In a bid to achieve that perfect glow, many people jump at skincare products without bothering to find out if it’s good for their skin or not. They hear the products are capable of lightening complexion and get satisfied with that. Thus forgetting that they could get adverse side effects from bleaching their skin or suffer from acne breakout. We don’t want you buying skincare products because they’ve got bleaching or toning properties alone and that’s why we’ve curated a guide on how to know your skin type.
When you learn how to know your skin type, such mistakes won’t be your lot. You’ll successfully prevent pimples from taking over your face, even your skin tone and avert unnecessary side effects from using the wrong products.
Types of Skin
Inasmuch as inner beauty matters,the importance of your skin cannot be overemphasised. Your skin is your body’s largest organ. Apart from your clothes, it is the first thing people notice when they see you and as such, you should regard it with care.
Before checking out how to know your skin type, it is important to note that everybody has a unique skin. However, there are three major skin types— oily, dry and combination including the normal skin type. These can help you tell where you fall under.
1. Oily Skin
If your skin always seems to glow and your nose shines even when you don’t apply any oil or jelly on your face, you most likely have an oily skin. There are pimples on your face and even when you wear makeup, it doesn’t stay put for as long as you’d love it to. This is because your skin releases sebum more often that clogs your pores.
While oily skin may be sometimes frustrating, the good news is that oily skin looks younger because it rarely has wrinkles and it has more natural moisture. If you have this skin, look out for skincare products with the description non-comodegenic. They are suitable for your skin as they won’t clog or congest your pores.
Furthermore, when you want to moisturise, be sure to use oil-free moisturisers so you don’t add more oil to your face. To balance the tone and texture of this skin, exfoliate with a gentle exfoliant that won’t cause tiny tears in your dermis. This will help to take off dead skin cells and lighten your dark spots.
2. Dry Skin
If your skin doesn’t retain enough moisture, your pores are almost invisible, your complexion looks dull and your skin is not too elastic, you most likely have a dry skin. This skin type easily gets cracked and rough because it suffers from lack of oil. It is caused by hormonal changes, genetics, weather conditions, cosmetic products, dehydration, etc. Without moisturising often, people with dry skin find it hard coping especially during harmattan.
To take care of this skin, you should exfoliate regularly with non-abrasive ingredients so you don’t lose your skin’s natural oil in the process. When you take off the dead skin cells, any product you use on your dry skin will sink in easily. Also, your moisturisers should contain hyaluronic acid, glycerin and algae because they deliver water straight to your skin cells.
Furthermore, you should moisturise several times a day after washing your hands or bathing. Drink enough water every day and avoid using products that contain lots of fragrance.
3. Combination Skin Type
As the name implies, this is a combination of both dry or normal and oily skin. That is, your skin is oily around your nose, forehead or chin yet dry in the remaining part of your face.
If this is your skin type, you have to use toners to balance out your skin tone. You should as well use moisturisers that have a gel-like texture as they are less prone to cause breakouts and are absorbed easily.
4. Normal Skin
If your skin hardly reacts negatively to changes in the weather or new products, and you don’t feel the need to moisturise or wipe off oil from your face all the time, then you have a normal skin. This skin type hardly is dry, oily or sensitive. It is firm, has little or no wrinkles. Also, it welcomes different ingredients and gives you room to try out different products until you find the most effective one for you.
How to Know Your Skin Type
There are two major tips on how to know your skin type. You can easily try them out even while you read this. They simply are:
1. Use the Blotting Sheet Tip
If you want to quickly tell if your skin is dry or oily, use this method on how to know your skin type. Simply get a blotting paper and pat it on different parts of your face. When you’re done patting, hold up the paper so you can see how much oil is on it. If there’s little or no oil on the paper, you most likely have a dry skin. If there’s oil from your T-zone, that is your forehead and nose region, then you have a combination skin. But if there’s so much oil on the sheet, there are no two ways about it; you have an oily skin.
2. Use the Barefaced Tip
To do this, you cleanse your face with a gentle cleanser and pat your face dry. Don’t apply any moisturiser, cream or oil on your skin; just leave it bare for 30 minutes. Afterwards, you check your forehead, chin, nose and cheeks if they look shiny. When another 30 minutes go by, check your face again to see if it looks dry or tight when you make a facial expression.
If your nose and forehead alone are shiny, you have a combination skin type. If your nose, forehead and cheeks are all shiny, you have an oily skin. But if your skin feels tight and parched, then it’s dry.
In conclusion, you’ve learnt how to know your skin type. You can go ahead and adapt an ideal skincare routine for yourself comprising the right products and treatment for your skin. However, if your skin is sensitive, be sure to be careful when choosing cosmetic products. This is because your skin gets easily irritated, inflamed, itchy and burnt. Go for products that have calming, healing or anti-inflammatory properties with less additives.
