How to Care for Combination Skin
Duality, it can often be associated with wonderful things like yin and yang, laughing until you cry, and black and white cookies. However, when it comes to our skin, duality isn’t so enjoyable. Combination skin, which is simultaneously oily and dry, is not only difficult to care for but also causes unwanted effects like acne, flaking, and shine.
Additionally, combination skin isn’t always contained to the T-zone, where it's most common. The skin covering our entire body can be prone to dueling personalities. Eek! Don’t worry, though, combination skin can also be flawless skin. Yep, you heard that right. Read on to discover a foundational skin care approach as well as key products, that will help combat challenging combination skin.
So How Do You Get Flawless Combination Skin?
First and foremost, you have to know your skin and you’ll know you have combination skin when you notice areas that are simultaneously dry, oily, and normal. If this is the case, think about your skin like a map. Each area, whether it be normal, oily, or dry, is like a different neighborhood. Knowing where these neighborhoods are is key to treating that particular area appropriately and achieving that sought-after glow we all yearn for.
Secondly, understand what products are beneficial to combination skin. Some products, like gentle cleansers and masks, can be used across areas. Other products are meant to separately target dry or oily areas - but we’ll dive into this in detail in a minute, so stay tuned.
What’s the Best Skin Care Routine for Combination Skin?
Like most things in life, there isn’t a super simple answer for how to care for combination skin. Your approach and routine, like you, will be unique. However, there are some general guidelines to help get you started - so let’s get to it!
Start with a gentle cleanser like Philosophy's award-winning Purity Made Simple One Step Facial Cleanser which has been touted as the best face wash for combination skin by sources like Good Housekeeping due to its gentle skin-balancing formula infused with botanical oils like meadowfoam and rosewood.
Follow with a toner that will exfoliate, balance, and hydrate. Our pick is United State Balancing Tonic from Origins that’s specifically formulated and recommended for combination skin.
Use a multitasking mask at least once a week. Masks, like your skin, often have a combination of purposes like exfoliation and moisturizing so give Biore’s Blue Agave Baking Soda Mask a try on your face and our Squeeze It butt mask on your bod.
Be sure to moisturize. Here’s the thing, though, there isn’t one best moisturizer for combination skin; you may need to use two different kinds of moisturizers and here’s why - oily areas will respond better to lightweight versions like Dermalogica Active Moist while dry patches will flourish with the use of a rich formula like CeraVe’s Moisturizing Cream.
Finally, if you’re going to be wearing makeup, make sure you use a primer and foundation that won’t negate all the hard work you’ve done with your skin care routine. The best primer for combination skin goes to Bioderma’s Sebium Pore Refiner while our recommendation for the best foundation for combination skin goes to Laura Mercier’s Flawless Fusion Ultra-Longwear Foundation.
What Ingredients Should I Avoid for Combination Skin?
Since we’ve gone over the things you should look for, let's talk about some things you might want to avoid. Harsh ingredients like fragrance, alcohol, and heavy oils or emollients should be avoided as they can exacerbate oily and dry areas - and we don’t want this because it could end in acne scars. Yikes! Instead, look for ingredients like aloe vera which is beneficial to both oily and dry skin.
The Bottom Line
Combination skin is a challenge but with the right know-how, a solid plan, and consistency, the only combo you’ll be worrying about is the one you’re trying to decide on for lunch. Go with the brown rice. It has vitamin B, antioxidants, and minerals for smooth skin. You’re welcome.