Good, budget cleanser for dull oily skin or am I better with soap and water?

[StormyLovesOdd]

I am in my 40's and have oily skin with the odd dry patch occasionally and quite large pores especially on my nose. I have always just used soap and water with Simple moisturiser on the dry bits but I have noticed lately that my skin looks really dull.

I usually wear make up but I am going on holiday soon and would love to feel more confident without the make-up. I am totally clueless with beauty products and don't have a lot of spare cash to waste so I would really appreciate some help.

I have similar skin to yours and no spare cash either. Am currently using Lacura soap free facial wash from Aldi and it is lovely and costs £1.29. Am going to try the day/night cream too when I have £5 to spare.

But when I feel my skin needs improving I use almond oil and hot flannels to cleanse at night for a week or so. Then just warm water in the mornings.

Hi Veronica - I have always stayed away from anything with oil in it as I have greasy skin, doesn't almond oil make it worse?

meant to add I have used the Lacura range before, found it okay and on a par with the Simple range but it didn't really do much to improve my skin.

Your skin sounds quite like mine. It's ridiculously oily but I can also get dry areas if I'm not careful, plus the large pores on my nose.

I've tried loads of different products for it but by far the best is using coconut oil and a hot flannel. I resisted for ages as adding more oil to already oily skin seems like a daft idea but it definitely works for me. I read somewhere that using oil means your skin doesn't need to produce as much itself, no idea if that's actually true but my skin certainly stays oil free much longer than it does when I use anything else.

Ooh no, it is great. Look up some of the oil cleansing threads on here for proper info as I am no expert. You just massage the oil in then use hot flannels to wipe it away. I never need to moisturise afterwards but drier skin may need it although a few drops of the almond oil would do. Then in the morning just wash with a warm flannel and again no moisturiser required.

There are all sorts of oils you can use. I bought almond as it was in Home Bargains for £1

.... I believe you both but have to admit I'm a bit scared to use any kind of oil on my face, would imagine it would just turn me into an oil slick.

Another oil convert here. I had such a greasy t zone and now I use balm/oil cleansers and facial oils and it's sorted it right out. I believe jojoba is best for oily skin. avagosling knows loads about oils. Hopefully she'll pop along and add some advice

Oil cleanser and a flannel definitely. The una brennan vitamin c oil from boots is lovely.

I brought the Superdrug Raidence Cleanser... Oh... My.....god! Only been using it for a couple of days but it's made a huge difference. I have had a spot on my nose for months and it's drying up. My skin doesnt feel so oily anditlooks a million times better already.

I am thinking about buying some oils.

I would recommend a good but gentle cleanser like Cetaphil (dont use soap and water) and remove with a flannel. It will cope gently with both oily and dry skin. And continue with your usual moisturiser.

Another recommendation for oil here. I got a big tub of coconut oil from Tesco yesterday (get it in the Asian section). Use it with a muslin cloth (not the Liz Earle ones, get a pack of 6 from Asda or Tesco in the baby section.) It's massively improved my skin. I have a very oily tzone and but also used to get dry flaky bits around my nose. Rarely happens now.

Use an oil (coconut is great for oily skin) or an oily balm cleanser (I like Lush ultrabland or the body shop chamomile one) and remove with a hot flannel or muslin cloth. Then cleanse again with a lighter cleansing milk and remove in the same way. The cloth exfoliates your skin and brightens it up. Then moisturiser on top.
Acid toners are also brilliant for dull skins with large pores - I like the Clarins exfoliating toner - use at night a few times a week.

I have oily skin
if I use foaming/soapy cleansers it gets flaky
if I use oils/balms (liz earle type stuff) I get REALLY spotty.

cetaphil works best for me, washed off with a hot flannel.

Avoid any face washes with SLS in. The foaming agent makes your skin create more oil. I now use Superdrug's Clearly Youthful exfoliating wash- it is like a milk and has lactic acid and salicylic acid in it. I use this in a morning and also as a second cleanse at night. For my first cleanse at night, I use an oily balm taken off with a hot damp flannel (currently using No 7 melting gel cleanser). Pores look minimised and oily skin is under control. On holiday, you could probably use a tinted moisturiser/ CC cream. But beware of using any sun blocks on your face that contain chemical sunscreens, like Avobenzone. They can clog pores and cause spots. You need a mineral sunscreen. Clinique City Block SPF 25 is one such product and reasonably priced.

Cetaphil is great. Although it does have SLS in it, it's way down the list of ingredients and it doesn't foam at all. It's brilliant.

I have combination skin which is like yours round the nose, with oily t zone and large pores.
I also was dubious about using oil but tried it with a cheap bottle of golden jojoba oil from Amazon.

I use it after cleansing (with Superdrug radiant hot cloth cleanser) just about 4 drops and pat it on.
It apparently stops the skin over producing oil, and regulates the natural sebum, it definitely works.

I just use a hot flannel in the morning to cleanse and my skin does feel less oily now after a couple of weeks.