There have been several things that I've come across on Pinterest that sound a bit out of my comfort zone. Sure I'll use a pool noodle to make a wreath, but using oil to clean my face? And the promise that it would minimize black-heads too? I was skeptical, but willing to try anything to get a clearer complexion. Carrying our two kiddos left my chest smaller, my hair curlier, and my skin drier- especially on my face. Where I used to have oily skin, I now have a dry face with an oily forehead and nose. It's been hard to find a lotion that can moisturize where needed without clogging everything else even more. Add some stress-induced acne, and I was been pretty much avoiding a mirror whenever possible. Thankfully things are looking better now, and it only took two ingredients.

The oils you need are cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil and cold-pressed Castor Oil.Cold-pressed means that the oils have been processed without heat, retaining most of their nutrients. Since oil dissolves oil, these oil are able to dissolve all the dirty oils from your skin and replace them with nourishing oils instead. For my combination skin I use two tablespoons of castor oil to every one tablespoon of olive oil. If you have normal skin a 1:1 ratio should work for you, while drier skin can try up to two tablespoons of olive oil to one tablespoon castor oil. I keep my oil cleanser in a small lidded ramekin. It's easy to scoop my cleanser out, and I like that I can throw it in the dishwasher between batches.

For washing your face, pour about a quarter sized amount of oil onto your hands. Then rub your hands together to warm up and distribute the oil before massaging it onto your face and neck. After it's all rubbed in, run a clean washcloth under hot- not scalding- water. Hold the wet washcloth on your face and let the steam do its work. This is my favorite part, a few moments to pause and enjoy the warmth. Then I use the washcloth to gently rub the excess oil off my face, pat my skin dry, and I'm ready to go. 

Here's me, a la natural. If you do wear makeup- which I barely do- you don't have to remove it before oil cleansing as usual. Some people get away with oil cleansing at night then only splashing their face with cold water in the morning. My face gets too dry during the day when I try that, so I do a modified routine (i.e as quickly as I can before the kiddos wake up) in the morning than a longer massage & steaming at night. I love how luscious my skin feels now and how quickly my acne's been improving. I also enjoy getting my face cleaned in one step, instead of adding all the lotions & potions I used to. This means that my face gets cleaned quicker, with less time in front of the mirror to stop and critique every laugh line. Which has made me a lot more content with what I see!

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