Fighting Fire with Fire. Kind Of.

No, this isn't a deep, spiritual post.  It's not about the fires of Hell or Holy Spirit fire.

It's actually about oily skin and how I happened upon a freakish but wholly natural solution.

Yup. 

Image courtesy of healthbeautyspot.com

Now, I am NOT a crunchy lady.  If you don't know what the vaguely derisive term "crunchy" means, well...basically, it means that you're deeply into organic, holistic, and otherwise "clean" living.  For me, the word conjures up images of young mothers with unwashed hair and babies strapped to their organic cotton maxi-dress-clad bodies, while they guzzle sour-sweet kombucha tea and contemplate the evils of canned chef Boy-Ar-Dee with their other crunchy friends.

Granted, this is a pretty narrow-minded view, and I'm aware of that (I'm sure that similarly narrow-minded images appear in others' minds when I say "I am a Christian").  I have friends who are "crunchy" and "semi-crunchy", and I actually have a blog in the works about what I am learning from certain aspects of "going green", but that's for another time.  This blog is about how my complexion has literally been transformed by an organic "recipe", and how I am deeply grateful for it.  

I came across the blog of self-styled "Crunchy Betty" when my husband and I were looking for a solution to our clogged drain.  We found one (baking soda and white vinegar), but instead of closing the browser window, I started to poke around a little more.  Betty had lots of interesting views about organic living, some clever recipes for making your own earth-friendly cosmetics, that sort of thing.  She also suggested using homemade kitty litter, but I think I'll leave that to her.  Say it with me: "Ain't nobody got time fo' dat."

What really intrigued me was the segment on the site about the oil-cleansing method.  At first, I assumed it was some sort of insane fad diet that involved consuming pure, organic, coconut oil with every meal in order to blow any toxins out of your body, but it turns out, it's actually a skincare method. 

And it works.  Oh, boy, does it work.

You can click on the above link and read the details yourself, but I'll offer my shocked and awed testimony here.  Having had acne since I was, oh, about eleven, I've tried almost everything you can think of to clear up my skin.  Big-name commercial products, store brands, exclusive mail-order brands and yes, prescription medication from a dermatologist.  Nothing really worked.  I mean, not on a grand scale.  Everything worked for a little while, maybe clearing up a few individual blemishes, but nothing kept my skin clear - especially when my hormones raged during my cycle changes and my skin broke out with a vengeance.  Plus, the prescription medication was dangerous for pregnant women, and, to my knowledge, using it before I knew I was expecting may have even contributed to my first miscarriage.  I will never know, but you can bet I will never use it again.

31 and still dotting Clearasil in my pimples, I figured that trying this new method couldn't really make things worse.  The science behind using oil to clean your face is similar to the idea of "like driving out like" or "fighting fire with fire".  I don't really understand how it works, but it's opening the door for me to be at least a little more open to the idea of "naturally" curing some of the ills we humans face daily.  I'm not throwing my ibuprofen out the door, but I'm definitely interested in reading more about how hibiscus tea might help my high blood pressure, or how dark chocolate is full of wrinkle-fighting antioxidants (yes, please - more articles like that).

Apparently, different types of oil should be used, depending on the type of skin you have.  As a person with oily/acne-prone skin, it's suggested that I use a combination of a carrier oil (castor oil) and jojoba and grapeseed oils.  Organic, of course, and a little expensive (actually, the castor oil I used was NOT organic and I still enjoy great results).  I also use the suggested astringent of witch hazel mixed with dried thyme.  I initially balked at both the idea of cleaning my oily skin with oil, and also paying $7 or more for a small bottle of oil.  

Image courtesy of
healthdesigns.com

Once I got started though, I realized that it was worthwhile for two reasons.  First, it worked.  I've been washing my face this way since about mid-February and, other than the few times when I returned to using a commercial cleanser (out of laziness), I have discovered that my skin is smoother and I have very few new blemishes - one or two a month, I'd say, maximum.  Plus, they never get as big or painful as they did before, and they disappear much faster.  Second, the oil and witch hazel bottles have lasted me until now.  The initial investment seemed steep - about $25 for all the oils, and maybe $9 for the thyme and witch hazel.  But they've lasted 6 months now, and the astringent still has at least 2 more months remaining.  That actually averages out to considerably less than I was previously paying to try one or two new products every month.

So - I save money and I have clearer, happier skin.  The extra bonus - which, for others, might be the primary reason for this technique - is that it's earth-friendly.  I admit, it's kind of nice to know that the stuff that it helping me regain confidence and healthy skin is not full of chemicals and fake fragrances and stuff.  That's pretty cool.

Anyway, no - I'm not turning "crunchy".  Not really.  But I didn't think it fair to keep this to myself because it's been so successful.  I should also note that I am receiving absolutely no endorsement of any kind for this blog.  I'm not into that stuff.  I promote what I believe in, whether it's my faith or the talents of my friends, or a recipe, website, or idea I admire.  Rest assured that my posts always come from my own experience and I am not into being paid for promoting someone else's agenda.  Maybe this is why I'm not a professional writer yet?  That's a post for later, too.  At any rate, if you've been struggling with troubled skin, it's something to consider.  Cool thing is, it's not a "girly" product in a neon pink tube or anything like that, and I would guess it would work equally well for men.  

Plus, the grapeseed oil smells like nature at its warm, toasty, nutty manliest.   Ooh.