Oil Cleaning Method (OCM) Day One

I first ready about OCM in a natural living community on Livejournal. I haven’t had the means to get my hands on the necessary tools, and now being in Portland has allowed that to happen. I would have purchased online, but I really wanted to get smaller amounts to test before investing. The How-to article outlines using Castor Oil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil for this method of cleansing, though later posts suggest Jojoba Oil because it’s closer to the natural sebum produced by our bodies. Other tips have been to be sure to use Cold Pressed Castor Oil, because the other methods may use chemicals which can cause the skin to react badly.

The mixture depends entirely on the skin type. More Castor Oil should be used for oily skin, while more Jojoba Oil for dry. It’s a completely experimental situation, which is why I opted to purchase small amounts to play with at first, though it’s recommended to start with a 50/50 mix and adjust from there. Other oils and things can be added, but I like to keep it simple during the first testing phase. Also, because I am not much of a spa-type girl, I opted not to steam my face. Many of the users on the LJ community I linked to also opt-out of this, and have still had success with the OCM. I didn’t see any reason why I shouldn’t.

I made my oil purchases at New Seasons. The Castor Oil is The Palma Christi, and is listed as “Pure, Cold Pressed, Top Quality Oil” on the bottle. It also states “Hexane-free and Certified”. The Jojoba oil I bought is Desert Essence. The bottle reads that it has “no alcohol, artificial detergents, color or synthetic perfumes” and also the ingredient list only contains Jojoba Oil. Having the purest of ingredients is essential for this experiment I believe, because then I can base my analysis on the products instead of wondering if some outside source is causing the reactions I experience.

As for my face, it seems to be about average. When I was younger, I had horrible acne, but in my adult years it has been one or two a week. They are also smallish pimples, since I have small pores. I do have a lot of discoloration on my face, and patches of dry skin. I find that the area just under my lips get kind of crusty and dry, no matter how much moisturizer I use. My nose and sometimes my forehead also get flaky and dry. I am mostly concerned about the chin/lip area, because it starts to turn brown and I seriously look like I’ve been eating mud or other perverse and unpleasant sounding activities. It has plagued me for many years. While I don’t buy into the whole beauty standard, I also don’t want my skin to look like it’s cracking and dying. I don’t wear make-up, and I don’t put a bunch of crap on it. I would like attractive skin that I have to mess with as little as possible. My husband has, and will always, take longer to get ready than I do.

I think that is a good primer for the first post. I did a mixture of 25% Castor oil and 75% Jojoba oil. Of course this is a rough estimate, I didn’t measure with instruments, instead opting to eyeball it. I massaged the mixture into my skin for a few minutes, until I felt like it had good coverage and was able to sink into my pores. Then I used a warm reusable shop towel (they’re more sturdy than paper towels) to wipe off the mixture. Afterwards my skin felt smooth and soft, and while it felt moist, it didn’t feel greasy or tight. The area under my lip still felt a little crusty, so I rubbed some plain Jojoba oil onto it and then onto my nose where I notice the most dryness.

I admit even after one application, I feel a difference in my skin. I also see a difference, as does my husband. His description, I kid you not, was “it used to look like gloss paint, but now it looks like semi-gloss. It’s nice”. I found this a rather odd description, not being much of a handyman but I’ll take what compliments I can get. I even noticed the chin/lip area didn’t feel crusty anymore, nor did it have the dark complexion. I will likely wait until the end of a month’s time before taking another picture. I plan to do the OCM method once or twice a week until then. I will apply the Jojoba oil whenever I feel my face is tight or crusty.

EDIT: The morning after my skin still felt supple and smooth. The chin/lip problem area felt like normal skin, and still didn’t have any discoloration. So far, OCM for the win!

Natural Skincare

I went out the other day to visit a local business. It was once a place where folks could buy organic produce (before the fad hit) and other natural items. However, it’s been revamped and turned into a natural skincare/cosmetics store. They sell a number of vitamin supplements and other green dietary things. I am in the market for lip balm, lotion and perhaps some vegetarian Omega-3 DHA/EPA supplements. I thought this place would be perfect because it would be supporting a local business owner, as well as allow me to talk to a real live person concerning the natural products and their ingredients. Unfortunately, I was not impressed and left without purchasing anything. The shop came off as being more interested in making profit off the natural care industry than being genuinely interested in natural products. The saleswoman told me several times that the cosmetics adhered to the European standards and were “high-end”. When I inquired as to why the products were better, she again said they were high-end. She told me that petroleum cosmetics were bad for the skin because they couldn’t penetrate, and so I inquired about the wax (bees and such) which were in the lip balms and if that was similar to the petroleum. The lady honestly seemed stumped by this question.

She then went around the store checking the ingredients in assorted products while repeating that they were high-end and agreeing there was wax in them. Oookay, so I’m thoroughly confused. I should point out that these lip balms were $8 a pop, and yet she could not give me any real information on why they were better. I also saw a bottle on the shelf which was labeled as a hair care product, 100% jojoba oil. I was confused by this. Jojoba oil, as I know it, isn’t just used to treat hair but also as an excellent skin moisturizer, among other things. Yet they were selling this $20 bottle of 8oz Jojoba oil (I didn’t see anything about certified organic either) and proclaiming it this wonderful hair tonic. Seriously, slapping a fancy label on something does not make it worth $20. This lady also spent 10 minutes looking for a vegetarian Omega-3 supplement, swearing they had one before pointing out the “high-end” one they can’t keep on the shelves. Why is it high-end? I ask, and was directed to the brand name and how quickly it sells. Cue the eye rolling.

So I went online to my favorite LiveJournal natural community to see if they had any suggestions. I found several rave reviews about a place called My Lip Stuff. It’s made by one woman called Brea, and is 100% natural. There are even several Vegan options. It’s not just lip balm, but lotions and body scrubs and body sprays. I decided to buy a Vegan lip balm for myself, a no-nonsense balm for my husband (labeled as men’s, which basically means there is no scent or taste; I didn’t like the gender label but not everyone is perfect), and a body butter stick. All three cost me $14.75, which included shipping. I was impressed that I placed the order on November 4th at 3:30pm EST and it was shipped by November 6th. Most orders are shipper Priority Mail, but since I got samples (same size as normal, just shipped first class instead) it’ll take a couple days longer.

I’m looking forward to this. I opted for non-scented body butter since I’ve never used a body butter and wanted to try it raw, and a Sweet as Sugar lip balm. Apparently it’s flavored with vanilla and Stevia. I’ll post my thoughts once it gets here and I try it out. Yay for natural products from small businesses!