Nitty Gritty on the Oil Cleansing Method
There are facial cleansers – foamy, gel, soapy, dry. There are exfoliants and scrubs. Toners and splashes.
And then there’s oil.
The superhero of facial cleaning.
You heard me right. Oil.
Regardless of your particular skin situation (dry, oily, normal, reptilian), there’s an oil-cleansing method that will work with your type.
“Oil cleansing method,” is one of the most popular in-site search term on Crunchy Betty. You want to know more about this oddly effective way to wash your face. I don’t blame you. It’s disco awesome.
My one post on it, however, was written at nearly the absolute beginning of my blogging career. I had no idea how to craft a readable, coherent post. (Translation: It’s confusing and not very helpful.)
We’re going to try this again. The right way.
Everything you want to know about the oil cleansing method. Why it works. How to do it. The pros and cons.
Your mind = blown. Your face = gorgeous. Your undying love + candy = mine.
How Does the Oil Cleansing Method Work?
Turn off the faucet for a minute. Put your facial cleanser away. Instead, today, grab some oils and slather them on your face. Massage them around. Let them lounge luxuriously. Now, turn the faucet back on – very warm water. Dunk a washcloth in it and then slowly wipe the oil off your face.
Guess what? Your face is now as clean as it needs to be. It’s radiant. Gorgeous, dahling. You’ve just used the oil cleansing method.
But how does it work?
You know how your skin – all of it – secretes oil? Even if your face feels dry, it still has oil on it.
Well, according to chemistry know-how, like dissolves like. So, effectively what you’re doing is dissolving and wiping away all the icky dirty oil from your face and replenishing it with clean, nourishing oil.
There’s no harsh chemicals involved. No suds. Nothing to actually strip your skin of its oil.
And this is good, because when you strip your skin of its sebum, it goes into overdrive, trying to create more. Which leads to clogged pores. Blackheads. Whiteheads. Just plain old irritation.
(We learned this well with the no ‘poo experiment, right? How shampoos make your scalp flip out and produce more oil?)
And that, in a very brief and succinct nutshell, is how the oil cleansing method works.
What Oils Are Best for Oil Cleansing?
Regardless of your skin type, there’s one oil you’ll probably want, and that is:
Castor oil.
Castor oil is gives you the most cleansing, dissolving bang for your buck. It’s also highly antibacterial in nature.
It can also be drying. So depending on your skin type, you’ll either use more or less castor oil proportionally to the other oils.
Good Oil Cleansing Varieties
- Jojoba (all skin types, but very desirable for acne-prone skin)
- Sweet almond (all skin types, especially oily)
- Grapeseed (all skin types, especially oily)
- Avocado (dry and aging skin)
- Sunflower Seed (all skin types)
Olive (all skin types)*
- Apricot Kernel (dry, aging, and normal skin)
- Argan (all skin types, especially aging skin … very pricey)
- Tamanu (all skin types … very pricey)
*You’ll probably want to stay away from coconut oil for oil cleansing, as it is a known comedogenic and may possibly clog your pores and exacerbate blackheads.
The Oil-Cleansing Ratio
Some oils to use for the oil-cleansing methods.
When you first start out with OCM, It’s best to think in ratios of thirds. You can measure these thirds out ahead of time and prepare a whole bottle full of oil. Or, you can do what I do and just eyeball it each time you use the method.
It might be better to use this on a “wash-by-wash” basis before you go mixing a whole bottle of oil together, just in case you want to change up the ratios if you notice your face is becoming too dry or too oily.
Here’s the rule of oil-cleansing thirds (remember, castor oil is important here):
.
.
- Oily skin: Use 2/3 castor oil to 1/3 carrier oil. (Or measure out 2 tsp castor oil and 1 tsp carrier oil.)
- Normal skin: Use equal parts castor oil and carrier oil. (Measuring out 1-1/2 tsp castor oil and 1-1/2 tsp carrier oil.)
- Dry skin: Use 1/3 castor oil and 2/3 carrier oil. (Again, 2 tsp carrier oil and 1 tsp castor oil.)
These ratios are NOT set in stone, but they’re a great jumping off point. Again, when I do this, I just eyeball it in the palm of my hand and go from there.
My favorite mix thus far: 1 tsp castor oil, 1 tsp avocado oil, and 1 tsp jojoba oil.
Oil Cleansing in 3 Easy Steps
- Prepare. Either mix your oils together ahead of time, or have the bottles ready. Set a clean washcloth beside the sink. Turn the hot water on to warm up.
- Cleanse. Starting with a dirty face (no need to pre-clean here, even if you’re wearing makeup), rinse your face lightly with the warm, running water. Pour the oil in the palm of your hand and then apply gently all over your face. Massage firmly, but gently, always moving upwards. Massage for 2 minutes, and then let the oil sit on your face for 30 more seconds or more.
- Rinse. By now, you should have very hot water coming out of your faucet. Adjust the heat until it’s cool enough to apply to your skin, but warm enough to soften the oil (it’s probably going to be hotter than the water you usually rinse your face with). Dunk the washcloth under the hot/warm water until it’s completely soaked. Apply the washcloth to your face and hold it there for 10-15 seconds. Slowly begin to wipe off. Rinse your washcloth and repeat until you’ve wiped all the oil off your skin.
That’s it!
Your skin is now cleansed.
For as easy as it sounds – and as beneficial as it is – there are some pros and cons to oil cleansing, though.
Pros and Cons of Oil Cleansing
Pros:
- It’s fantastic for your skin, and works for many people to clear up acne, combat dryness, and maintain a radiant glow.
- It’s super natural (be sure to buy cold-pressed or expeller-pressed organic oils, as well as castor oil that’s consciously extracted).
- It whisks away makeup in a flash. (It’s the only way I clean my face when I wear makeup now.)
- It doesn’t strip the skin of its natural oils.
- If you use this nightly, you may not need to spring for pricey moisturizers anymore.
Cons:
- It may take a week or two for your skin to adjust to this new regimen.
- It’s more time-consuming than just washing your face with a cleanser.
- It’s a little more costly than using a cleanser, depending on the oils you choose.
- It may mean more laundry, due to the numerous washcloths you’ll go through if you do this every night.
Notes on the Oil Cleansing Method
Now that you know why you should do it, how to do it, and whether or not you’re up to the challenge, you may have a couple of questions. If I don’t cover them here, feel free to ask down below.
The frequency at which you use the OCM is up to you. Some people do it every night. I don’t have that kind of hardcore dedication (nor do I feel like my face gets dirty enough most of the time to warrant it). The one thing I would probably steer clear of – completely – is switching up the OCM with a store-bought facial cleanser that contains sulfates or sulfides. You’ll just confuse the heck out of your skin and it won’t know what to do with its own oil.
You might not need to moisturize after you use the oil cleansing method. This is where I heartily encourage you to get to know your own skin, so you can tell if it’s feeling dry enough to use a moisturizer. Every time I’ve OCM’ed before bedtime, I’ve never felt the need to moisturize (save a little vitamin E oil around my eyes).
You CAN jazz it up with things like tea tree oil or lavender essential oil (if your face is oily or acne-prone) or carrot seed oil or rose hip oil for normal/dry skin or even some rose essential oil or myrrh essential oil if your skin is aging. In all cases, just use 2-3 drops of each oil in your mixture.
Don’t sweat it if you don’t enjoy the oil cleansing method. It does take some time, and it does take some time to get used to. Eventually, you may feel like you’re pampering your face in a whole new and incredible way. Or you may feel like you never want to go to bed, because. Only do it if you enjoy it – if you see and feel a difference you’re happy with.
Last but not least, here are some of the websites that turned me on to the oil-cleansing method last year. Thanks, ladies!
Have you tried the oil cleansing method? Speak up in the comments! Let everyone know what you thought and what your favorite part about it was!
*See THIS Crunchy Betty post for updated tips and recommendations for starting the oil cleansing method, in addition to why you shouldn’t use olive oil and other good stuffs to know.
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Where did you buy your jojoba oil?
Where did you buy your jojoba oil?
i need to know if i can substitute castor oil for apricot kernel and the carrier oil is argon with rose hips
So i only need to cleanse at night??
Going around leaving comments on all the blogs I used as references when starting the OCM- Thank you!!
This has worked beautifully, even my mom can’t stop commenting on how great my skin looks. I’ve dealt with horrible, face completely covered in acne since I was 16. I even went on Accutane, which helped a lot, but I was still dealing with consistently recurring pimples. OCM has given me so much confidence!
My concoction that I’ve found works best is a combination of:
2 parts Castor Oil
1 part EVOO
1 part Jojoba oil
2-3 drops Tea Tree Oil
1-2 drops Rosemary Oil
Which all helped with my combination skin, and keeping those pimples down, with rarely any making their way to the surface of my skin. I still wear makeup, because I always have and that’s not something I can just stop. But I do feel leaps and bounds better about my face.
Hope this helps someone out there. Thanks again!
I used the oil cleaning method, and loved it! I have a couple questions. #1 What do you recomend for a lift, tightning solution? #2 When using the oil cleansing routine, should I use a alpha hydroxy face cream?
Hey Guys, just wondering – if any of you OCM users still see this post- what facewash do you usually use? As Crunchy Betty says, it is bad to switch between store-bought cleanser and oil, but I will only have time to use the oil at night. What do you suggest I use to wash my face with in the mornings?
i see- honey- gotcha! very excited to try an all organic facial regime :)
Do the honey face wash in the morning! it takes like five seconds and my face always feels nice and soft using honey instead of face washes
If you clean your face well enough at night, there is no need to wash again in the morning. A quick splash of water is all you really need, sometimes I use a little witch hazel on a cotton ball afterwards. Good Luck!
If you don’t use the OCM daily, then what do you cleanse your face with on alternate days?? I wear mineral makeup daily due to my work.
If you don’t use the OCM daily, then what do you cleanse your face with on alternate days?? I wear mineral makeup daily due to my work.
I have recently started the OCM have been using it now for just over a month. I have been battling very bad hormonal cystic acne on my neck, and a week after using this method noticed a huge difference, It was like every night i looked forward to how good my face was going to feel!! my face is much less oily and reducing in reddness.
I had to experiment for a while on the right mixture and right now using the “normal skin” cause i actually found the “oily skin” combo was drying out m face too much!
However just now i noticed im back to getting deep acne!! I am looking to switch up my oils i think. Would you suggest the jojoba oil instead of olive oil?
I know I am a little late jumping on the OCM bandwagon, but I am on it, so, better late than never. I am 49 years old and have been fighting oily skin and breakouts since I was a teen. I have used expensive products and not expensive products. I have also tried products claiming to be “natural” Most would work for a while then stop. One product that had worked long term for me is Proactive. I had been using it for years. All 3 steps, plus a moisturizer, anti-aging product and a weekly mask. Proactive kept my skin clear, but by the end of the day, I would still have an oil slick on my face. I liked my clear skin, but did not like the chemicals, the stripping everything out, then trying to add back and compensate with more chemicals. Plus, I was spending a small fortune on skin care. I started reading about the OCM a few months ago and decided to try it. After playing around with oils, and learning that my EVOO wasn’t as virgin as I thought it was, I learned it was adulterated, therefore found a purer EVOO; and playing with the caster oil/EVOO ratio, my face is marvelous! I use 1/3 caster oil, 2/3 EVOO, a few drops of tea tree oil and a few drops of lavender oil. I can mix up a bottle that will hold a little more than an ounce and that bottle will last about a month It took 6 weeks to get my oils right and my ratios right for my face to clear and adjust to the regiment. I love it! My complexion looks great. I cleanse every night. I moisturize with a tiny bit of Jojoba oil after cleansing and occasionally in the AM. Initially, I spent about $50 on oils to get started, this will be much more economical that what I was using. My previous routine averaged out to about $25-$30 per month and I know this will be much less.
Hi I was just wondering about using a small amount of wheatgerm oil in the mix? I am going to start ocm on my troubled, red and generally unhappy skin that’s on the oily side. I have got some almond oil and castor oil but after a load of research it seemed that wheatgerm oil helps rejuvenate the skin and help with scars (I’m a terrible picker) but barely anyone has used it for ocm. What are your thoughts on the matter? Any help please!!
CB recommends tamanu oil for acne scars in her most recent OCM post. :)
I’m using wheatgerm oil. It has been working wonderfully. It has a lot of vitamins that will help with scarring.
Where do I get the right castor oil? What brand should i get? I bought some today at the store, but its just the store brand. I used that tonight, but I’m guessing I shouldn’t.
Hi I had a question, as someone who likes to wash my face in both the morning and evening, is it advisable to use the OCM in the morning as well, or just once at night? And if it is better once at night, then what should I wash my face with in the morning? I have combination skin with usually just monthly breakouts.
How do you know when you’ve rinsed the oil properly? I’ve been doing OCM for about three weeks now. I noticed dramatic improvement within the first few days. This past week. I’ve developed a lot of small whiteheads. They mostly go away quickly, but they’re replaced by others. After reading some comments, I think I’m not rinsing thoroughly enough – but I have been avoiding scrubbing, and onlynvery gently wipe. i still feel the oil on my skin, but having never done anything like this, I thought it was normal. I’ve suffered with terrible acne for many years. Now, at 30, I’m fed up with dermatologists and esthetician a who evidently don’t know squat.
Make sure you are changing your washcloth super often. I have to change mine every 2-3 days but if your skin is more sensitive you may need to do it more frequently. The washcloth is being covered in dirty oil with all the bacteria from your skin, warm water and then is likely being hung up somewhere to dry out slowly (maybe not even completely by the next time you use it); it is going to grow bacteria like crazy!
One of the hardest things to get used to is the slightly oily feeling of your skin right afterwards, it’s normal. I gently wipe off the oil I used to cleanse (you’re right to be gentle) and then I actually add a few more drops of clean oil and leave that on my face at bedtime so my face feels really oily when I go to bed. This means that I don’t have to use a moisturizer and in the morning my skin is super soft.
However, back to the washcloth thing – because you have those natural oils on the surface of your skin when you go to bed they are rubbing off on your pillow. So you should be changing your pillowcase just as often as you change that washcloth. I have about 20 pillowcases so I always have a clean one. Plus a nice fresh pillowcase feels so good.
I’m 26 and I’ve been using this method for 1 year and a half now. I get compliments on my skin now and people ask me what products I use. After 10 years of embarrassing breakouts and painful pimples it feels really good. Stick with it!
Thanks for the great advice! Just a quick question though, is it ok to use olive oil or coconut oil instead of the castor oil?
I have a question about the rest of the routine…I wash my face twice a day, night and morning. Do I use my normal face wash followed by my normal moisturizer in the morning and the OCM method just at night?
Quit washing in the morning, you don’t need to and you’re just harming your skin. Just splash it with some cold water, add a few drops of your oil (or moisturizer if you feel you need to) and voila! Plus, as I mentioned so someone else – change your pillowcase every few days so that you’re not rubbing old oils and skin flakes into your clean skin every night, then when you wake up you won’t feel like your skin is dirty.
I just started this but had a question about when to use toner?? Do you have to with this method?
Has anyone noticed if the OCM has enlarged their acne scars? I have never had an issue with acne scars before, but my last few pimples that went away when I first started using this method left small scars and they have only gotten larger since. Everything else about this method is wonderful. I haven’t broken out at anymore at all!! I didn’t even go through the ” purge”. It may not be the OCM that is making my scars appear larger. It may be just a coincidence. Any thoughts?
Are you using castor oil in your oil mixture? Castor oil typically breaks down scars and has even been shown to prevent their formation. So it has an effect on scars, maybe because your skin normally heals acne scars differently, it is affecting that process. You left this message a while ago, I’d be curious to know if you were using castor oil and if you stuck with it what the results were with your scars. Personally my old acne scars have actually faded with this method.
Oh. My. Word. I just tried this for the first time and my skin is soooo soft…I have super dry skin and my face has not been this soft since I was 10. Wow. I really hope this keeps working because it rocks my world…also, it does take a little bit longer, but doing OCM feels like I’m giving myself a spa treatment instead of just washing the gunk off, so it’s worth it! I did still moisturize because my skin is so dry, but I think I could have gotten away with not doing it. And yeah, my makeup just melted off…I find it funny that OCM is way more effective than store bought stuff. Thanks for this post!
What’s a carrier oil?
Coconut oil with used coffee grounds makes a great scrub! also, the use of a scrubbing agent leaves your skin with less excess oil :)
Pardon me, I am very confused! LOL I see you say to never use coconut oil, but everyone and their sister raves about using it for the oil cleansing method(this is actually the first site I have been to that actively warns AGAINST using it). I don’t know what to try or start with.
My skin is combination/acne-prone and ProActiv was really drying my skin out so I started OCM back in February. I was using about 1/3 Castor Oil to 2/3 Jojoba Oil with some lavender, tamanu and evening primrose which Crunchy Betty recommends for acne-prone skin. The first 2 weeks my skin was great. All the plugs were coming out and no more tightness from my dry skin. I was excited! THEN ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE. After 2 weeks, I began seeing large cystic acne on my chin, jawline and hairline. New clusters of blemishes would pop up every day and they were deep and severely painful. I increased my OCM to twice a day thinking this would help, but it actually made it worse. I don’t know what I was thinking, but I was OCMing in conjunction with No ‘Poo (for the first time). March roles around and I had THE WORST skin I’ve ever had in my entire life. It was at the point that I didn’t even want to be seen in public and no amount of make-up could solve my problems. I did some research and it looks like castor oil was the culprit of my skin problems. After a trip to the doctor, OCM gave me a bacterial skin infection (which is WAY worse than acne) and I had to go on antibiotics for 2 weeks, which didn’t even help. The stress of my horrible skin wasn’t helping. Finally, my husband suggested swabbing Hydrogen Peroxide (3%) over the affected areas and that’s cured me. 2 months later, I’m now left with dark acne scarring while my skin still heals. Just thought I’d share my experience with OCM. Great at first, but horrible afterwards. Monitor your face and as soon as you have a reaction STOP.
If you decide to only do this 2-3 times a week, what should you do inbetween? It says that mixing it and washing your face on other nights with store-bought facial cleansers will send mixed signals and your skin won’t know what to do with your own oils…
I’ve read a LOT about OCM, but there doesn’t seem to be a consensus about applying and massaging the oil onto a dry face or onto a moist face. Is there any difference between the two? If so, which one is better?
I came across your site accidentally and am so pleased i did. I have used this method for a week now, and my skin feels awesome. However, i did find that my skin got extremely dry to begin with so i reduced the amount of castor oil, increased the olive oil and included avocado oil and vit E oil. Thank you very much for sharing this information. Any advice on ‘natural’ alternative to moisturizer?
i have been using this method for 3 and a half weeks now and my face is more broken out than it ever was when i was using harsh cleansers. i keep thinking that it will get better but i am starting to get discouraged. i have been reading up on several different sites and have found some conflicting advice – some sites say for oily skin to use 30% castor oil and 70% carrier oil, however yours and a couple of others say to use the opposite ratio. huh? which is it?
I have dry dehdrated skin, and am using the 30% castor, 70% carrier ratio. I am also using jojoba oil because it is better for acneic skin, so make sure you research your oils first!! I recommend checking out Crunchy Betty’s 3 ingredient moisturizer page.
thanks, but like i said, several sites said one thing and several others said the opposite. i have hesitated to use jojoba because many people have said that it is too drying. from what i understand, there is a great degree of experimenting with different oil combinations until you find the “right” combination which i’m sure is different for everyone and probably hard to determine as i am not sure if my skin is still purging? or if i am making it worse with the combination of oils i am using. i have since changed the ratio and it seems to be getting better? but not really.
Has anyone done the oil cleansing method with an herbal infused carrier oil? I just started the oil cleansing, and am also making a jojoba infusion with fennel, rosemary and candelule petals. I am wondering if this is good, or if its redundant?? My ratio is 25-30% castor and 70-75% jojoba. I have dehydrated skin prone to cystic acne and lotsa blackheads. Thinking about adding tamanu oil and lavender essential oil, but I really don’t want to overdo it. I am OCMing in the evening, and using cleansing grains in the morning. Also really scared about OCMing too much, that seems to be everyone’s problem, but i really wanna get rid of the dryness, because it is contributing majorly to the blackheads. Anyone have similar face issues, or experiences??
I NEED ADVICE. I’ve been OCMing for about a month now with 3/10 castor oil and 7/10 sunflower oil once daily in the evening. I have moderate acne with mostly papules and a few pustules and cysts. I feel like my acne is worse than before. For the first 2 weeks, I used a cinnamon, nutmeg, honey mask in the morning but my face started to feel tight and dry so I stopped. Nothing really seemed that different except my skin was less pink. I’ve been using the sunflower castor oil combo for the past 2 weeks and I still have acne all over my face. After showering, my face feels dry and itchy.
I’m going to try jojoba oil and castor oil tonight with a few drops of tea tree oil. Should I keep going with this? SHould I just go to the dermatologist and put chemicals all over my face and in my body? I’m worried that it’s just going to get worse and worse and I’m going to have horrible scarring all over my face.
The switch to the jojoba oil was a really good idea. Like me, you should try adding a little teeny bit of tamanu oil. Its expensive, but if you are worried about scarring its a good route to take. If you are adding essential oils, you should pre-mix your oils with the essential oils (in a separate container) so you don’t get too much, because essential oils can irritate your skin more. Less is more sometimes. I am also cleansing in the morning with cleansing grains that I made at home. If you are dry, it will give you that light exfoliation that you want!! Less itchy.
Your ratio seems consistent with your skin condition, and cutting the honey cinnamon nutmeg mask was a good idea- that mask should be used sparingly. I used as my sole cleaner for a while (about a month), and it was a bad idea. It’s not meant to be used every day on your face. Made my skin more dehydrated. Cleansing with honey ever day IS a good idea though!! You should try to work that in. Maybe cleaning with herbal infused honey?
I thought the crunchy ladies were absolutely crazy for trying this. But I’ve been doing it for a couple of months after, no matter what I did, I kept breaking out pretty regularly (at the age of 36!). It took me awhile to get the ratio correct, but I love the mini facial everytime I wash my face (usually every other day – inbetween, I rinse with water). I’m a believer – it works! It’s the only thing I use now :)
That is so awesome!! I am encouraged to see people with GOOD experiences, because everyone has been posting how horrible it is, and it’s freaking me out. :S cuz I am a OCM newbie. Have you tried cleansing with honey on your off days?? I also am only OCMing every other day, and am wondering of that would help me.
How does this work on very sensitive/rosacea skin? I have combination skin….very oily in places and very dry at other spots…anything that could combat redness? I do also have few breakouts from time to time
i am new to this ocm method and i decide to try. i am 18 and i have been suffering from acne since i was 11 but the now the pimples sort of receded but it left me awful dark and red spots on my skin, and i have very noticeable blackheads and big pores and i have very oily skin. my question is, what do you use to wash your face? like, i use this method every night but in the morning, what do you guys use or when you shower, do you still use soap? I live in the Philippines and it’s really hot here so oil on my face in the morning its not really ideal. So, do you still use soap? or cleansers?
And thank you very much on this post. I hope it will help me too. :D
Have any rosacea suffers attempted the OCM? I have inflammatory rosacea which seems to be aggravated by almost every cleanser I use. Considering having a try at the OCM.
I started oil cleansing accidentally 6 months ago. I had just finished cleaning my face with an expensive snail skin cleanser from Korea that I had been told was excellent for my skin. Then somehow i decided to try cleansing my face with coconut oil drenched in cotton wool that I had been using for my hairline.
I was amazed. The cottons wool came off black from the face i had just thoroughly washed . I cleaned it about 5 times to get a clean face. I quickly did a google searched “using coconut oil to cleans skin” and wonder of wonders…oil cleansing actually existed.
I have….or rather “I had”… acne prone skin and had used hundreds of dollars to buy cleansers for problem skin. I havent spent a dime on cleansers or moisturizers for the last six months. My skin is so clear that everyone at work keeps asking me what the secret is. I initially had the worst skin at work.
And I dont know if im alone in this but MY EYE LASHES ARE MUCH LONGER since I started using jojoba oil. My combination is six drops jojoba + 1 drop tea tree and 1 drop lavender. Oil pulling has made me beautiful!!!!
If I use OCM how do I clean my face after intense workout where I sweat a lot?
Hi,
I have had acne and blackheads since I was 11 y.o. and am now 42 y.o. I was on Accutane in my 20′s for cystic acne, that is how bad it has been all my life. I also developed Rosacea when I turned 40. (Boy am I lucky!). Anyway, I have extremely oily and sensitive skin. I get rashes or itching from almost anything I have used on my face. I am currently using all natural soaps on my face like Kiss My Face Pure Olive Oil Soap and have experimented with some other natural soaps, but I still have a large amount of blackheads and am still extremely oily. Additionally, my dermatologist put me on Retin A and Finacea for my ance & rosacea. So, I use those in addition to the natural soap. My “pimple” breakouts have mostly improved except for about a week or so before I have my menstrual cycle. I came across your Blog and became excited. I am sooooo sick of my skin and can’t afford laser surgery or anything like that. The Finacea stings and itches for a few hours after putting it on.
So, anyway, my question is: What oils do you think would be best to use on a very oily, blackhead prone, and very sensitive face (also, with the occassional regular pimple breakout)? I do occasionally use Jojoba oil with no problems with sensitivity or itching. I’m kind of afraid to use the castor oil after reading some of the statement from readers of your blog but then am also curious to know if it will help with my oilslick of a face. Please help ! Thanks so much. Sorry so long.
I personally cannot recommend the oil cleansing method. I researched it for days before going for it 3 months ago, and when my blackheads and pimples became progressively worse, I kept at it since everyone says it’s just “your skin reacting to the change”. Well, 3 months later I can barely stand to look at my face and have to put gobs of makeup on to look presentable, and I am so embarrassed about it’s condition. I used a combination of castor, olive and coconut oils infused with lavender and tea tree, and I steamed my face as instructed. Maybe this method works for some people, but definitely not for everyone and I think a warning is in order. This may NOT work for you, but try it out if you wanna. The last couple of days I’ve been cleansing with baking soda/vodka/essential oils (I think I found the recipe on this site!) and moisturize with my handcrafted whipped coconut mylk/essential oil lotion, and things are starting to clear up, thank the Universe. I just really have a problem with people touting things like this as a cure-all for everyone, without aknowledging that there might be risks~ of scarring, in this case.
How come olive oil is crossed off? Is evoo ok?
I have a few questions.
1. Do you only do the OCM at night or can you do it in the morning as well?
2. If you should only do it at night what should I wash my face with in the morning or afternoons after I have worked out or been at the pool?
3. What is a good moisturizer to use while doing the OCM. I have to put lotion on before I put makeup on.
A little history about my skin: I have very dry but also very acne prone skin. I am changing my diet to help because my skin has never been like this. For the past 2 years my skin started breaking out severely and even worse during that time of month. But my skin has also been so dry that it peels off my face and bleeds. There is a wonderful woman that has been doing my facials for over a year, and they do help but I can’t afford them as much as I need them. She thinks my skin has a lot to do with hormones so that is why I am changing my diet and taking more vitamins. But she also feels the oil in my skin is going crazy, so I thought trying the OCM would be a great idea. If anyone has any suggestions on oils that would work best, as well as lotions I can use at night and before I put on makeup and what I can wash my face with in the mornings PLEASE let me know. I am praying this works because I am about to give up hope. My face is so bad right now I don’t want to leave my house. Thanks
1) I recommend using a castor oil/carrier mix at night to get rid of dirt and oil, etc, then only your carrier in the morning if you feel that you need a cleanser in the morning, if you clean your face well enough at night, you should be fine with just wiping your face with a warm washcloth in the morning.
2) If you’re sweating or swimming, I’d use the castor oil/carrier oil mix, because sweat and pool water are things you need to remove from your skin, so you want a good clean.
3) I use jojoba oil as my cleanser (I don’t use castor oil at all), and for moisturizer I use equal parts extra virgin coconut oil and Aloe gel. I find that mix works really really well under makeup for my dry skin, some people are wary of using coconut oil, but it works great for my skin, as long as I use extra virgin. Also, I’m very particular about using the Jason Organic 98% aloe gel, because its the best one I’ve used, it’s fairly moisturizing and will help with the acne, but because its a gel, it thins the coconut oil a bit. If your skin is as dry as you say it is though, I would try mixing jojoba and coconut oil for a moisturizer, and allowing it several minutes to absorb before putting on makeup, also always using a good foundation primer will help to keep the oil separate from your makeup.
I suffer from blackheads I was using OCM for about a couple months and made the mix for oily skin. I was rubbing it in for way too long (sometimes about 30 mins) and at first, it made my skin so nice and soft and seemed to clear it up so nicely. A few weeks in however, it started to take a nasty turn. I started getting pimples where I had never gotten them before and a few weeks later, my face is covered in blackheads and tiny bumps.
I’ve been off it for about 2.5 weeks and it my skin seems to go up and down in recovery. Is this something that will eventually regulate itself or is it something I need to see a dermatologist about??
Crunchy Betty has posted that EVOO and Coconut Oils are both comodogenic. Try using sunflower oil and leaving out the castor oil altogether until your skin clears up. The castor oil is slightly comodogenic as well. There are ingredient lists on the web that share the non-comodognic ratings. That can be very helpful when using the OCM and making other facial care purchases or even shampoo for that matter.
I have been doing the OCM for about a month now. In the last six weeks I have tried multiple things all at once to try to clear my acne:
1. Everyday I was drinking diluted apple cider vinegar after my breakfast
2. I started the OCM with straight castor oil
3. I started washing my face with honey in the morning
4. I started using a thyme/greentea toner morning and night
5. I started taking halibut and omega oils everyday
It’s hard to tell which is most effective, or if one thing is worse than the other. I have stopped drinking ACV which I think may REALLY help clear acne.
But, back to OCM. I found that at first there was improvement. In the last week my skin has gotten worse, but still not as bad as it was before I started everything au naturel. Like the previous poster I think this is because Castor oil, while it really is good for getting junk out of pores, is slightly comedogenic (See http://www.beneficialbotanicals.com/facts-figures/comedogenic-rating.html).
I’m switching to sunflower oil now, and if it doesn’t work I’m ditching oil altogether.
When I started theOCM, I used only jojoba oil, and I had amazing success for the last three months. I just purchased castor oil for the purpose of removing makeup, (castor oil is the best for taking off makeup out of any oil) but I follow it by cleansing with jojoba, as opposed to mixing the two. I hope you have success with sunflower oil, but if you’re willing to shell out a bit more for jojoba oil, I found that it alone did wonders for my skin.
Also, you may want to take that list of comedogenic oils with a grain of salt, I used to have awful black heads and clogged pores, but since I started the OCM I’ve been using virgin (not extra virgin) coconut oil as my moisturizer and I’ve noticed a significant reduction in clogged pores and blackheads.
Hmmm well I guess every person is different.
A year ago for about four months I was using coconut oil (Virgin, cold pressed, organic) as a moisturizer. It was great at first, but then it just made my skin HORRIBLE.
I think the biggest tip for OCM (and any new regime for your body really) is to pay attention to what it’s doing! It took me a while to figure out how long it takes for my skin to react or respond to something, but now that I have I know not to wait too long while some new experiment progressively makes my skin worse.
Although that said: everyone! Keep experimenting and be patient enough to see a difference! Just know that the difference might not always be an improvement.
I’m really curious as to why you crossed out olive oil. I’ve been using a 3:1 mixture of extra virgin olive oil to castor oil for over a year and a half now and my skin is fantastic. Out of all the oils you have on that list, it is the easiest for people to find. Why did you cross it out?
Sorry, just found the link to your thing about EVOO. Very interesting! I had no idea that so many were not the real thing. I buy mine at a natural foods market (where I do most of my shopping) so maybe I just lucked into the right stuff. Now when I recommend the method I’ll have to pass that info along, THANKS!
Why did you take olive oil off of the list of Carrier oils?
Thanks
Have always loved the OCM. I throw a handful of sugar in mine for a little sloughing, scrubbing action – even I can’t stop touching my skin afterward, let alone anyone else :D
Hello:
I just have a quick question before I begin this….do you have to use a cloth to be successfull or can I just use my hands to take the oil off like a normal cleanser (so long as they are clean)?
Thanks!!
-Brittney
No, you have to use a cloth because you need to soak it in the hot water so you can retain the heat/steam on your face. You also want the abrasion that your hands won’t give you. You can use a facial steamer instead of a hot washcloth, but you still want a damp cloth to actually remove the oil.
After doing the oil cleansing do I not need to use a skin toner to close the pores ?
I’ve been doing the OCM for a week and my skin is THE worst it’s EVER been!!! Honestly, I’ve just turned 30 (today!) and now have small red pimples and rough textured skin. I didn’t have skin this bad as a teenager.
I really want this to work for me and need to know if I should quit and try to help my skin or keep going in case it’s doing this ‘purging’ I’ve read about on other sites. PLEASE HELP!!