Homemade Moisturizing and Rejuvenating Facial Oil Recipe

As you know, I like to clean my face using the oil cleansing method. It’s done wonders for my complexion, so I do it religiously every day no matter how tired I am at the end of the day. As it doesn’t strip my skin of all my natural oils, I don’t usually find my face to be drying afterwards. However, in the winter months when my skin is a bit drier, I do find a moisturizer after cleansing to be particularly helpful. I also use my facial oil blend, which I will share with you today, the rest of the year, as it is incredibly healing and nourishing! This recipe is adapted from Crunchy Betty.

Just remember one important thing – always apply facial oil or moisturizer after you’ve cleaned your face. Otherwise you’ll be sealing in whatever dirt and grime is on your face, leading to breakouts.

This facial oil is simple to make and you can experiment with different options for each of the three ingredients to see how they feel on your face. So let’s get started!

Ingredient #1: Base Oil

First, you need a base or carrier oil, which will make up two-thirds of your oil blend. You can use argan or jojoba oil, both of which are very light and absorb well. They are also very healing and nourishing and they’re great for all skin types, including acne-prone skin. If you want to try other oils, here are some other options to consider:

• Apricot kernel oil (great for any skin type, but especially good for normal, dry, and aging skin)
• Sweet almond oil (just an all-around great facial oil, but it takes a bit longer to absorb than argan and jojoba oil)
• Grapeseed oil (great for normal, oily, or acne-prone skin)
• Avocado oil (great for dry and aging skin)
• Hemp seed oil (great for any skin type, also very light)

I typically make this oil blend in a dark coloured (to keep it out of direct sunlight to maximize shelf life) 30 mL glass bottle, so I would fill it up with 20 mL of my base oil.

Ingredient #2 – Extra Rejuvenating Oils

Next, we’ll add some extra nourishing oils to the base oil. These oils are a little more expensive, but they are well worth the money as they can be incredibly wonderful for treating things like scars, acne, fine lines, and more. My favourites are tamanu oil, sea buckthorn oil, and rosehip oil. You can add any one or more of these oils to your blend. Altogether, these extra bonus oils will make up approximately one-third of the oil blend, or 10 mL in the case of a 30 mL bottle.

So here are some ideas for the more nourishing bonus oils:

• Tamanu oil (wonderful for oily skin or acne-prone skin, or skin with scars)
• Sea buckthorn oil (this wonder oil provides the highest concentration of Omega-7 naturally available as well as a host of vitamins and minerals. It is a miracle blemish and discolouration healer and is a great oil for all skin types, especially aging or dry skin)
• Rosehip seed oil (incredibly regenerating  and extremely high in essential fatty acids, this oil is known for its firming and anti-aging abilities, as well as its ability to treat burns, scars, as well as dry and irritated skin. It’s good for dry, aging, and normal skin).
• Carrot seed oil (you only need a small amount of this oil, but it’s superb for any skin type)
• Borage oil (crazy high in oleic acids, this oil is great for most skin types, especially oily and acne-prone skin)
• Evening primrose oil (acne, aging, normal skin, you name it – and evening primrose oil can even be taken internally to help with acne)
• Emu oil (emollient like you wouldn’t believe, emu oil is protective and nourishing for dry or aging skin)

Ingredient #3 – Essential Oil

Lastly, we’ll add your skin’s favourite essential oil(s) to the blend. There are many essential oils that are beneficial for your skin, so you definitely don’t have to stick to the list below. They are just some of the more widely available or commonly known essential oils.

• Lavender (acne, oily, or even dry skin – lavender is healing, but a little, tiny bit goes a long way)
• Peppermint (like lavender, peppermint is great for oily and acne-prone skin, and like lavender don’t use much!)
• Chamomile (my favorite chamomile is Roman – and roman chamomile is wonderfully healing and soothing, so it’s excellent for ALL skin types.)
• Rose (wonderful for aging, dry and normal skin)
• Rose geranium (another great, all-around healing essential oil – this is especially good for dry, sensitive, aging, and normal skin)
• Palmarosa (it’s great for any skin type, and works well for breakouts, in addition to being softening and soothing for aging skin)
• Lemongrass (brightening and toning, this is a great oil for normal, oily, or acne-prone skin)
• Rosemary (excellent for acne-prone and oily skin)

You can use one or more of these oils. In total you’ll want 4-7 drops of essential oil for a 30 mL bottle of oil blend. When you add the essential oil, cap and shake well after each drop to gauge how much oil you need. You should be able to smell it, but it should not be overpowering. Just faintly identifiable.

And that’s it! To take advantage of the therapeutic properties of the essential oils, it’s best to use it up within 6 months, but it will easily keep for 12 months without going rancid.

No time to make your own facial oil? You can now get my premade Moisturizing and Firming Day & Night Facial Oil!