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bannerWhat is your skin type, and why does it matter?

The skin you are born with dictates how much oil your skin will produce and the size of your pores, but many other factors influence your adult skin.  There are the obvious factors, such as sun and smoke exposure, and the less obvious factors, including what you eat and how you take care of yourself. To best care for your skin, it helps to know what skin type you are.  Knowing the best way to care for your brand of skin is one of the keys to looking and feeling youthful and healthy.

Generally, we can single out five basic skin types: Normal, Dry, Oily, Combination, and Sensitive, with each having particular characteristics and requiring specific care or treatment. To determine your type, use a simple test with a clean facial tissue (or paper) to wipe your face in the morning, when you have just woken up.

1. Normal Skin

If your skin is Normal, the tissue will not reveal any traces of oil, and your skin will feel vibrant, elastic, and supple. You have an even texture and tone to your skin, small pores, and blemishes are very rare.  You are a lucky duck; normal skin is the rarest and the least problematic skin type. Even with minimal care, it will look good well into your advanced age.

2. Dry Skin

If your skin is Dry, the tissue will be clean, too, but your face will feel dry, tight, and even flaky.  Dry skin types are also prone to red patches. Those with dry skin on their face will tend to have dry hands and feet.

3. Oily Skin

If you have Oily skin, the tissue will have areas of facial oil on it from your nose, forehead and cheeks. Oily skin is troublesome, will appear shiny, has enlarged pores, and tends to have blemishes. The silver lining for you is that oily skin is not as prone to aging and wrinkling!

4. Combination Skin

If you have Combination skin, the tissue will have traces of oil coming from your nose and forehead, but will be clean in the areas that touched your cheeks.  Combination skin has patches of both dry and oily skin, and it requires different types of care in relation to particular facial areas. It is also the most common skin type.

5. Sensitive Skin

Much like Dry skin, Sensitive skin feels dry and tight, and will leave no oil behind on the tissue.  The difference is that sensitive skin is very easily irritated.  It will develop reddish and scaly areas, can be itchy and tingly, have broken capillaries around the nose or cheeks, and is also prone to breakouts It is the most problematic and fragile type of skin, and needs a very specialized type of care.

When you make an appointment for a treatment with us, we will help you determine your skin type, and your ideal skin care regimen.  Often times you only need to make small adjustments to your home care to see a difference.  Regularly scheduled facials will help with the upkeep, and we will tailor all your selected treatments to your specific needs and skin type.

www.privyskincare.com

702.496.2066