Two Oils That Have Been a Game-Changer to Combat My Dry Winter Skin and Frizzy Hair
Winter Makes Me Look Like a Piece of Toast with Frizzy Hair
Winter always bums me out. I don't like the cold. I don't like short days and long nights. I don't like icy roadways. And did I mention that I don't like the cold? I don't even put ice in my drinks in the summer because cold isn't my jam.
I've found that in winter, my skin and hair dries out so badly. I look like a wrinkled-up dry piece of toast with frizzy hair. Cute mental picture, huh? And here's the kicker. Just about every product on the market for hair and skin breaks my skin out so bad, I look like a 40-year-old teenager. I'm sure there are a lot of great professional products on the market that would help IF they didn't cause me to have a full five-alarm skin explosion directly on my face. I had the audacity to change facials soaps once to try a very expensive high-end cleanser. HUGE mistake. A giant painful knot formed under the skin and wouldn't go away. It was a nightmare.
So, in conjunction with reactions to pretty much any and all beauty products, I've also noticed that when my skin dries out in the winter months, I get what looks like a rash on my face. My dermatologist is stumped but after years of prescriptions and trial-and-error, I finally have it under control. And thankfully, what works for me is not only 100% natural but also very cost-effective!
The Only Way I've Found to Combat Dry Skin
The only way I've found to combat my overly dry skin is to use 100% natural oils. That might make your head spin but oh my gosh - they work!
According to Scienta Beauty, "Using a face oil helps lock that moisture in and keeps skin healthy. Skin varies throughout the day. Even if you wake up with oily skin, your skin can end up dry and dull by the afternoon. Not only do face oils regulate your sebum production when you're oily, they also soothe inflammation during your drier hours."
Now, full disclosure, I do use a toner that has salicylic acid at night on my trouble spots after I wash and dry my face. That's not terribly natural but then I generously apply jojoba oil. I like NOW brand products but there are so many different brands to choose from. A 16-oz bottle will set you back about $27 but the good news is that it will last you over a year, even using it twice a day. Some days when I notice my skin really drying out, I'll apply the oil two or three times. I love that it makes a protective layer to protect my face from the cold but it also is a nice base layer under makeup.
What is the Best Skin Oil to Use?
There are a lot of oils out there you can try. Healthline lists skin-friendly oils like sweet almond, apricot kernel, sunflower, and grapeseed oils. Coconut, olive, and avocado are easy pantry-friendly oils that lots of people use to moisturize. I didn't care for any of these on my face. In my pursuit to find the best oil for my face, I used to use argon oil which was a little dryer than jojoba but it still didn't give me the moisture I needed. So, when I tried jojoba for the first time, I knew I had met my match.
Healthline has a lot to say about this magic skin oil. "When you put jojoba oil on your skin, your skin is soothed and moisturized. This sends a signal to your hair and sweat follicles that your skin doesn't need additional sebum for hydration. This keeps skin from looking oily and helps prevent acne caused by clogged pores."
Boom yes.
But guess what... we're all different! You might have to kiss a few frogs to find your prince. You can always get a sampler pack and see what works for you. Just get a good brand. You want to make sure there are no added chemicals and that's it's processed correctly.
My Hair is Dry and Frizzy - What Oil is Best for It?
Now, onto hair. I have long, thick, fine, frizzy hair. It's basically made of spiderwebs and steel. I've tried product after product to tame the frizz but they have all made my face break out into a terrible rash and never seem to work right anyway. Short of getting a Brazillian Blowout, I was at my wits end with my hair.
Now, I knew the jojoba worked well for my skin with no rash issues so I decided to try it on my hair. It did a good job as a treatment but when I tried to use it to smooth flyaways, it looked pretty oily. So, again trial-and-error.
We use castor oil on our horse's mane and tail to prevent breakage and help with growth. There's no real evidence if it stimulates hair follicles to grow but you can't beat its heavy, thick, sticky moisturizing properties. So, at a mere $3 a bottle, I thought - why not?
Two words - GAME CHANGER.
Now, I know what you are thinking. EW caster oil. That's a laxative! Yes, it is but it's so much more than that. According to Elle Magazine, castor oil increased gloss or shine of the hair, as well as hair shaft flexibility by coating the hair shaft. AKA - tames the flyaways and frizz.
I used it on my hair overnight and washed it out the next day. It was the softest it's pretty much ever been. Then after I heat-styled it, I noticed that I still had some flyaways so I put a very thin layer on my hands and went through my ends then brushed through it. My hair didn't look oily but had a nice textured, piecy look. And the oil part of it sucked right into my hair. It didn't look oily at all. Now, this might not be a great idea if you have very fine and/or thin hair as it is HEAVY and sticky but using as a treatment before you wash could be a game-changer for you. Seriously, $2.64 a bottle at Walmart. Why not?
Have any more natural beauty tips? I'd love to hear them! Email me at evansville.dme@townsquaremedia.com.