When you buy a skin care product, the first rule – and, definitely, the most important one – is to figure out for what type of skin it was created for. It matters more than any “miracle” product that a friend might recommend (which, surely, fits her, but doesn’t mean that it suits, too), more than any discount or any attractive packaging.
But how do you know what is your skin type? Well, there are some signs you need to take into account.
The first step is to remove your make-up and wash your face. The most important advice is to choose a gentle, soap-free product, like L’Occitane Immortelle Cleansing Foam. Then, wait a couple of hours, and during this time don’t apply any other product on your face. After these two hours, carefully observe your skin.
So…
If you have a normal complexion…
… then your skin is silky. It’s not at all oily, , yet you don’t feel it tighten. Well, this is a normal skin-type – envied, surely, by all of your friends.
What products to use: light-formula creams, not very hydrating, rich ones. Examples: Hydra Essentiel from Clarins, Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion from Clinique, Energie de Vie from Lancome.
If you have an oily complexion…
Then your skin shines and, if you touch it, it’s also oily. And, it sometimes happens to you to have a few pimples or other imperfections.
What products to use: light formula creams – liquid, lotion or gel –, mattifying products, created for an oily complexion. Examples: Waso Quick Matte Moisturizer Oil Free from Shiseido, Daywear Matte from Estee Lauder, Superdefence Night from Clinique.
If your complexion is dry…
…well, it means you feel a tightness in your skin. I’m quite surprised you’ve even lasted two hours without applying a cream!
What products to use: rich creams and lotions that provide an in-depth hydration. Examples: Ahava Time to Hydrate, Hydra Essential from Clarins, Cellular Time Release from La Prairie.
If you have a combination skin…
…within the two hours, mentioned above, you already notice that the skin in the T-area is oily, while the rest of your complexion is normal or even dry.
What products to use: Those specially designed for a mixed complexion, which provide a matte look in the T-zone, while offering hydration where your skin is dry. Examples: Hydra Essential from Clarins, Time to Hydrate from Ahava, Gentle Foaming Cleanser from Clarins.
