Righto. Oil Cleansing method. All who have tried it please step this way.... (Possible TMI)

[SausageRocket]

I currently use Liz Earle cleanser and I like it (most of the time) but I still have weeks where my skin is just crap (hormonal related, I suspect). Spotty (only one or at the most 2 at a time), which is rubbish but I also get horrid bumps under my skin. They aren't red, they are almost like blind whiteheads (no head to speak of), they pop up (attractively) along my jawline and I HATE them.

I drink loads of water, very rarely do I drink fizzy stuff or tea (never coffee), I exercise 4-5 times a week (swimming) and my diet is pretty balanced. I am 27, so well beyond the teenage skin stage (sob). My skin has always been useless, aesthetically speaking, and I long for clear, dewy, vestal virgin skin.

I've heard/seen a lot of hooha over the OCM and I want to try it but I have a few questions.

Is it all hype ?
Did it work for you ?
Any downsides ?
Where do I buy the stuff cheapest ?
Best blends ?

Thanks

[catinthehat2]

.

[LetThemEatCake]

hello - have never had problem skin really, although a bit hormonal at the start of current pg.

Started OCM in March and am very impressed - used to use REN and this is saving me a bundle. The only 'products' I use now are an eye cream (but am nearly 37 so an old hag) plus a once-weekly scrub and balm (Neal's Yard Wild Rose)

I do a blend of organic castor oil and sweet almond oil which I buy from my local health food store. Costs me about £5 a month, I think.

My skin feels lovely and soft, no fine lines (although this is obviously down to genes, lifestyle etc as well) and no breakouts.

Give it a try! good luck

[SausageRocket]

Thanks for your reply LTEC (and your bump catinthehat2)

[Bleh]

LTEC, do you buy the blend, or the oils separately? Does anyone know if something like coco balm would work (I was thinking of using something more solid, so it doesn't leak everywhere).
I'm currently using Eve Lom, but am thinking of going for something cheaper.

[LetThemEatCake]

I buy the oils separately and blend them in an empty Neals Yard bottle so the aesthetic integrity of my bathroom is not compromised

not sure about coco balm ... beeswax maybe?

[tigerbear]

SausageRocket, in answer to your questions:

• Not hype, imo
• It did work for me! I was very sceptical at first, as I've always had problem skin, with lots of spots and bumps. As soon as I tried it I noticed a massive difference! My skin seemed much brighter and clearer and pores seemed smaller, and my spots shrunk! Result! I used the OCM for about 3 months, then stopped as I didn't seem to need to do it anymore (as skin was so much better) and have gone back to using face wipes. I would definitely go back to OCM again if I started getting more spots (but atm I have far less than I used to pre OCM).
• Downsides - not many. The only thing that didn't work for me was using it to take off my eye makeup. Some people do this and say it works for them. It does work, in that it does take the makeup off, however your flannel is left with loads of oily gunky mascara and eyeliner (obv depending on how much eye makeup you use) which is a bit yuck, so I just used face wipes on my eyes, and oil everywhere else.

Remember to buy a couple of (not white) flannels before starting the OCM, so you can wash and alternate them every other day or so.

• This method is VERY cheap! You can use supermarket own sunflower oil, and buy castor oil if using it from the local chemist.
• It may take a while to find the best blends for you, as different oils do different things. I used a blend of sunflower, castor, and avocado oil. Experiment with the amounts you use of each oil, as it can make a big difference to the results (for instance, I used too much castor oil once, and surprisingly it is quite drying- but good for drying out oily and spotty patches).

[snowmummy]

I don't thinks its hype. It makes my skin lovely and smooth. The only downside is that its quite messy and not as quick as using a facewash for example. However, I'd say the upsides far outweigh that one downside.

[Hopefully]

I've been using it for a few months, and my skin is/was very similar to yours.

I have found that now that I have got a bit more au fait with OCM, my skin is much better than it was. Initially, when I still working out oil proportions/how much to wipe off/whether to use other products, I found it was up and down, but never any worse than it was when I was using my previous multi-step method (I used Liz Earle, which was pretty good, but OCM cheaper and better IMO)

[RamblingRosa]

I used just olive oil and a muslin cloth for a while. I know that's not the exact OCM but it's the same kind of thing. IMO the main thing is to use less harsh detergents, perfumes, synthetic stuff (that you find in toiletries from Boots or wherever) and just keep it as simple as possible. All oils have cleansing properties. Some are nicer to use than others. A muslin cloth rinsed in hot water (or as flannel) is a good method (Eve Lom method) as it exfoliates too.
Why don't you start off with just some olive oil or almond oil and see how you go? It can't hurt.
Spots on the jawline sound hormonal (I have the same problem) so might be worth talking to your GP.

[ihatethecold]

hi i have been totally converted, i used liz earle for years, but now use just olive oil and sunflower oil mixed in a travel bottle from boots, costs pence and my skin hasnt been better. have been doing this for about 6 months, i fond castor oil too drying. so leave that out now, have converted many friends on to this method aswell..

[nouveaupauvre]

i did it for a couple of months and it worked a lot better than i expected (before, the only thing that stopped me getting spots was dermalogica and its bloody expensive). however after a few months i did get a run of spots and theyw ere all the big, sore lump under the skin type, mostly along the jawline and chin, and took ages to go. in the end i went back to dermalogica and two weeks later my skin is great again. it does work, if you can afford it. what im thinking now is might use dermalogica most of the time and alternate it with six weeks or so of OCM to save money.
apparently spots on jawline are sign of stress/hormonal problems if that is any use (makes sense to me but as my stress levels are mostly due to things i cant control like moving house, not much use)

[abra1d]

It works for me. I use olive oil and castor oil, in a roughly 7:1 ratio. I use a warm flannel to wash it off and then follow with a cold flannel.

So cheap. I'm saving £££.

[pollywobbledoodle]

it works for me..especially on blackheads and the hard whiteheads under the skin...they seem to come to the surface , pop then disappear.

i use ev olive oil and castor oil 20;1 , 10;1 made my skin too dry

[GossipMonger]

I have roseacea and am on Roaccutane for it.

Would OCM work for me?

Can someone type the 'rules' out for me as to what i should be doing?

TIA

[GossipMonger]

bump

[SausageRocket]

This inof page should help

[wigglybeezer]

I liked the fact that blackheads went away but I felt that the hot flanneling made my facial redness worse (think i may have very mild rosacea as my Mum had it) and it was too hard to get the oil off with cold water.

[NoBingoWings]

SausageRocket

My skin sounds exactly like yours - I had painful spots on my chin and jaw - always hormonal but they didnt ever really clear up the rest of the month!

I tried the OCM full of hope but it was a total disaster- my skin was the worst it had ever been it took ages for the spots to clear up ,they were all trapped under the skin.
I now use bodyshop vit E facial wash and those spa wash thingys and cleanse very,very gently-wierd after spending years scrubbing,massaging, stripping my skin in an attempt to get rid of spots etc.

On the advice of Macherie I now use Roc Retinox moisturiser and it has changed my life-corny I know but I spent years avoiding photos,family and social accasions because I was so embarrassed about my skin.

It is great for wrinkles and spots- there is a thread somewhere on this and the Boots Serum
Sorry I have gone on a bit

[ruddynorah]

works wonders on my skin. normally very oily and greasy. now not a single spot or black head or oily patch. love it.

[abra1d]

The other thing I do from time to time is add a little bit of sea salt to the olive oil and castor oil mix. Great for exfoliating.

[rupertsabear]

My skin is like yours, OP. I've been doing OCM for about 4 months now and it's not worse, but not really better.

I gave up eating all wheat products and ate obsessively healthily for a while and it cleared up completely. Then I stopped because too hard while moving house, and I'm all spotty again.

I've now unpacked the kitchen and found a supermarket so am going back to the diet. It's a pain, but nice to have clear skin.

[sis]

I had exactly the same experience as nouveaupauvre and am back with dermalogica - no more experimenting for me!

[AuntieMaggie]

It even works with baby oil, which smells nice and gets rid of eye makeup a treat and is cheap too.

[MadameCastafiore]

Loz Earle did the same for me - never had bad skin and it was a great product for a while and then I got huge boils underneath my skin - I just don;t think it was cleansing deep down.

Now I use Lancome Make up remover and Clean and Clear wipes and I rarely have any problems with my skin and am very like you with regards to exercise and diet.

I always use Estee Lauder moisturiser and night serum though and have been told look at least 5 to 7 years younger than my age - I am 107!