How to use a facial oil properly (and why most people get it wrong)

This is the single most common mistake I see, and it's the difference between a facial oil that works and one you decide isn't for you.

Most people cleanse, dry their face, and then apply oil. It feels like the sensible order. It isn't.

What an oil actually does

A facial oil is not a hydrator. It cannot add water to your skin, because it doesn't contain any. What it does brilliantly is hold water in — it forms a soft barrier that slows the rate at which moisture evaporates from your skin's surface.

Which means if you apply oil to dry skin, you are sealing in nothing. The oil sits on the surface, feels slightly greasy, and does very little. Then people conclude that facial oils aren't for them.

The right order

One · Cleanse. Start with bare, clean skin.

Two · Mist. Spray a hydrating toner or mist over your face and neck, and don't wait for it to dry. This is the step most people skip, and it's the one that makes everything after it work.

Three · Press the oil in. Three to five drops, warmed between your palms, pressed into skin that is still visibly damp.

That's it. The water goes on, the oil goes over it, and the oil holds the water there for hours instead of minutes.

Press, don't rub

Rubbing drags at your skin and pushes most of the product to the edges of your face. Warm the oil between your palms and press it in with flat hands, working from the centre outwards.

Three to five drops is genuinely enough. More isn't better — it just sits on top.

How much difference does it make?

More than almost any other change you could make to a routine. The same oil, applied to damp skin instead of dry, absorbs faster, feels lighter, and keeps skin comfortable for longer.

If you've tried a facial oil before and found it greasy or ineffective, this is very likely why.

A note on what to mist with

Any hydrating mist or toner works. Plain water is better than nothing, but it evaporates quickly and can leave skin drier than before. A mist with humectants in it — glycerine, hyaluronic acid, panthenol — holds onto water rather than just wetting the surface.

Whatever you use, the principle is the same. Water first. Oil last. Damp skin in between.

Stephanie is a qualified herbalist and the maker behind Lotus Wellness Essentials, handmade in Melbourne.