So you’ve done your research; you found your natural, clean skin care go-to’s and you’re on a journey to your best, healthiest skin yet. You’ve built a simple skin care routine based on nutrient-rich, hydrating, skin-barrier-protecting ingredients. Good work! No doubt you’ve spent countless minutes researching products online or asking friends for recommendations while wading through a seemingly endless ocean of skincare products and their claims. We’re so glad you made it here! 

You and your skin are worth the time and investment, so we chatted with Ashley Guttuso, a licensed holistic esthetician, to help you get the most out of your products and daily routine. We have answers for some of our most-asked questions; from “how much facial oil do I use?” to “what order do I apply my products in?” and more. Skincare 101 is now in session!

Q: How do I use bar soap as a facial cleanser? Should I use it twice per day?

Ashley: Cleansing your face with a solid bar of soap can definitely seem like an adjustment if you’re used to more traditional liquid cleansers, and understandably so! Bar soaps have been given a bad reputation. When you hear “bar soap” I bet your mind goes to a cheaply made, mass-produced, overly-drying bar that you’d typically buy at the drug or grocery store. The difference with a natural, hand-made bar cleanser like the Charcoal + Sea Salt Soap is that it’s superfatted meaning that during the soap making process, the soap retains more oils and is ultimately more moisturizing to your skin, unlike traditional bar soaps. 

I love to recommend using a bar cleanser once daily in the evening. When you’re ready to wash, wet your hands and rub the bar until you reach a creamy, sudsy lather. Add water as needed, but don’t hold your bar directly under water (following this method will help your bar last longer!). Check out my video below for another soap-saving tip!

Q: How should I store my bar soap after cleansing?

Ashley: Look for a dish or tray with drainage or deep grooves to help clear water away from the bar. Leaving your bar in water will make it soft and dissolve more quickly. 

Q: I love a sudsy lather when I’m cleansing my face, but I go through my liquid cleanser too quickly. How much should I really be using?

Ashley: To start, a good general rule is to cleanse once per day. I tend to see that people over-cleanse, and ultimately dry out their skin (often leading to excess oil production and congestion or breakouts) or cause skin irritation that can show up as tiny bumps, redness or dry patches. Try cleansing only during your evening routine and rely on warm water, toner, and moisturizer in the morning. While I can’t speak for all cleanser formulations, a dime-sized amount of Life’s Abundance Facial Cleanser will adequately cleanse skin. Watch the video for a good visual!

Q: My face feels oily after I apply my facial serum. Am I using too much?

Ashley: Oil and water; a magical skin duo! Let me explain. If you’re applying a facial oil to dry skin and left with a heavy feeling, or like the oil is sitting on top of your skin, introduce a water-based toner (or simply water) into the mix. Post cleanse, either leave skin damp with water, or mist skin with your favorite toner (nix any alcohol-based toners) and apply 2-4 drops of oil. The water will help your skin to absorb the product. Start with fewer drops of oil and add more as desired until you find your perfect balance. I’m a 3-drop of facial oil kind of gal!

Q: How much moisturizer should I use? My skin is currently oily.

Ashley: This is a great question for a few different reasons; one being that it’s definitely important to take your skin state (aka what your skin is experiencing at a certain point in time) into consideration and the second being that oily skin needs moisturizer, too! Start small - apply a chickpea-sized amount to your fingertips and apply to damp skin. Cover your face and neck. You’ll be able to feel if your skin needs more; add a small amount of moisturizer at a time until you’re feeling adequately moisturized.

For folks experiencing dryness, my favorite moisturizer tip is cocktailing your own! Apply a dime-sized amount of facial moisturizer to your fingers and add 1-2 drops of facial serum. Blend together and let your face and neck drink it up! As you would before applying your facial serum, be sure your skin is slightly damp with water or water-based toner before applying to deeper product absorption. 

Watch the video below for bonus tips!

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If you’re new to the idea of putting oil on your skin, the title of this blog post might just cause you to raise a brow and think, “no way!” But hear me out. For decades, the beauty and skincare industries have preached the concept of “oil free” and even me, a licensed holistic esthetician, has fallen into the trap of this misinformed marketing verbiage in the past. We’re led to believe that our acne or breakouts are best treated with harsh cleansers, drying astringents, and an oil-free moisturizer. Or, that facial oils are solely for folks with dry skin. We’ve been taught that oil is bad, even our naturally occurring oil. To demonize our naturally occurring sebum is to not fully understand the structure and function of the body’s largest organ. Once you have the fuller picture, using oil on your skin to help acne or dry skin, will feel less daunting.

With all of that in mind, it makes sense that many people are left with the wrong impression about facial oils and need help understanding just how transformative they can be for skin. Dive into some common questions and concerns below about using facial oils for all skin types! Let’s start with the fundamentals.

What role does sebum play in skin health and function?

According to a study - one of sebum’s (aka oil) main functions is to lubricate the skin, protecting against friction. Not only that, but our natural sebum helps skin prevent moisture loss while having the ability to transport antioxidants. It also has antibacterial properties and has pro and anti-inflammatory functions. Love your oil a little more?

Why shouldn’t I dry out my breakouts or rely on oil-free products?

Think about all of those beautiful functions above that natural oil provides for our skin. Why strip your body’s largest organ of this essential substance? Contrary to what you may have thought, supplementing your skin with the right types of oils won’t exactly make you break out. When you deny your skin of its natural oils, it works twice as hard to produce more - which can ultimately lead to a breakout or congested skin.

You can also think of acne as a cut. When you have a cut, would you dry it out with harsh ingredients to help it heal? Quite the opposite! You’d deliver antibacterial and soothing ingredients to aid in the healing process. Think of your acne or breakouts like those cuts - they need nourishment and hydration to heal. Healthy skin is hydrated and moisturized, and when skin is healthy, it can heal more efficiently.

I often experience acne, have oily skin and/or currently have a breakout. Won’t adding more oil cause me to break out more or make my skin worse?

Not always! If you have acne/oily-prone skin, your skin could be experiencing an inadequate amount of sebum if you’ve been over-cleansing or using harsh products that strip your skin of its oil. Your sebaceous glands may be in overdrive to produce what’s been stripped away - producing more than what’s actually needed. Hello breakouts.

Skin can actually benefit from gamma linolenic acid-rich oils like borage seed oil (find it in this facial oil). A few other oil-balancing ingredients worth noting to look for are green tea and squalane oil.

For skin currently experiencing a breakout, a combination of the above oil-balancing ingredients, anti-inflammatory superstars like Clary Sage and Immortelle essential oils, as well as antibacterial essential oils like chamomile and thyme can collectively support the skin’s natural function to heal breakouts.

I have dry skin. Will a facial oil be enough?

Start by applying 3-4 drops of facial oil to your skin twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening. Take note of how your skin feels after; do you still feel dry? Is your skin tight? Do you still experience dry or flaking skin? If so, incorporate a facial moisturizer into your routine and try this: apply a pea-sized amount of moisturizer or cream to your fingertips, add 2-3 drops of serum, and mix. Apply thoroughly to your face and neck.

Pro tip: Commonly experience dry skin? Skip your morning cleanser and opt for just water and your moisturizer and serum. Save your cleanser for nighttime!

If you found this interesting, check out these related stories:

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