I'm an African-American woman with oily skin and ashy patches on my face. What causes it, and what can I do to treat and camouflage it?
You're experiencing a bit of dry skin, which only appears gray toned, or ashen, because of the way the light's reflected. To treat the dryness, you'll want to use a gentle exfoliant coupled with a light moisturizer. And to keep that pretty, brown skin looking smooth under your makeup, make sure your foundation is suitable in both color and texture. Here's how to do that.
- Start by incorporating a gentle exfoliant into your cleansing routine three times a week. By exfoliating, you'll get rid of dead skin cells on the surface that are actually the cause of your ashy look. See the Recommended Product list for my favorites.
- After you exfoliate, use a lightweight, non-oily moisturizer on your dry areas. Since you have oily skin, be careful to only apply enough moisturizer to treat your dry patches. You don't want to aggravate oily skin by over-moisturizing it.
- Finding the right foundation color and consistency is essential. Look for one that's non-oily, blends easily, has enough pigment to cover your skin and has the right depth and intensity of yellowish-orange undertones to complement your complexion.
- Set your foundation with a blotting powder. Use a powder that has the same yellow-orange undertones as your foundation. Be careful not to use a powder that's too light. Test the powder before using it. Sometimes even powders that say they are "transparent" contain undertones, like white, which will intensify the ashy patches.
- Keep your lips, cheeks and eye palette in the copper, apricot and honey brown realm. These shades will flatter your brown tones. Stay away from blue or blue-pink tones, which can exaggerate ashy skin.
Recommended Products:
Product name: Caudalie Vino Pulp Rejuvenating Cream
This is a nongreasy moisturizer that leaves skin both matte and soft, providing a perfect base for makeup application. It contains rapeseed polyphenols (an element of rapeseed that fights free radicals).
Price: $58 for 1.6 ounces
Available: Sephora.com
Product name: Burt's Bees Citrus Facial Scrub
This wonderful cleanser containing ground almonds, orange peel and rose petals gently exfoliates skin leaving it smooth, clear and moisturized.
Price: $7.50
Available: BurtsBees.com
Product name: Completely Bare Completely Buff
Another great exfoliator, Completely Buff, is a blend of ultrafine aluminum oxide crystals meant to be mixed with your facial cleanser to encourage cell regeneration and improve the overall appearance of skin.
Price: $25
Available: CompletelyBare.com
Product name: DermaNew Personal Microdermabrasion System
This is an easy to use yet sophisticated little exfoliating tool. With it you can give yourself an at-home microdermabrasion-like facial, which combines crystal resurfacing with an antioxidant cream and anti-inflammatory ingredients such as green tea, grape seed and wine extracts. It offers a deep yet gentle exfoliation of dry, dead skin.
Price: $80
Available: DermaNew.com
Product name: M.A.C Foundation in Studio Finish Matte
This water-based foundation contains silica to minimize oiliness and maintain a smooth, even finish, along with a derivative of vitamin E, to make the skin feel soft and comfortable.
Price: $19.50
Available: MACCosmetics.com
Product name: Prescriptives Custom-Blended Pressed Powder
Prescriptives' exclusive blending system will create a pressed or loose powder shade to perfectly complement anyone's skin tone, from honey gold to the deepest ebony. Also available with oil-control ingredients.
Price: $45
Available: Major department stores
Product name: Iman Modern Luxe Face Kit
This modern face kit includes two shades of eye shadow and blushing powder crafted to complement each other. They're perfect used alone, or blend them together if you're feeling a bit more dramatic.
Price: $8.99
Available: Major retailers nationwide; go to I-Iman.com for specific locations.
