the pros of using a facial oil...

You may have been fooled into thinking that iso skin was a condition of the past but if you live in Vic then it's well and truly back with a vengeance (yay great). The only good news is that they are ways that you can try to combat the dull, dry and tired looking skin that staying indoors for 23 hours of the day and wearing a mask for the other 1 hour, can leave you with. 

One of these skin secrets is the benefits of using a facial oil as part of your skincare routine. Facial oils are high in natural, skin-identical ingredients that understand your skin's biology and are as respectful to it as your year 9 boyfriend was of the curfew your parents expected you to be back by. 

Facial oil can not only give you back the glowing' skin you've been missing since early March, but it can also prove to be highly effective in helping to treat skin conditions such as acne and can be used to drown your skin in hydration so it never gets 'the morning after drinking one too many glasses of wine' thirsty. Sounds like there are no cons, to be honest. 

what's the difference between a moisturiser and a facial oil? 

Well, we're sooo glad you asked this. 

Facial oils are intensely concentrated products (sometimes bigger isn't always better, are we right? *inserts wink emoji*). But seriously, you only need a very small amount of facial oil to get the job done. To get the same results from a moisturiser, you'd need to be using more of the product, sometimes even up to 5 times more and who's got spare money to buy moisturiser every other week (definitely not us). 

Even if you do use heaps and heaps of moisturiser, the benefits still aren't the same as they're a mixture of water and oils which means the concentration of the oil part is significantly lower than if you were using a straight-up, nothing-else-added facial oil. 

Now that you've settled in, let's take a deep dive and really get to know facial oils and what they bring to the skin table. 

facial oils are full of omega fatty acids. 

Every natural oil is made of ingredients that we call 'omega fatty acids'. If you have no idea what OFA's, then they're essential fats your body needs for energy. You'll be forgiven for immediately thinking of those fish tablets when you hear the words 'omega fatty acids' but you can also use these important nutrients for your skin. 

As OFA's are high in anti-inflammatory properties, they make excellent additions to treating skin conditions such as dryness, eczema, rosacea and acne. One of our absolute fave oils that are high omega-3s is rosehip oil and luckily for you, our lavender cleansing body + face oil is full of it. 

they're also full of vitamins and antioxidants, 

Natural oils can help lock hydration in by acting as a temporary skin barrier, preventing the much-needed hydration from escaping. These oils also help to condition the skin with fat-soluble vitamins and antioxidants to improve the skin's overall resilience.

Antioxidants can also help to protect your skin from the sun's harsh UV rays, helping to prevent against discolouration, sunburn and premature ageing (although we always recommend you use sunscreen or a product with SPF in it every time you venture outside).  

they wanna be your skin's twin

This might sound a little confusing but we can explain. 

Facial oils work with your skin, not against it, basically wanting to be its best friend instead of its enemy. The outermost layers of your skin are oil-based, paving for the way for facial oils to do their job. 

These layers are primarily full of fatty acids, cholesterol, and ceramides, all of which can be found in natural oils, meaning that they are full of skin-identical ingredients. Essentially, facial oils are tricking your skin into thinking it produced these oils itself. Your skin then takes these oils and runs with them, spreading healthy nutrients that are both gentle and kind. Oh and super effective.   

and they're also here to protect your skin's barriers. 

Like we've already discussed, the outermost layers of your skin are oil-based, and the purpose of this oil is to keep your skin safe from germs and from getting thirsty AF (or dehydrated if you're not down with the cool kid lingo).

Your skin's basically the shield that your body needs to fight off bacteria and other nasty things, however, when it's as neglected as the house plant you keep forgetting to water that sits in the corner of your living room, it can be hard for it to do its job. When this shield is attacked, it becomes:

- less able to regulate temperature, and protect your body

- dull and dehydrated

- dry and unevenly textured

- open to developing skin conditions like eczema

- sensitive and really red

However facial oils can keep your skin healthy and looking' mighty fresh because they replenish your skin's natural oil. These oils are not only cape-wearing, superhero oils that form a temporary barrier for your skin to prevent such conditions (see above), they also provide your skin with the nutrients and vitamins it needs to restore itself to full and glowing' health. 

So grab a facial oil and let's call it a day.