• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

TBOSC

Love Your Skin

  • Start Here
  • Routines
    • Dry Skin
    • Combination Skin
    • Sensitive Skin
    • Anti-Aging
    • Oily Skin
    • Acne
    • Men’s Skin
  • Articles
    • Essential Oils
    • Natural Ingredients
    • Makeup Tips
    • Recipes
    • How To
  • Product Guides
    • Our Favorite Skincare
    • The Best Organic Makeup
    • Product Reviews
    • Anti-Aging Guide
    • The Best Brands
  • Shop
    • Our Ebooks
    • The Best Online Shops

Anti-Aging Routine For Oily Skin

Oily skin produces an overabundance of oil, leading to shine, enlarged pores, and breakouts in the form of blackheads and whiteheads. 

The best treatments for oily skin are lightweight, and water or gel-based. Many anti-aging creams are too heavy for oily skin, clogging pores and making your skin feel greasy. The most important consideration in dealing with oily skin is avoiding harsh, over-drying ingredients, and heavy emollients.

A good anti-aging routine will include:

  • A cleanser, toner, a potent serum, and a lightweight moisturizer. 
  • Anti-aging products such as glycolic acid to remove dead skin cell buildup
  • Collagen stimulating ingredients such as vitamin C or peptides.
  • A daily sunscreen to prevent sun damage to your skin.

This guide will teach you how to create an amazing oily skin care routine to target the signs of aging.

Disclosure: There are some affiliate links below and we may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post, but these are all products we highly recommend. We won't put anything on this page that we haven't verified and/or personally used. 

Your Anti-Aging Routine

Step 1: Cleanse

  • Wash your face twice a day, in the AM and PM.
  • Wash with warm water, rinse thoroughly, and gently pat your skin dry. If you are tempted to wash your face more than twice a day, consider using a blotting paper instead. [Read: How to Wash your Face]
What to Look for in a Cleanser
  • Choose a gentle gel cleanser.
  • Avoid foam cleansers containing sulfates, as they can be too drying. 

Your Cleanser


Budget Buy 
  • Ursa Major Fantastic Face Wash Gel Cleanser
Luxury Buy
  • Odacite Black Mint Cleanser

Step 2: Toner

  • An alcohol-free toner loaded with antioxidants is an essential step for oily skin.
  • Toners can help the skin renew and recharge, minimize enlarged pores, and remove the last traces of makeup off the skin. 
What to Look for in a Toner
  • Look for toners containing ingredients like witch hazel (a natural astringent that is not drying like alcohol), geranium essential oil (great a cutting through oil), or a humectant that holds water in your skin, such as glycerin or sodium hyaluronate. 

Your Toner


Budget Buy 
  • Christina Moss Naturals Facial Toner
Luxury Buy
  • Indie Lee Coenzyme Q10 Toner

Step 3: Serum 

  • Serums are like elixirs for the skin. They are formulated for targeting specific skin problems and help maintain skin balance.
  • In the morning use an antioxidant rich serum to protect your skin from damage. At night use an exfoliating serum that contains acids or enzymes to reduce dullness and renew your skin. 
What to Look for in a Serum
  • A good serum for oily skin will contain alpha-hydroxy acids or beta-hydroxy acids to help reduce the appearance of large pores as well as brighten dull spots.
  • Serums high in antioxidants will help repair damage and keep your skin youthful.
  • If you’re acne-prone, ingredients such as salicylic acid and tea-tree oil will keep your skin clear.
  • Look for a light, non-greasy serum that helps combat sebum production and fight free radical damage.

Your Serums


Budget Buy 
  • Day Use: Eva Naturals Skin Clearing Serum Vitamin C+
  • Night Use: Mad Hippie Exfoliating Serum
Luxury Buy
  • Day Use: Kypris Beauty Clearing Serum
  • Night Use: Kypris Beauty Moonlight Catalyst

Step 4: Facial Oil

  • Plant oils contain the essential fatty acids, antioxidants, and lipids that our skin needs to stay healthy.
  • Oils applied topically to the skin absorb into the epidermis and help keep our skin barrier intact. [Have acne? Read: The Best Face Oils for Acne]
  • Apply your facial oil after your serum and before your moisturizer. Only use 2 - 3 drops for your whole face and gently pat it into your skin. 
What to Look for in a Facial Oil
  • Oils high in linoleic acid, that are non-comedogenic (won't clog pores) will be best for oily skin. 

Your Facial Oil


Budget Buy 
  • ​Annemarie Gianni Herbal Facial Oil for Oily Skin
Luxury Buy
  • Mahalo Vitality Elixir 

Step 5: Moisturizer

  • It is important to moisturize oily skin as part of an anti-aging routine. Oily skin can be caused by a dehydrated complexion that is compensating by over-producing oil. 
  • When you apply your moisturizer,  only use a few drops to minimize greasiness. 
What to Look for in a Moisturizer
  • Opt for a lightweight moisturizer rather than heavy creams and emollients, I recommend gel moisturizers.  
  • Look for aloe or water-based and non-comedogenic formulas.
  • Moisturizers containing peptides and/or ceramides will help build collagen and keep your skin looking young. 
  • My favorite moisturizer for oily skin is plain aloe vera gel.

Your Moisturizer


Budget Buy 
  • ​Aloe Vera Gel
  • Christina Moss Naturals Facial Moisturizer 
Luxury Buy
  • Dr Alkaitis Soothing Gel
  • Moss Skincare Potenci Dermal Repair Hydrating Emulsion

Step 6: Sunscreen 

  • Sunscreen is super important in your anti-aging routine, because sun exposure is the #1 aging element to our skin. 
  • Use a sunscreen daily. 
What to Look for in a Sunscreen 
  • People with oily skin tend to stay away from sunscreens because they can't find one compatible with their skin type. 
  • Look for a sunscreen using zinc oxide because it will leave a more matte finish to your skin, is anti-bacterial, and anti-inflammatory.
  • I recommend using a tinted moisturizer with SPF, then you don't need a separate moisturizer and foundation. 

Your Sunscreen 


Budget Buy 
  • No Tint: Mychelle Unscented Mineral Sunscreen 
  • Tinted: Mychelle Tinted Oil-Free Sunscreen
Luxury Buy
  • No Tint: Josh Rosebrook Nutrient Day Cream
  • Tinted: Mutki Organics Tinted Moisturizer with Sunscreen

Anti-Aging Treatments

Nightly Retinol Alternative

I don't recommend retiniods because there is too much controversy over their safety, but I do like to use products (exfoliating fruit enzymes) that offer a similar effect to retinol (speed up cellular turnover)

Use your natural retinol alternative every night in place of your serum to refine and lightly exfoliate your skin, leading to brighter, smoother skin in the morning. 

Your Retinol Alternative


Budget Buy
  •  Mad Hippie Exfoliating Serum
Luxury Buy
  • Kypris Beauty Moonlight Catalyst

Exfoliates

Exfoliates remove the dead skin cells that make your skin look dull. They can also speed up cellular turnover, bringing young skin to the surface. 

There are two types of exfoliates; chemical and physical. Both remove dead skin cells but with different compounds. Physical exfoliates use small granules such as crushed up walnut shells or sugar, chemical exfoliates use acids or fruit enzymes. 

Oily skin deals with enlarged pores and blemishes. Regular exfoliation ( 2-3 times a week) can help with these issues. I recommend using chemical (acid or enzyme), rather than physical (scrub) exfoliates for oily skin. Physical exfoliates tend to irritate the skin and cause breakouts. 

Glycolic acid is a great chemical exfoliate that can be tolerated by oily skin types. Another great ingredient is Salicylic acid (BHA) because it exfoliates the surface of your skin as well as inside the pore. 

Perform a chemical acid or peel once a week to keep your skin looking great.

  • Learn how to perform glycolic acid peels.
  • Learn how to do a salicylic acid peel.

Your Exfoliates


Budget Buy 
  • InstaNatural Glycolic Acid Peel
Luxury Buy
  • Juice Beauty Green Apple Peel

Masks 

A weekly mask will help reduce clogged pores while fighting free radicals and aging, as well as delivering minerals directly to your skin.  You can make your own clay mask, or buy one ready-made.

Use your mask 1-2 times a week, on days where you are not performing a peel.

Your Mask


Budget Buy 
  • e-ra Organics Dead Sea Mud Mask
Luxury Buy
  • May Lindstrom The Problem Solver​

Conclusion

The above product recommendations should help you get the youthful skin you desire. Remember that the key to treating oily skin is to avoid ingredients that over-strip the skin, or clog pores. You want to incorporate anti-inflammatory ingredients as well as ingredients that help keep pores clear and reduce shine. 

Let us know in the comments if you have any questions, we always answer! 

 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rahasia Awet Muda says

    June 23, 2017 at 10:55 pm

    Lebih baik menggunakan serum untuk anti aging dari pada krim

    Reply
    • Andrea says

      June 24, 2017 at 6:26 am

      Hello Rahasia,

      Google translate has told me that you said, “Better to use serum for anti-aging than cream”. And my answer is, it depends. People with dry skins do well with heavier creams, and serums are all so different. Some of them offer little for moisture. Every skin type needs some sort of hydrating product 🙂

      Reply
  2. Taniya says

    June 14, 2019 at 6:42 am

    I have skin type like you. and the Anti-Aging Routine For Oily Skin that you discussed and shared is very interesting and useful for me. Thank you for sharing your skin care experience. cocoonmedicalspa.com

    Reply
    • Andrea says

      June 15, 2019 at 6:47 am

      So glad you found it useful, Taniya!

      Reply
  3. Holli says

    December 14, 2020 at 9:30 pm

    What would you recommend for an eye cream? Something that would help crepey eyelids (upper and lower).

    Reply
    • Andrea says

      December 16, 2020 at 8:48 am

      Hi Holli, thanks for your question. I have an article you can check out on the 10 best eye creams that help with aging. I would suggest the 100% pure coffee bean eye cream 🙂

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Footer

Skin Type Guides

  • Dry Skin
  • Oily Skin
  • Combination Skin
  • Sensitive Skin
  • Acne
  • Aging

Browse

  • The Best Products
  • Product REVIEWS
  • Recipes
  • Makeup Tips
  • Essential Oils

Subscribe!

For a Weekly Email of Skin Care Tips and a FREE Ebook Get the Newsletter

Disclosure

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.   Learn More

Search

Follow Us

  • About
  • Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
  • Data Access Request

© 2021 The Best Organic Skincare