Oily Or Dry? How To Determine Your Skin Type In Three Easy Steps

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Michelle Darrisaw Jun, 06, 2018

If you’re a beauty junkie, chances are you’ve gotten sucked into trying some trendy new skin care product, only to be disappointed that it couldn’t deliver. Have you ever thought about the fact that your dull, lackluster skin could be the result of using the wrong products for your skin type?

Yes, apparently, there’s a method to the madness when it comes to formulating the right cosmetic equation and chemical mixture for certain skin types. By now you’re probably wondering, well, how can I know what beauty regimen to follow if I don’t know my skin type? Luckily, you have us to break down the common skin types and the easy way to test what type you have.

Typically, the three skin types are dry, oily and combination. Dry skin and oily skin are pretty self-explanatory, and combination skin is obviously a little bit of both. According to Dr. Tess Mauricio, dermatologist and CEO of M. Beauty Clinic, you can employ the three-step blotting test below to determine your skin type.

1. Wash your face with a gentle cleanser and water. Use your hands to clean your face and avoid scrubbing too hard.

2. Dry your face with a towel and leave your skin alone for one hour without applying any products or touching it.

3. After one hour, if your face feels tight, you have dry skin. After blotting your skin with tissue paper, if there’s oil on your T-zone (forehead, nose and chin), but not your cheeks, you have combination skin. If you do the same tissue-paper test on your cheeks, and there’s an oily shine on your T-zone and cheeks, you have oily skin. However, if your skin looks blotchy and red and feels tingly, you have sensitive skin.

“African-American skin has a higher level of melanin (dark pigments), hence the dark color,” explains Jenny Nguyen, founder of Y/OUR personalized skin care. “Melanin helps protect the skin against sun damages, which means it can protect itself against damage from the sun, far better than those with pale skin. Dark skin has a natural SPF of around 15, while pale skin has a natural SPF of only 3 or 4. African-Americans have a higher degree of sebaceous glands that make skin oilier.”