What Is Combination Skin? And Best Ways To Deal With It

To Know about Combination Skin you need to know that everyone has a dominant skin type that they can identify with.

Obviously, depending on this skin type, they have to follow the protocol of taking care of it as well. Though most people think that the skin type is something they are born with, they are most definitely not.

Growing up, we all have really good skin and that’s why we call it baby skin. But certain environmental factors, weather changes where you live, and internal factors like your diet, hormonal balance, and age progression result in the outlook of your skin.

You must know the kind of skin you have so you can take care of it accordingly. I have seen a lot of people using products that are not aligned with their skin type, resulting in bad skin and a poor decision for life.

This is why it is integral to know your skin type and then follow a skincare ritual with the right products accordingly.

Though it isn’t exactly a difficult task to figure what kind of skin you have, I have seen a lot of people struggling to realize that they actually have combination skin instead of just oily or dry skin.

In their defense, I do know that skincare newbies might find it hard to know that they have combination skin and that’s what we are going to explore in this blog today.

What Is Combination Skin

First things first, let’s get started with what combination skin is. As the name suggests, it is the combination of two dominant skin types – dry and oily.

Combination skin basically means that certain areas of the skin can be characterized by one skin type (oily) and the other areas will be characterized by the other skin type (dry) and vice versa.

The major difference in the combination skin is generally oil around the T-zone which includes nose, forehead, and chin. Whereas the other areas along the jaw and the cheeks are dry mostly.

Combination skin requires you to build a skin care regiment that centers around both your unique needs. You can’t use oil-free products only and you can’t use products that help against dry skin because you will be worsening the condition for half your skin.

You have to find the right balance between both the skin routine to match with the one that suits your unique needs.

Moreover, those with combination skin generally have to try out a few different products before agreeing to the ones that suit them for both the types that combine on their skin.

How To Know If You Have Combination Skin

As I have already mentioned above, a lot of people do not realize they have combination skin and just bracket themselves into one type.

To know that you have combination skin doesn’t require a lot of hard work but just keeping an open mind.

Like when you wash your face, you would notice that within some time oil would pop back in your T-zone with some greasiness. And no matter how much you wash your face; it keeps on coming back.

Moreover, you will also notice the unwanted shine on the T-zone as well. This is also the area that is the first to start sweat and gets sweaty as compared to the other areas in the hot weather.

On the other hand, you will also notice that when you moisturize your face, there are some areas where you have to apply more rigorously to get rid of the harsh dryness of the skin.

You will also see patchy areas of dryness even when the weather is fine, and the cold winter isn’t in sight.

Frequent breakouts are also generally a result of treating your skin badly because you are not using the right products that match your combination skin.

How To Take Care Of Combination Skin

Here are the most important things that you should keep in your mind and must follow if you have combination skin care routine, and you want to take care of it well:

Use A Gentle Cleanser:

Even though the dry patches and the oily T-zone can be a bit annoying, but that doesn’t mean you are just going to scrub your face every day.

It is integral for people with combination skin to be soft on it and use gentle products.

Among all these, the most important product is a facial cleanser. Your skin gets covered with excess oils, grime, impurities, and dirt throughout the day which accumulates and clog your pores.

You must use a facial cleanser that will help mattify and clean your oily T-zone without being harsh and drying on your cheeks, under-eye area, and jaw.

One of our recommendations for a gentle cleanser would be to use L’Oréal Paris Micellar Cleansing Water for all skin types that removes makeup as well as gently cleanses your pores and skin at the end of the day.

Remember that cleansing is even more important now that we wear face masks throughout the day. They can result in creating a build-up on skin that might end up in irritation.

Exfoliate Well:

You also must exfoliate and exfoliate your skin well. If you have combination skin, get yourself a scrub that mentions it suits all skin types and is not geared toward just oily or dry skin.

Exfoliation with the scrub helps in removing dirt, dead skin cells, grime in the pores, and any impurities that you collected throughout the day and are stuck deep inside your cells and pores.

With continued exfoliation, you will get healthy skin with less oil and dry patches. Exfoliation isn’t a daily thing as scrubbing can damage your skin and over-dry it.

You can only exfoliate a few times, generally recommended to be twice or thrice, every week.

Moisturize Your Skin:

The biggest misconception I have seen in people with oily or combination skin is that they do not need to moisturize because it is not dry. But that’s completely wrong. Your skin needs moisturizing no matter what the skin type.

Go for a moisturizer that is oil-free and does not add any additional shine to your already oily T-zone. Every morning and evening smooth some moisturizer over your face and massage it well after cleansing and the days when you have to exfoliate for healthy-looking skin.

Some natural moisturizers that you can use include Manuka Honey, which can be applied to the face for five minutes, removed with a towel, and then washed off with cold water.

You can also use coconut oil, olive oil, or aloe gel and gently dab a small quantity at the end of the day on your face.

Use Broad-Spectrum Sunscreen

Another way of maintaining your combination skin is to use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF value of 30 or higher.

Spending time in the sun can cause irreparable damage and those with combination skin can find it even more difficult to manage their skin.

To get rid of more skin damage and aging, get yourself broad-spectrum SPF 30 and more.

Apply Face Masks

One of the great ways to take care of combination is to apply different face masks simultaneously. What I mean is that you can buy two different face masks for oily skin and dry skin.

Apply a layer of each suiting that area of the skin.

This is called multi-masking and it is a great way of taking care of your skin with two different requirements. For T-zone, go with detoxifying masks and clay or charcoal-based to be precise. For the drier areas, you can go for a moisturizing cream-based mask.