This guide looks at choosing the best skin and hair oil according to what challenge you most want to tackle.
Over the last few years, there’s been a huge resurgence across dermatologists and skin experts alike of using skin oils.
Many famous women, like the Princess of Wales, Miranda Kerr, Kate Blanchett and Kylie Jenner reportedly swear by different types of oil to tackle everything from fine lines to frizzy hair and stretchmarks.
The thing is though, that not all oils were made equal. It’s important to choose a skin, body or hair oil that is of the highest quality, with ingredients best preserved to get the benefits.
We’d recommend you look for certified organic skin and hair oils, which are sourced ethically, often cold pressed to preserve quality and are as kind to the planet as they are to you.
Each oil also tackles different challenges in different ways, and there are many on the market.
In this guide, we explore the skin, hair, and body oil to choose for the best results, based on what you want to achieve.
Ease Dry Skin on Body or Face
Dry skin on the body is common and can start for many reasons. You might be using a soap or shower gel that is a little too harsh, showering too often, or stripping the skin with harsh fragrances.
It can occur through allergens, being irritated by detergents or simply because of your skin tone (darker skin tones with more melanin get dry and ‘ashy’ much more quickly).
Dry skin may be tight, itchy, flaking, or even cracking and sore. A good body or facial oil (many can be both) will help by locking in moisture and preventing environmental free radicals from doing further damage.
You need something richer and usually light on fragrance, so we recommend Jojoba Oil, which is super-nourishing, and Macademia Oil, which is ultra-rich. Our Frankincense oil is especially good for facial skin.
Wrinkles and Fine Lines
Wrinkles and fine lines are a natural side effect of ageing, but are worsened by a lack of hydration, environmental aggressors, too much sun damage and a loss of collagen and essential nutrients to the skin.
An oil that couples rich fatty acids with rosehip oil, which is loved by The Princess of Wales and Miranda Kerr, is the ideal night-time treatment to help feed the skin whilst soothing inflammation and reducing the appearance of early signs of ageing.
Frizzy Hair
Hair that frizzes easily, through heat, humidity or over-processing needs some oil to help both smooth the cuticle but also to weigh it down to keep it from frizzing back up.
You can’t beat argan oil for that. Sourced from the argan tree, usually in Morocco, it adds shine, volume, and smoothness to even fine hair. It helps it stop stretching, breaking and the causes of frizz, so improves the hair quality over time.
For Deep Skin Cleansing
It may sound counterproductive to use an oil for skin cleansing, but it’s an incredibly effective way to draw out deep dirt and grime from the skin.
Use it as the first step in a double cleanse, by massaging into the skin in circular motions, removing with a warm muslin and water.
Uneven Skin Tone
An even skin tone (smooth skin, small pores, even skin colour) is highly desirable, but rare, especially as we age. Hormones, hyperpigmentation, rosacea and sun damage all affect the tone, no matter how cautious we are.
An oil with rosehip again is the answer here. It’s anti-inflammatory, ideal for sensitive skins and great at adding colour.
Our stockists Odylique once shared that a customer got asked if they’d had Botox, their skin looked so good after using their Super Fruit Concentrate!
Combination Skin
Combination skin (which is a ‘normal’ skin, with an oily t-zone across the nose and forehead) benefits from the balancing effects of a good oil.
Oily skin turns up when the skin overproduces sebum. Providing the skin with a little natural oil helps it stop working so hard and regulates the overall skin tone.
A very light oil, containing skin healing lavender oils, gentle aloe and herbs, used a couple of times a week is enough here.
Acne Prone Skin or Eczema
You need a little known oil ‘Neem seed’, which is both nourishing and anti-fungal – it’s quite remarkable on damaged, inflamed skin.
It smells a little like onions, so not one for date night, but don’t underestimate the incredible results .
Stretchmarks and Pregnancy
There is NO way to ‘cure’ or stop stretch marks. They’re usually genetic and caused by rapid weight gain or loss in some skins.
However, a good oil can keep the skin supple and reduce the redness of the scarring, to a silvery tone much quicker.
They can also help with self-care and itching during pregnancy and give a more even skin tone as you look to lose weight.
Seasonal Skin Issues
Winter brings dry, itching skin and summer brings burns. Both can be supported with a skin oil, which replenishes lost moisture, reduces soreness and eases discomfort. Ingredients like macademia and rosemary antioxidant are the best to look for.
Cuticles and nail strength
Cuticles are the slightly harder bit of skin at the edge of the nail. They can easily become quite overgrown and rough.
Nails themselves are like hair, in that they need moisture, but especially if you wear a lot of polish, they can become soft and dehydrated.
A daily application of nail oil at bedtime works wonders to have strong, healthy nails and cuticles on both the hands and feet. We’d recommend neem seed oil for this as it is packed with fatty acids and nourishing vitamins.
Hot Oil Hair Treatments
For hot oil hair treatments we've again recommended a little argan oil warmed gently. We’d recommend that you mix it with a teaspoon of amla, which adds shine and helps with breakage and hair loss.
Simply pour it onto the scalp, comb through then gently tug at the hair to bring blood flow to the surface. Wrap in a hot towel and leave for 30 minutes, before rinsing well.
To mix with Essential Oils for a Massage
For a good body or facial massage you need a base oil that nourishes, is rich enough to not be too quickly absorbed and mixes well with essential oils for effect. Coconut oil or apricot oils are both perfect.
Odylique’s beautiful Muscle Ease has rosemary, marjoram and black pepper suspended in cococonut oil which is perfect post exercise, gardening or stress.