OCM - *oil cleansing method

[jaizednconfused]

My experience so far with the OCM

My skin: African-American, very very oily, but not prone to breakouts. I had acne in my early teens, but it cleared up on it's own. Now I'm just left with some hyperpigmentation.

Oil: My mom had purchased some "ethnic" hair products from anitagrant.com, and they came with sample bottles of Anita Grant's 100% pure fruit oils.

I decided to go with the Organic Papaya Oil (about $12) after reading the label:

Loads of Omega 6 & 9 essential fatty acids, and Vitamins A & C, Papaya contains the enzyme papin a natural exfoliant that dissolves dead skin cells. Papaya helps in deep cleansing and quickly breaks down dead skin cells. The Papaya oil is popular in treating many skin problems like pimples, wrinkles, psoriasis, and eczema.

Results: So far, I'm amazed. I manage to make it through an entire day without getting oily now! And my skin is super soft. My mom, who also has oily skin, is sharing similar results. Right after cleansing, my skin feels kind of tight, but it loosens up a bit. I also have a problem with the towel not staying hot for more than a minute, so next I'm going to use a steaming pot instead of hot water from the tap. I OCM in the morning, I don't have to worry about redness... I also skip the moisturizer part...

Conclusion: I was skeptical of using oil to cleanse, but the results have been great after my first few tries! I have a feeling the vitamins in the Papaya Oil make a big difference, but I also have MAC's Cleanse Off Oil (about $15 in store, great makeup remover), and more from Anita Grant (Organic Marula, Organic Watermelon, and Organic Sapote) that I might give a try. I'll probably cut down to once a week so that my skin doesn't get "immune" to the effects.

So glad I found this thread! Thank you!

 

[cutxpaste]

how often do you guys do this? i tried it last night with grapeseed oil but i don't know what to do now

 

[Miwi]

I tried this few hours ago, and it's fantastic! My skin is so soft and smooth, I will stick to thisB). I used ricinus oil from pharmacy.

 

[BaroqueRockstar]

i tried it last night, and it made no difference whatsoever on my skin... but i couldn't really complain about my skin to start with

 

[Virginielle]

I like this method a lot---and in addition to using it on my face I've been putting the extra oil on the back of my upper arms (which have always been unnattractively dry and bumpy) and I believe it's improving. I'm using extra virgin olive oil which is great because I love the stuff anyway!

 

[Priestess]

Instead of steaming with the cloth would you be able to just do this in a shower? Put the oil on, have your hot shower, then wipe off with a face cloth? Or would it not work all that well?

I tend to be pretty lazy when it comes to my skincare, so I need something simple. And I doubt I could be bothered to stand there waiting for the cloth to cool down once or twice a day.

 

[Alejandro]

oh god i've been so busy i haven't kept up with my ocm.

i do need to get some other kind of oils, i wanted to try something citrusy...

 

[cutxpaste]

I'm so into this now!. It's only been about a week of doing it but my skin has gotten really soft and I'm pretty much free of blackheads now.
My skin is fairly oily but I rarely ever get acne. I switched over to OCM because I had been using the Clinique Three Step System for a while and it's kind of stopped doing anything for me (I used it when I had a lot of acne and it was great at clearing that up but it's not really helpful to me now). For oils I use grapeseed with a little bit of jojoba. So far, I've pretty much been following all the instructions exactly except for the fact that I'm having trouble with getting the water from my sink to be hot enough to steam for a while. Usually what I do is just steam my face for as long as I can and then press with a hot wash cloth. I OCM at night and then use Cetaphil in the morning...so far, my skin is looking great!

 

[Annabel]

I just went out and got EVOO and castor oil; can't wait to try this tonight! I have oily skin; I don't get many pimples unless I'm under a lot of stress, but my skin does clog often which results in little, under-the-surface bumps. Can anyone tell me a little more about the castor oil? If what it's good at is drawing things out of your skin, does it make you break out a lot at first? Thanks .

 

[cutxpaste]

I haven't used castor oil, but with all skin products, it takes time to get your skin fully adjusted to it, so in all honesty, you might breakout. Things usually get worse before they get better .

 

[Alejandro]

omfg i've been breaking out a bit this week.

so much stress.

what about ocm with some sort of muscle relaxer

 

[Virginielle]

Where did you get the castor oil? My grocery store didn't seem to have any.

 

[satin chic]

^ I got mine at the pharmacy.

 

[Annabel]

Thanks, cutxpaste. Only the first day but I'm pleased with the results so far-I haven't needed to use powder or oil-absorbing sheets at all today (something I usually have to do several times a day).

I got my castor oil at Earth Fare, an organic grocery store, in their skin/hair/body care section. There are two kinds, the kind you ingest (used for constipation) and the kind you use on your skin.

 

[Virginielle]

Question: Is it ok to use the method if I have a bit of broken skin (a product of self-sabotage, of course) on my face? I use a combination of evoo, castor, and tea tree oils. Any advice?

 

[gruveechik]

Question: Is it ok to use the method if I have a bit of broken skin (a product of self-sabotage, of course) on my face? I use a combination of evoo, castor, and tea tree oils. Any advice?

Should be fine to use OCM.
I'd suggest swapping Lavender essential oil for the Tea Tree oil.. as TT may be a bit too heavyduty.

Personally, EVOO and Castor don't do it for me b/c I've got very dry skin and these seem to make it worse.. too much cleansing. I use Coconut or Almond oil.

 

[after__eight]

I have been using plain extra virgin olive oil, i'm amazed that the oil hasn't made my skin into a grease pit. It actually dries it out a tad but I usually do the OCM at night and when I wake up i'm about 90% less greasy then I usually am (it might also be because I never take off my makeup before bed). I think the OCM is fab but for those that tend to get dry after using evoo, what other oil would you recommend?

 

[kissmesweet]

omfg i've been breaking out a bit this week.

so much stress.

Ditto. I have a huge breakout due to stress and lack of sleep.

 

[Belle Princesse]

I now regularly cleanse with 50/50 olive and castor oil, I like it because it doesn't irritate skin and it removes dirt; I cheat though and instead of steaming just run a cotton pad under hot water and remove.

 

[ns424]

I love the OCM and have been loyal to the Shu oil cleansers for years. I recently discovered the Kanebo Naive's cleansing oils and I LOVE them. I've been using the orange one and my skin glows after I wash with it. This is def. replacing my Shu cleanser since it's just as good and costs only $7. You can get them at any Asian supermarket.

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