Your Skin Guide: How To Determine Your Skin Type
It can be difficult to understand our skin type when we are at home without professional guidance. Here at Bellavana Beauty, we've made this easy for you by breaking down each skin type and some tips to go along with it! This skin guide will give you the knowledge to better understand what products and daily habits best fit with your skin and why. Keep reading to start becoming an expert on your own skin!
The Main Five Skin Types
Everyone's skin falls under one of the 6 main skin types; Oily, Dry, Mature, Sensitive, Normal, or Combination. These skin types help us better understand how to customize our skincare routines and habits to have the best skin possible. Once you understand your skin, it becomes much easier to treat additional skin concerns without jeopardizing the overall health of your skin.
The best way to assess your skin type is through a consultation done by a professional, but here are some tips for at home.
The Five Skin Types
Oily
This is one of the most common skin types among people reaching guidance for skincare. Someone with oily skin has an overproduction of sebum - the goal is to slow down oil production.
If you:
- naturally have an appearance of larger pores
- are very susceptible to breakouts
- notice by the end of the day you have a lot of sebum build-up
...you may have an oily skin type.
Someone with oily skin should use products that help regulate their oil production. Using a cleanser in the morning and at night can help to avoid clogged pores and breakouts. People with oily skin often do break out and may deal with scarring from pimples. A product with ingredients like Niacinamide may help reduce sebum production, and Kojic Acid can be a natural skin lightener for acne scarring.
Dry
Dry skin types are more than just flaky skin. Someone with dry skin does not produce as much oil as is needed - because of this, someone with dry skin often has small pores. You may notice redness, and normally dry skin can have a more dull complexion.
Using oil-based products is the best thing for dry skin. Including Hyaluronic Acid and Ceramides into your routine will help to make your skin look healthy and give it a hydration boost. If you struggle with dry skin, consider using our Dry Skin products, including the Body Butter and Body Scrub to bring back that healthy glow to your skin.
Mature
Someone with a mature skin type has the concern of aging skin. Some things related to this skin type are: wrinkles, flaccid skin, dull complexion, slowing of oil production, and thinning of the skin.
As we age, our oil production slows down and some find their skin to be more on the dry side; if you struggle with skin that is dull or dry, try our Dry Skin products. Retinol is the gold standard preventive aging ingredient, but some may find this to be harsh on their skin. An alternative ingredient to retinol is an ingredient called Bakuchiol, which is a plant based oil sometimes called "nature's retinol" because it functions similarly to retinol, without the negative side effects. It has the ability to boost collagen production, reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, brightens skin complexion, protects against sun damage - just to name a few.
Sensitive
Someone with sensitive skin commonly reacts to many products and easily gets red or irritated. You may experience dryness if you have sensitive skin or itchy patches. For sensitive skin, the fewer products (especially of different brands or qualities) used is best to reduce any potential for a reaction.
Using a gentle cleanser is key to make sure you remove any impurities or environmental toxins from your skin that could further lead to irritation. Along with gentle products, sensitive skin, whether on the face or body, often craves hydration. Our Body Butters include the active ingredients Hyaluronic Acid and Ceramides which boost hydration and naturally plump the skin.
Normal
The goal for someone with normal skin is to maintain skin health. Since it's already as it should be, you should continue to use products to maintain the skin barrier. If you get the odd breakout, that doesn't suddenly mean you have oily skin, it is just a skin concern to deal with.
A good indicator of normal skin is if by the end of the day your skin isn't greasy or dry and you rarely find yourself struggling with skin concerns like breakouts.
The good news is that if you have normal skin, you can still use our Dry Skin body care products! The active ingredients in the products can help to increase moisture and hydration while maintaining the integrity of your skin barrier.
Combination
Combination skin is very common among many and means you have a combination of two or more skin types. Some examples of this could be; someone who has dry but also sensitive skin or someone who has an oily skin t-zone but the rest of their face is normal.
To treat combination skin, you can target products in specific areas instead of evenly spreading throughout the whole face. This idea of customizing exactly what your skin needs (down to the section), will truly create a good understanding of your skin.
Skin Concerns To Consider
A few common skin concerns to consider are acne, hyper pigmentation, and dehydration. These are things that aren't directly someone's skin types but things that should be considered when adding products/treating your skin.
Someone who deals with acne will want to use products that help kill bacteria, pull toxins from the skin, re-hydrate, and brighten scarring.
Someone dealing with hyperpigmentation / dark spots can also benefit from ingredients like Kojic Acid or by using Alpha and Beta Hydroxy Acids.
Looking For More Information?
Learning about our skin types can be fun but also a lot to take in. Always consult with a licensed esthetician or dermatologist if you specific skin concern questions. Save this blog to look back on when needed and always ask questions as needed.
If you are looking to learn more about your skin or inquire how our products would best suit you, never hesitate to contact us at info@bellavanabeauty.com! Looking for another read? Check out DIY Skincare 101: Ingredients to Use and Not Use!
