How to Determine Your Skin Type

Determining your skin type is easy, and the information will help you when buying moisturizers, cosmetics and facial cleansers.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Hand Or Wash Towels
• Mild Facial Cleansers
• Oil-free Facial Cleansers
• Oil-free Moisturizers

1. Wash your face with a skin cleanser, then rinse and pat dry.

2. Wait one hour.

3. Note whether your skin feels "tight."

4. Press a separate piece of tissue onto each area of your face: chin, center of cheeks, outer cheeks, center of forehead, outer forehead and nose.

5. Examine each tissue and look for oily residue or flaky skin residue.

6. Interpret the results. Oil on each tissue indicates an oily skin type, while oil on only some tissues (specifically those on the T-zone, which is the center of forehead, nose, chin and center of cheeks) indicates a combination skin type. Flaky skin residue on all tissues - without oily residue - or a tight feeling in the skin indicates a dry skin type. No oil and no flaky residue on any parts of the tissue indicates a normal skin type.

Tips & Warnings

• Pore size is another indication of skin type; small pores generally indicate dry skin, while large pores mean oily skin.

• Remember that there are many factors that affect your skin type, such as weather, emotions, hormones and stress, and this will cause your skin type to be in a constant state of fluctuation.

• "Combination skin" products that claim to serve different functions on different parts of the face are suspicious. You're better off using different products on different areas.