The Oil Cleansing Method

Sometime ago I came across a facebook post that really piqued my interest. It was a lady talking about how she used oil - yes oil - to clean her face.

My first reaction was negative. I thought that's just crazy - hello acne and blemishes! There is just no way that works. But out of pure curiosity I clicked on the link and started reading about it. Instead of explaining it all to you, I'll just provide the link:

http://www.theoilcleansingmethod.com/

For those who don't want to read it, the very basics behind the idea is that our face needs oil. And that by repeatedly stripping our face of oil with harsh chemicals we are only making the whole issue worse in the long run. We wash all the oil off our face, our face freaks out and produces more to try and replace it, which is why an hour or two after washing our face we get that yucky feeling oil slick all over again.

So theoretically I can see why this makes sense and I admit to being more than a bit curious. But I'm having a bit of an issue getting passed the idea of putting oil on my face. On the other hand I have been trying to find something to replace my Proactiv and have been unsuccessful. I am tired of paying for it. Yes, it does work, but only if I remember to use it twice a day. Anyone with young kids knows that face washing often ends up last on the list. According to the oil cleansing method you only need to do this once a day, in the evening before bed. First thing in the morning you only need to wipe down your face with a warm washcloth.

So I decided to make this an experiment and find out if this really works or not. Last night I made up my first batch - 20% caster oil to 80% safflower oil for normal skin. It took me all of 30 seconds to mix it up and store it in a small Gladware container. I went into the bathroom and took my 'before' picture which I guess I'll reluctantly share with you all now. Yes, I look exhausted. I'm a mom. I'm always exhausted.



The lighting is not very good, it was the best I could manage last night. Will try for something better tomorrow I think. But anyway, that is my face pre-oil cleansing. I've had quite a breakout of tiny pimples on my forehead and the sides of my face which happens when I get lazy with the Proactiv like I have been recently.

After I mixed up the oil I took it to the bathroom and followed the directions. I spread it on my face and spent about 10 minutes massaging it in. At first it was uncomfortable, I didn't like the feeling of the oil on my skin. I became more used to it and almost found it relaxing by the time I was done. Then I took the washcloth with really hot water and put it on my face. Ahhhh now that is like getting my own personal facial! No I did not 'feel' the impurities being drawn out of my pores. Can I inset a big eye roll here? I didn't feel anything like that. What I did feel was very relaxed thanks to the hot wash cloth 'facials'. I had to repeat 4 times to get all the oil off my face and by the time I was done I felt just great. I tend to struggle with falling asleep (I think most women can relate to this) and it was the best pre-bedtime relaxation method I've ever tried even if that wasn't the intended purpose.

Just for good measure, here is me afterword. Makeup removed, exhausted and ready for bed. There is not at all a difference in my skin but I didn't expect it to work that fast. For the record, I plan to remove eye makeup beforehand next time. The oil works just fine but I like my Clinique eye makeup remover better.



The only difference I have noticed today is that my skin is quite dry. If that keeps up I'll reduce the castor oil in the mixture per the website's instructions. Stayed tuned for my update in a week. I've read that it is supposed to get worse before it gets better. Eek.

A Change of Blog

I have been contemplating changing the title of my blog for quite some time now and today I finally did it. Decaf addict doesn't really fit me anymore and I think my new title is much more appropriate. :)

Anyone know where I find cute new backgrounds and such? The boringness of my current blog is getting to me.

Never understimate the power of a moldy washer...

I learned this weekend just how bad a washer can be once it gets mold in it. Or to clarify, just how bad a front loading washer can be. I'm not sure if top loading machines suffer from the same potential problem.

After struggling to clean my diapers in my front loading machine for 5 months I decided to scrap it and get a top loader. I tried every detergent and wash routine under the sun and came to the eventual conclusion that it was simply my washer's inability to clean properly. Now when I first brought the idea of replacing it up to Nathan he looked at me like I'd grown a second head. Replace our washer just so we can continue to use cloth diapers? I could tell it was on the tip of his tongue to tell me to go back to using disposables. But he held himself in check, knowing that I've developed a bit of a strange addiction (maybe obsession would be a better term) with cloth diapers. They have become a hobby for me. I love everything cloth diaper related. I find them cute and fun. Putting a cute color or print cloth diaper on one of my kids just makes my day and as any mom of two little ones can appreciate, I change diapers all day long. Go ahead and laugh at me for my cloth addiction, I'm fine with it. I know I'm a bit strange.

So we started looking around for washers on craigslist. Nathan became 100% on board with replacing the washer when it started having some serious issues - like freezing on me in the middle of a load and refusing to give me my clothes back. Then when I attempted to wash some 'muddy' clothes of Gabe's (i.e. really wet with a bit of mud on them) they came out of the washer still dingy and stinking of dirt. It was clearly not cleaning clothes properly anymore and we were afraid it was going to die on us any day. We found a 12 year old Kenmore 90s series on craigslist that had been completely updated by an older gentleman who fixies up washers and dryers as hobby. Inside the washer is almost brand new. I will be happy if it lasts us a few years until we can afford to buy a nicer washer. If it lasts longer than that, it would be a bonus!

So how does the title of my blog work into this? On Saturday we took our front-loading washer out and put it in the shed and then hooked up the Kenmore. I noticed immediately a major difference in the laundry room when I would walk in. I told Nathan that our laundry room smelled so amazing and then I realized why - it didn't 'smell' like anything. It simply smelled like clean clothes and water. I didn't know how badly our washer stunk of mold until it was gone. I kept the door open when not in use since we bought it like recommended and ran the 'clean washer' cycle once a month as well.

The biggest impact of this difference hit me yesterday. I told Nathan in the morning over the phone that I was so glad my cold was finally leaving. That I hadn't felt this amazing in so long I couldn't even remember. It wasn't until much later in the afternoon that I started to make the connection. We've been fighting the never ending cold from h-e double hockey sticks for over 2 months now. But long before the cold started, I haven't felt like 'myself' in so long I didn't even realize I wasn't feeling like myself (hmm hope that made sense...). I have told Nathan a few times that I thought I might be developing allergies. Sometimes I felt better, sometimes I was just downright miserable not being able to breathe properly out of my nose and feeling like my head was in a complete fog. I just became used to it, because in truth I have felt like this since before Gabe was born at least.

I didn't realize how good I could feel when my head isn't completely full. The only thing that has changed is that the washer is gone and my laundry room smells wonderful again. It was quite a revelation. I know I'm allergic to mold and I know there was mold in the rubber seal of the washer (I tried everything under the sun to remove it, even straight bleach...) but I didn't realize how bad the mold really was. The amount in the rubber seal is not enough to cause the kind of smell that was in the laundry room so I suspect the entire inside of the machine is full of the stuff. The washer is in our shed while we figure out what to do with it and in the meantime I am just enjoying being able to fully breathe & think clearly again.