious, what do you do in the summer instead of the oil cleansing method? I know some people just use plain water. I always like to know what other people do.
Thanks!
Roxanne
Roxanne recently posted..Why you Should Wash your Face with Oil
I use oil all the time! I love it. We have eczema here at our house and it’s fantastic {the oil, not the eczema}! Thank you for sharing. I love your site!
I do castor/jojoba oils. I just love this too. I have less problem days with my skin. I read about it at angry chicken and crunchy Betty.
I was just discussing this with a friend of mine this week. We both use oils.
I do this. I was using 1:1 but will try the 3:1 since my face has been feeling dry. This along with your anti aging serum, I should be in good shape!
That’s exactly what I do, I use the oil cleansing method and then follow with the serum! It really works well. I can’t believe I used to use such harsh products that never gave me anywhere near the results I get from this method!
I’ve been using pressed coconut oil as a face wash for about 6 months (It’s great to get off make up). . .I think I might try this for a bit to see which I like better.
Do you have any thoughts on grapeseed oil? I use it on my baby for diaper solution and was thinking about using it or my cleanser, since it has lots of great qualities for the skin.
Grapeseed oil is great for the skin, I have heard a lot of people love using it in the Oil Cleansing Method in place of Olive Oil. Definitely give it a try!
Thank you!
You are so full of handy hints Roxanne!!!
Thanks Martina Mariu, Life Coach
Just wondering what your moisturizing mixture is? Love the oil methods!
The mixture that is most moisturizing is the dry skin version – you can also add essential oils I love it with lavender.
I am so excited to try this! I wear make-up every day, so I’m curious what you ladies use to remove eye make-up? I currently use cetaphyl.
The oil cleansing method has worked for me to remove all of the makeup I wear (but it is natural makeup).
Also, cetaphyl is full of chemicals and parabens I would stop using that!
Thanks so much! If I can still see after using the oil on my eyelashes, I’ll be throwing out the cetaphyl!
Awesome!! Glad its working for you.
Does it matter much what kind of oils you use? I don’t have castor oil but I have coconut, almond, and olive oils. Could I use some combination of those? Coconut oil tends to make my face dry.
Castor oil seems to work very well because it carries the dirt or makeup off of your skin. I have used castor oil in combination with a few different oils and it seems to work well with any liquid oil. You can try it without the castor oil and see how it works – I’ve never done it without the castor oil. It might work just fine without it. Coconut oil is great for the skin I often use it as a moisturizer on its own.
[...] Wash Your Face With Natural Oils [...]
Just wanted to chime in that I have been using oils to remove makeup for over a decade- it’s the BEST way! I currently use grapeseed oil and it takes the mascara right off. Added bonus all that vitamin e for my eye area! I haven’t tried the oil cleansing method for my entire face yet. I am currently pregnant and was concerned about the safety of using castor oil topically during pregnancy? Do you know about this?