Masterclass - Skin Types

aka. Know your enemy (and make it a friend)

We are all not the same, we all have different needs and requirements for ourselves. Like ourselves, skin typing is not exclusive, you will find as we go through this that you could fall into more than one category. Over time you'll also find that you'll skin will also travel from one section to another, factors that can change this are:

* Aging (sorry)
* Pregnancy
* Stress
* Smoking (honesty give it up, you'll skin will love you in weeks!)
* Pollution (most notably the London smog)
* Medication
* Weather (going from heat to cold then heat then cold)

So why do we have skin categories? It just makes life easier for the customer and the companies, I have never ever have seen a product that can do everything that everyone requires. This gives the company focus to produce products for a certain need, as different skin types have different needs.
Right, down to basics, there are four skin types, each with their own characteristics that sets them apart from one another:

Normal Skin
Uber rare to find, one with no problems that looks fresh clear and perfect. I think of this of skin before hormones (and life) kicks in. Soft, springy, even toned and colour. This what you are aiming for when you add a foundation to skin. Product wise you can use anything that doesn't strip the skin of moisture
support of your skin.

Dry Skin
This is more skin that is moisture deficient, leaving the skin dry to touch. There would be lack of elasticity to skin, as well as dullness and flakiness. The pores (where sebum is produced) is small and tight, cell regeneration also is slowly (hence the dullness its the higher rate of dead skin cells). Unfortunately on of the most common characteristics is that your skin will look older, that is why it is good to use a creamy exfoliate to support the cell regeneration process. Due to lack of moisture dry skin is more prone to be sensitive because it doesn't have that barrier. Please invest in a beautiful creamy moisturiser, you'll skin will thank you for it.

Oily Skin
Is the complete opposite to dry, this is your skin working overtime and producing more sebum that you need. This produces that sheen on the skin, but don't mistake this for glow (that's a delicate softness, oily just looks you've dipped your face in chip oil). This skin will normally have enlarged pores, will look dull because the dead cells sit around in the oil and the blood circulation is sluggish. Unfortunately this skin will suffer with more blemishes and spots, on the good side it'll have great tone and can protect the skin from early aging. This skin will need to look more for products that are designed for your skin (oil free is a key thing), a very light lotion will be great as well as matifying serum/primer to look less shiny.

Combination Skin
Basically this has a mixture of the above, the most common combination is dry cheeks and a slightly oilier nose and forehead (this would be me). This all about maintenance and there are products out there what can balance this skin out. You might find that your skin changes like the wind blowing and you will need to change your routine season to season. I find that I get oilier in summer (where I convert to lotion) and drier in the winter (where  go to cream).

These skin types provide a basis to start on, after this you then look at the needs of the skin (anti-aging, even skin tone etc.). When I asked about people abut the skin there are two questions I normally ask is the following: What concerns you about your skin (an old habit from Lauder but it a one that always gets the answers I want) and want do you want the end result to be (keeping in mind that nearly all adverts are airbrushed within an inch of their lives)? Out of everything please just be honest with any consultants, the more honest you are with us, the more informed we are and the more we can help you look your best.

Next week - Eyes