Skin Care

So continuing in the same series, let me bring this long lost post. This is one of the very much recommended beauty practices for both oily and dry skin beauties. It helps with tan removal to acne healing. And, its amazing as it removes makeup and cleanses the skin and detoxifies it. Since it is a little intense treatment for the skin, it should be done only once or AT MAX twice a week. 

Yes, by the name, you can make out it uses oil. So, please do not be afraid or prejudiced. I have always maintained that oil is amazing for skin when you know how to use them and which ones to use. So, here is a tip – Always use cold-pressed and extra-virgin or virgin oils whether it is olive or coconut or almond or sesame. Also, sesame oil is the one which is recommended heavily in ayurveda as apparently it is the only oil which can pass into the blood stream. Anyways, let us start with the post and please let me know of the doubts and clarifications.

A few days ago I had talked about OIL CLEANSING. Well, let me introduce to you something which I stumbled across a few days ago. I tried it and trust me, its amazing. I do not know how well it removes make up but it makes your skin squeaky clean without drying it. Rather, it leaves your skin smooth and supple. And, your skin glows the next day. You would love yourself.

It removes makeup fantastically as any oil would. 

Before proceeding, let me give a little background into OCM method. Oil is said to dissolve all the grime and dirt and dead skin cells and blackheads and what not. So, in this method, we especially use castor oil because castor has the most cleansing properties of all oils. Since castor is a drying oil and is extremely thick and concentrated it is not advisable to use it naked on the skin. It should be diluted with some other oil. Many people in the west prefer olive but I would suggest almond or coconut or sesame. No personal grudges with olive but it is something I do not really find amazing. If it works for you, go ahead!

Procedure:

Next morning, you need not cleanse your face. A wipe with a wash cloth or a splash of cold water is enough to clean it. Your skin would be glowing. Oil cleansing not only removes grime, dirt and make up from your face, but also, the blackheads and blemishes. This procedure should not be done too frequently. I think 2-3 times is fine in a week. Care should be taken not to scratch the skin.

Go and check it out for yourself. Have a happy cleansing.

* Remember, castor oil is quite thick and can be drying for the skin if used in large quantities. It has cleansing properties but is too strong on skin if used alone. That is why you need another light oil to dilute it. You can also use jojoba oil. For the mixture of oil, you can use 75-25 castor-olive oil combination for normal skin. You can experiment with different proportions till you find the one suiting your face.  The proportion of mixture should be such that for dry skin people, castor oil should be less in proportion like 50-50 or 60-50 and people with oily skin can have 80-20 as the proportion. But, since every skin is different in its needs, you should find out the right one for yourself. It would take trial and error but remember one rule, do not use too much of castor oil. It will dry your skin irrespective of its type.

PS: Italicized and striked paragraphs/sentences are new additions. Rest of the post is as it was published earlier.