Skin types

Care by skin type

How do I know my skin type?

Before you start take taking care of your facial skinyou need to make a diagnosis! You need to know what your skin typeIt may seem obvious, but in reality many people think they have oily skin when in fact they have combination skin, and some people think they have dry skin when in fact they simply have dehydrated skin.

Skin type must be differentiated from skin condition. You can have damaged, dehydrated, irritated, sensitized or healthy skin, but this is a condition and not a skin type. Skin condition is temporary, whereas skin type is genetically determined. A cosmetics brand chose the name, after my Typology notice to show how important skin type is when choosing beauty products.

The test to know your skin!

Let's start with a practical exercise: the handkerchief test.
Start by cleansing and drying your skin
Wait half an hour and do not apply any product while waiting.
Observe your skin and apply a tissue

Your skin is dry if it feels tight and appears dehydrated, but after applying the handkerchief to your skin, it shows no trace of moisture.

Your skin is normal if you don't feel any tightness and the handkerchief just shows tiny traces of oil.

You have combination skin if your T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) is shiny, and the tissue you apply shows traces of oil there, but the cheeks and temples look normal, with only tiny traces of oil.

Your skin is oily if all the skin on your face shines and feels greasy, and the handkerchief you've applied shows traces of oil.

Different skin types

We classify skin types based on their fat production:
There are two types of lipids that keep our skin in good condition: intercellular lipids, found between the corneocytes in the stratus corneum. And sebum lipids, produced by our sebaceous glands.

Dry skin:

Visit dry skin is skin that no longer fulfills its barrier role, since one of the functions of this organ is to limit water loss. Unfortunately, this is not the case with dry skin, which no longer produces enough fatty substances in the epidermis. The result is a loss of natural moisture and cutaneous dryness.

The appearance of dry skin:
Generally speaking, dry skin has a matte appearance, fine dehydration lines are frequently present and skin texture is fine.
The feeling of dry skin: you feel tightness and discomfort.
What not to do when you have dry skin:
Aggressive cleaning
Use unsuitable moisturizers,
Do not use moisturizing lotions or serums
The make-up you use dries out your skin
Your beauty routine is not adapted to your natural moisture loss

My tips for caring for dry skin with an effective beauty routine: How can I get rid of dry skin?

Oily skin:

Visit oily skin fulfills its role "too well", saturating your skin's surface with sebum. This excess can cause aesthetic problems.
The appearance of oily skin:
Generally speaking, oily skin has dilated pores, imperfections, pimples and a tendency to acne. The skin is generally thick and shiny.
The feeling of oily skin: you feel an unpleasant sensation of oil on your skin.

What not to do when you have a oily skin acne-prone
Drying the skin with an aggressive cleanser
Use moisturizers that are too rich
Eating a diet that causes insulin spikes and contains too many unhealthy fats that make sebum thicker.
An unsuitable skincare routine.

My tips for taking care of oily, acne-prone skin: How can I get rid of oily skin?

Normal to combination skin

Normal to combination skin displays the characteristics of both previous skin types in different areas. The T-zone produces too much sebum, while the rest of the face may be normal or dry to varying degrees. There isn't just one type of normal to combination skin: different areas can be more or less oily, normal or dry.

The appearance of normal to combination skin:
On the T-zone, imperfections, blackheads, pimples and enlarged pores may be present, and this part of the face also has a shiny appearance. Conversely, the cheeks may be irritated, tight and, unlike the T-zone, appear matte.
How normal to combination skin feels: Both an oily sensation on the T-zone and possible tightness on the cheeks.

What not to do when you have normal to combination skin:
Cleaning with the wrong product, i.e. one that is too aggressive
Don't zoning out: "adapt your cosmetics to the zones of your face".
Using a moisturizer that is too rich on the T-zone
Using an insufficiently moisturizing cream on the cheeks

My tips for taking care of normal to combination skin: How to treat combination skin

Let's talk about skin conditions

Sensitive skin:

A sensitive skin is skin that reddens with the application of skincare products, but not only that: hard water can provoke a reaction, as can the sun.
This type of reactive skin is more often due to skin that has become sensitized, by pollution, sun, tobacco, but above all by unsuitable skin care products. When your epidermis becomes sensitive, you need to limit your skincare routine to the strict minimum and look for soothing ingredients.
What not to do when you have sensitive skin:
Use "organic" essential oils without testing, as they are often responsible for allergies.
Buying cosmetics with too many ingredients
Beware of irritating make-up
You don't use a soothing mask

My tips for caring for sensitive skin: How to treat sensitive skin

Mature skin:

With age, skin becomes mature, the cell regeneration cycle lengthens, it becomes thinner, wrinkles appear and sagging occurs. But not all mature skin is the same: some remains very thick, some very wrinkled, but others has simply become drier, but remains radiant and with very few wrinkles. This may be due to genetics or to a superb skincare routine over the years, probably a little of both. The more life goes on, the drier it gets, and your beauty routine needs to take this into account.
What not to do when you have mature skin:
Your beauty routine doesn't take mature skin into account

You don't use collagen-boosting cosmetics
My tips for caring for mature skin: How to treat mature skin

Medical references: Scientific articles
Roberts WE. Skin type classification systems old and new. Dermatol Clin. 2009 Oct;27(4):529-33,
Endly DC, Miller RA. Oily skin: a review of treatment options. J Clin Aesthet Dermatol. 2017;10(8):49-55.
Moniaga CS, Tominaga M, Takamori K. Mechanisms and Management of Itch in Dry Skin. Acta Derm Venereol. 2020 Jan 15;100(2)