You know how a guy may be perfect for your friend, but totally wrong for you?
Same thing with beauty products!
A friend (or blogger, or celebrity) may swear by a product – give it a 5-star rating, but when you try it, it just doesn’t work. In fact, it may even make your skin react badly.
That’s because your skin type may be totally different.

You should only use products that are meant specifically for your skin type. Making that one tiny change can improve your skin more than you can ever imagine.

The problem is most women don’t know their real skin type! You ‘think’ it’s a particular type, but you aren’t ever fully sure.

So I decided to save you from all the guesswork. Here’s a simple test that will help you find out once and for all what your actual skin type is.

THE TEST:

Wash your face with a gentle facewash at night. DON’T put anything on after that (no moisturizer – nothing!). Go to sleep totally bare-faced.
When you wake up in the morning, take a good hard look at your face in the mirror. Touch it gently to feel its texture. Then take a blotting paper and pat your skin to check how oily or dry is actually is.

See: Your face looks shiny all over – your forehead, nose, apples and sides of your cheeks, chin, jawline – everything!

Touch: Your fingers feel greasy everywhere you touch.

Blot: The blotting paper will get oily wherever you pat your skin.

See: Your face looks shiny on your forehead, nose, apple of your cheeks and chin. But there are some normal or dry parts too – like the sides of your cheeks and your jawline.

Touch: When you touch the sides of your face, they feel normal (or a bit dry), but as you move your fingers towards the center, you can feel it getting greasier.

Blot: The blotting paper will get oily when you pat your T-zone, but will stay oil-less when you pat the sides of your face.

See: Your face looks a bit dull and there may be a few flaky areas too.

Touch: Your face feels tight and is slightly rough when you touch it.

Blot: The blotting paper gets almost no oil when you pat your skin.

See: Your face looks dull, with a few red and flaky patches.

Touch: Your face feels tight and may even be itchy. Some parts actually sting when you touch them. Your skin may feel rough.

Blot: The blotting paper gets almost no oil when you pat your skin.

See: Your face looks… normal (neither dry or oily or red).

Touch: Your face is smooth to touch, without any rough or greasy parts.

Blot: The blotting paper will get a little bit of oil wherever you pat your skin.
(FYI, everyone else hates you!)

Remember, just because your skin is oily now, doesn’t mean it will remain that way. Your skin type will change depending on your age, your diet, the weather and even where you stay. So keep checking your skin type every few months to make sure you’re using products that meant for you.

Stuff I ❤️: The Body Shop makes good blotting paper that’s packed in a small packet that fits even the tiniest clutch bag. Perfect for a night out!