10 Tips to Keep Combination Skin Healthy and Glowing
The main characteristic of combination skin is the coexistence of dry and oily areas.
The former are mainly concentrated on the cheeks, around the eyes and around the lips, while the latter are in the T-zone, that is, the forehead, nose and chin. The skin has an irregular, dry or flaky texture on the cheeks, but shiny and oily on the forehead, nose and chin, where blackheads and blemishes often appear. This is due to the hydrolipidic film which is not uniform.
Dryness is not caused by a lack of sebum, but by hyperkeratosis : a thickening of the stratum corneum with accumulation of dead cells. This layer of dead cells creates a lot of problems for us, not allowing the skin to “breathe” properly and causes the development of pimples and blackheads.
How to take care of combination skin?
We have summarised 10 practical tips to get the most out of your skin and make your complexion glow.
1- Cleanse gently
Cleansing is essential for the care of combination skin because it removes excess sebum and impurities: cleansing your face in the morning helps eliminate the sebum produced by the skin during the night, while in the evening, it is necessary to remove all traces of make-up and impurities accumulated during the day.
Avoid overly aggressive cleansers, they risk damaging your skin, leaving your cheeks red and irritating you. Micellar waters are ideal , formulated without soap and sulphates, because they are gentle on the skin, effectively remove make-up and are quick and easy to use. Remember that they should always be rinsed .
We advise against using cleansing milks that are too thick as they risk weighing down oily areas, encouraging the appearance of blackheads and blemishes .
2 - The ideal method for washing your face
At the beginning of cleansing we recommend using slightly warmer water to help dilate the pores and facilitate the removal of impurities accumulated during the day. While the last rinse with slightly colder water, to restore firmness and tone to our skin before applying the toner.
3 - Use the toner
The toner helps to normalize the sebum of the skin, keeping it healthy. It also helps to purify the epidermis and reduce dilated pores on the face. Its refreshing, softening and decongestant action is also useful in the treatment of red and sensitive skin.
To be gently dabbed onto the cleansed face with a cotton pad, the toner allows first of all to complete the cleansing action of the cleanser not only by removing the last impurities, but also eliminating the calcareous traces present in the rinsing water. Furthermore, it closes the pores and prepares the skin to best receive subsequent treatments, giving vitality and radiance to the face.
4 - Differentiate between face cream and eye contour cream
Combination skin has different needs so we will have to treat the two areas of our face differently.
The face cream should be light, we recommend preferring formulations based on hyaluronic acid and vitamin E : hyaluronic acid deeply hydrates and gives freshness and firmness to the skin, as it stimulates the body's production of collagen.
While Vitamin E: Helps protect the epidermis from the action of free radicals, keeping tissues young and elastic. It is a powerful antioxidant for the skin, capable of repairing damage caused by factors that accelerate aging, such as exposure to sunlight and smog.
While for the T-zone and the eye contour we suggest a richer formulation suitable for treating this area which is drier. Given the sensitivity of this area, a cream formulated specifically for the eye contour should be preferred .
Formulations based on Hyaluronic Acid and Aloe Vera are ideal.
5 - Use Oils
Most of the time, the cause of oily areas in combination skin is due to an imbalance caused by the lack of natural oils and essential fatty acids : to compensate for this deficiency, the skin tends to produce more sebum.
To rebalance, it is essential to use treatments that contain pure botanical oils. In this way, the sebaceous glands can slow down the production of sebum, because the skin is compensated by the natural oil it needs to stay healthy. Nighttime is the ideal time to use an oil that can regenerate the skin from the fatigue of the day.
6 - Vitamin C is a fundamental ally
It is necessary to use serums with a high concentration of Vitamin C, an antioxidant that offers support to the skin structure, bringing visible and tactile improvements to the quality of the skin surface, and hyaluronic acid, an active ingredient naturally present in the skin, which has the ability to bind to itself an enormous number of water molecules to ensure the right level of skin hydration, keeping the skin toned and luminous.
7- Two scrubs a week are too many
Scrubs should be used sparingly when you have combination skin.
One every 10 days is enough, combination skin reacts to excessive exfoliation, increasing the production of sebum in the areas where it is excessively irritated. Excessive use of exfoliants can cause thinning of the skin, which inevitably becomes more sensitive, fragile and dry.
8 - Combination skin ages better
There is also good news : combination skin is less prone to premature aging and wrinkle formation than dry skin. Excess sebum keeps it more hydrated and protects it from external aggressions such as humidity, wind and pollution.
9 - Appointment with the mask
We recommend using the multimasking technique which involves mixing/matching different masks to ensure maximum benefits for facial skin , addressing multiple skin needs. Combination skin benefits particularly from clay-based masks (I suggest the white one, also suitable for the most sensitive skin) to be applied to the T-zone; on the cheeks, we can spread a mask based on Aloe Vera and Calendula which hydrates, soothes and revitalizes. After 10 minutes, rinse and proceed with the usual routine.
Masks should be done once or twice a week.
10- Pay attention to the change of season
Combination skin is particularly sensitive to seasonal changes and you should vary your beauty routine throughout the year. Listening to your skin is essential to keeping it healthy.