Alternatively Titled: Yet Another Way that Knowing AndreAnna Has Changed Me.

I posted something very vague about the Oil Cleansing Method on Facebook and people just went nuts about it, demanding details and so I posted this link and they were still like, “BUT HOW IS IT?!” and I thought that if those people wanted to know, perhaps you did too.

I had never ever heard of the idea of the OCM before AndreAnna twittered about it one day.  She linked to a friend who had tried it (and loved it!) and admittedly, Liz’s skin was INSANELY GORGEOUS.  And while I wasn’t totally unhappy with my current skincare products, I was unhappy with the price.  What can I say?  While I might parade as a hippie, I’m just really cheap at heart.

The basic premise is this: Like dissolves like.  Everyone who quotes that is all, “You already know this from biology” but I must’ve slept through that section because I’ve never heard this.  Ever.  And now I’m wondering if I’m doing everything the wrong way.  Like, why wouldn’t I use peanut butter to get a peanut butter stain out? 

Before I got into a tailspin, I decided to just have a glass of wine and read on.

Back to the basic premise that I never knew, if you have oil on your skin, it would make sense (to everyone who knew this, i.e. all of humanity except myself) that oil would dissolve it.  Instead, we use harsh cleansers and unnatural astringents to dissolve the oil.  And if you have a crazy oily face, I’m sure that’s lovely.  But I know not one person who has anything but “combination” skin.  No one’s skin is an exact science. (Take THAT, Biology 101.)

When I turned 30, or shortly before, my skin exploded.  Where I’ve always had really nice skin (and I hate saying that, because it makes me sound show-offish, but really, it is nice), I suddenly had MASSIVE patches that erupted with huge zits.  Painful zits.  Making me deny that they were, in fact, zits and instead calling them “spider bites” because they were much more akin to an infection.  So I knew that something was not working.

Here’s the cast of characters in the Oil Cleansing Method:

Now, remember when I said your skin isn’t an exact science?  I mean it.  You’re going to want to try some different combinations of oils to see what works best.  I started with a solution that was 60% castor oil, 30% grapeseed oil, and 10% sweet almond oil and a few drops of tea tree oil.  Keeping in mind that castor oil works as the strongest cleanser, and the rest are for more of a moisturizing purpose, I ended up adjusting that mix to 50% castor oil, 20% grapeseed oil, and 30% sweet almond oil because my skin was very tight and dry the first few days.

Once I found a mix that was right for me, though, my skin is doing pretty well.  I wouldn’t say it’s been a night-and-day difference, but it’s also only been a week.  I had two pimples starting to emerge when I started this routine, and am happy to say that they never made it past the beginning stages.  I’ve never  had an issue with pores (hate me, whatevs), so I haven’t noticed a difference there.  BUT .. I really like it. 

It struck me as I was applying it the first night that the process felt oddly familiar.  Then I realized that my grandmother used to use something called Abolene Cream to remove her makeup, and although it has cream in the title, it was very clearly a solidified oil.  She introduced me to it when I was in theatre, because it was one of the few things that wouldn’t irritate my eyes when I was wearing stage-makeup.  Her skin was always amazing, so I thought, hm.  Might be something to this.  It’s also very nice to make myself spend five or ten minutes on myself before I go to bed.  It calms me down, allows me unwind a bit, and Bryan said he really liked the way it smelled.  Which is weird, but he one time admitted that he thought my facial cleanser smelled like moldy bread. (Thanks, Philosophy!)

All in all, it’s something I’m going to keep up for a little while.  I like the idea of using all natural ingredients, and the price point can’t be beat. (I think I paid $20 for all the ingredients, and have leftover of each oil for refills.) And yes, it even removes mascara with no issues.  My eyes are CRAZY sensitive and I’ve had no issues with using this on my eye makeup.

I’m a fan .. and if you have skin issues (or can’t afford the insanely expensive face care regimen of the stars), it’s totally worth a try!