Skin Type

There are three basic skin types, but you may find yours isn't exactly like any of those described here. Most skin is a mixture of these types and yours will be no exception. The basic skin types are dry, oily, and combination. Dark skins have a tendency towards greater extremes of dryness and oiliness than paler skins.

Oily skin
You can tell if your skin is oily because it usually has a shine to it. It may be prone to black heads and acne. Oily skin contains a lot of sebum which helps prevent the skin from drying out. However, oily skin tends to attract more dirt and dust than dry skin. It benefits from soap and water, so washing with a cleansing bar is an ideal way of caring for it. Use warm water to loosen the dirt, then use cold water to rinse. Use toners and astringents containing alcohol and always use a light, non-greasy liquid cleanser. Very oily skin needs no extra moisturizing at all while you are in your teens.

Dry skin
Dry skin looks dry, sometimes flakes, and often feels tight, especially if you have washed it with soap and water. Sometimes it is lacking some of the protective sebum and so it reacts to very hot and very cold weather by tightening up. One benefit of dry skin is that it is less likely to develop acne than oily skin, but it is easily chapped in a dry atmosphere. Always use mild, alcohol-free make up and toner, and a rich, creamy cleanser. Moisturize your face every day, including the throat and the skin around your eyes. When you wear makeup, use a moisturized foundation. You will need little or no powder. When you wash your face, use a liquid or a cleansing bar. Use warm water to lather and rinse it with cold.

Combination skin
Most of us have this kind of skin, with an oily center area or a T-zone across the forehead, nose, and chin, and areas of dryness on the cheeks, and around the eyes and neck. Ideally, you should have one product for the oily areas and one for the dry areas, but this is expensive and unnecessary unless the areas of dry and oily are very different. It's simpler to use a cleanser designed for combination skin. Use a skin cleanser for the central oily panel, diluted with water for the drier areas. The drier areas may or may not need moisturizing frequently. You may have to experiment a bit.