A moisturizer that hydrates your dry areas and doesn’t exacerbate your oily ones does exist. Read on below to learn how to find it.
Nailing down your ideal skin care routine can be quite the challenge for any of us. Think about it, when did you finally get it right? Or are you still figuring it all out? The process of trial and error can be daunting, but it teaches us a lot about our skin type and the concerns we should pay mind to.
One of the biggest skin challenges we all face is finding that perfect moisturizer. As one of the key steps in any skin care routine, moisturizer helps us prevent dryness all while delivering essential nutrients for healthier skin. When it comes to combination skin however, finding an ideal moisturizer gets even trickier.
If you’re not sure whether or not you have combination skin, take a look in the mirror and pay close attention to your t-zone and cheeks. Do you see and feel oiliness specifically on your t-zone? Are you cheeks dryer than the rest of your face? That’s all the reality of having combination skin. If you have combination skin and have been struggling with finding the right moisturizer, pay close attention to the following details:
Texture
Rich, occlusive creams will clog your pores and encourage even more oil production in your t-zone, so you’ll want to avoid them. On the other hand, a moisturizer that’s too lightweight won’t help those dryer areas on your cheeks and when skin isn’t sufficiently hydrated, it can also lead to the overproduction of oil to compensate for the lack of moisture.
So, where’s the balance? Look for moisturizers that are gel or water-like in texture. These both keep your skin hydrated and plump without clogging your pores along with helping soothe any dry or rough patches.
Formula
With combo skin, it’s all about balance, so you want to look for a formula that features multitasking ingredients that efficiently hydrate without overdoing it and offer additional benefits that target concerns associated with acne-prone and oily skin.
Snail mucin is a good ingredient to look for since it’s hydrating, yet promotes cell turnover and is calming, which is beneficial for breakout-prone areas. The Missha Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Cream contains 70% snail mucin extract and has a deceivingly lightweight texture that works as a moisturizer for combination skin types or as a serum for dryer skin types.
Other options are: The Klairs Fundamental Water Gel Cream lightly yet effectively hydrates and balances skin with Jeju green tea water and smooths with panthenol for a lit-from-within glow. The Enature Squeeze Green Watery Gel Cream contains avocado oil capsules to deliver the perfect amount of moisture to oily and combination skin types, as well as birch juice to maintain a positive oil-moisture balance.
For the dehydrating winter months, the Thank You Farmer Back to Relax Soothing Gel Mask is a great overnight boost for combination skin types. It’s lightweight, yet contains ingredients like soluable collagen that lock moisture in. It’s also packed with soothing and calming ingredients like cica and aloe vera to combat redness.
Time of Year
Because of the differentiation in your skin’s natural state, you can’t expect to wear the same moisturizer all year round so don’t be afraid to make any necessary adjustments as needed.
In the summer, you’ll want to focus more on producing a lot less oil than you normally would because of the climate, humidity, and the fact that you’ll sweat more. Using a hydrating serum in place of moisturizer may be your best bet here. Now in the winter, the obvious focus is less dryness so you’ll likely want to swap in a richer product.
Bottom Line
Finding the perfect moisturizer is just one step towards achieving a more balanced complexion. For a full routine’s worth of product suggestions for combination skin, click here.
+What other product recommendations for combination skin would you like to see? Let us know in the comments below!
