When it comes to skincare its hard to understand just what your skin needs. Met with millions of different creams, lotions and potions we are on the hunt to find the perfect products for us! The first step in finding your ideal skincare routine is understanding your skin type and we are here to help you do just that.
When we look at the anatomy of the skin, we notice that its surface is covered with a slight film, this is a mixture of sweat and sebum.
Sebum forms a protective film on the surface of the skin, which prevents water from evaporating and helps fight against germs.
Sweat eliminates heat in the first place, but it is also responsible for skin hydration and balance.
The quantity and quality of the skins film determine the skin type, varying on age and health, climate, pollution and personal hygiene.
The Different Types of Skin
There are four main types of skin: normal, dry, oily, and combination when it comes to understanding your skin type.
Normal skin: the ideal skin type
Neither too oily nor too dry, normal skin is comfortable, does not shine, does not tug, does not blush at sudden changes in temperature. It is often the result of a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Normal skin needs fewer products.
Dry skin
Dry skin can be confused with dehydrated skin but both are very different in what they need! Dry skin lacks sebum (that thing we spoke about at the beginning), which not having enough of will cause water to evaporate from the skin, thus causing dry skin. Therefore we need to nourish the skin before hydrating.
Oily skin
Oily skin is caused by an excess of sebum, the opposite of dry skin! You can tell oily skin by the skin glossing, enlarged pores, blackheads and dullness. You skin can be oily for a variety of reasons, including pollution and using the wrong products.
Combination Skin
Combination skin is a mixture of two skin types and is characterized by:
- oily skin on the middle zone, or T zone
- normal or dry skin on the cheeks.
With combination skin you will find you may need to try different types of products for each area.
So, how do we determine our skin type?
There are a number of ways we can determine our skin type from magnifying mirrors to purpose built machines, one which you can easily do at home would be the tissue test.
- Take off your makeup
- Clean the skin with soap and water
- Wait 30 minutes until the glands have worked hard enough
- Place a tissue on the face, like a mask, and press lightly for about ten seconds
- Remove the handkerchief and observe in the light
Result of the test:
- There are traces of oil (transparencies in the light) all over the tissue: you probably have oily skin
- There are traces of oil only in the middle zone (forehead, nose, chin): you probably have mixed skin
- There is no trace on the tissue: you have normal skin or dry skin
Please note the above technique may give you an idea of your skin type but we would still recommend coming for a skin consultation at one of our clinics where our skin experts can talk through what your skin needs and build you a bespoke treatment and skincare plan.
Book yours by contacting the team on 01844 390110 / [email protected].
