How to Identify Your Skin Type and Care for It

Why Understanding Your Skin Type Matters

With so many skincare products and brands on the market, it can be overwhelming trying to choose the right routine for your skin. The first step to caring for your skin properly is understanding your skin type. Once you know what your skin needs, it becomes easier to choose products that work with your skin, not against it.

In this guide, we'll help you identify your skin type, common skin conditions, and how best to support your skin using gentle, effective products like those found in the Lucy Bee Skincare Range. 

Common Skin Types

Your skin type is generally determined by genetics, but it can also change due to lifestyle, age, and environmental factors. The most common skin types include:

• Normal
• Dry
• Oily
• Combination

You may also find you have characteristics of more than one skin type, this is very common, for example you could have normal/oily skin or normal/dry.

What to look for when analysing your skin

Normal Skin

• Skin looks clear, smooth, soft and supple to touch
• Has an even skin tone, very few blocked pores or spots
• Isn’t tight or greasy in feel and touch
• High amount of elasticity
• Pores are normal on cheeks and t-zone.
• The epidermis is usually a normal thickness

Routine Tips:

Choose products that maintain balance, using gentle and hydrating products, including a gentle cleanser, moisturiser and SPF to keep skin healthy and glowing.

Recommended Lucy Bee Products

Our Hydrating Foam Face Wash, Vitamin C Face Serum and SPF 30 Face Serum are all great options for keeping skin balanced and healthy. Shop all skincare here.

Dry Skin

• Tightness, especially after cleansing
• Fine lines, wrinkles and broken capillaries are usually present
• Underactive sebaceous glands, which leads to a lack of oil on the skin
• Hardly any spots or blocked pores, pores are almost invisible
• The epidermis is usually thin
• Skin can look dry and flaky and can look paler in colour

Dry skin may be caused by underactive oil glands, cold weather, low humidity or harsh skincare products

Routine Tips:

Hydration is key, go for rich, nourishing products that help to restore moisture as well as seal it in. A gentle cleanser, hydrating serum and facial oil, as well a moisturisers. Don't forget to use an SPF.

Recommended Lucy Bee Products

Our Reviving Cleansing Cream, Anti-Ageing Facial Oil, Radiance-Boosting Face Cream and SPF 30 Face Serum all contain ingredients to hydrate, nourish and lock moisture into the skin, helping combat dry skin. Shop skincare for Dry Skin here.

Oily Skin

• Skin has a shiny appearance, especially in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chip)
• Skin feels oily to touch this is due to the overactive sebaceous gland
• Open pores, especially the t-zone
• Prone to blackheads and blemishes
• Thicker epidermis (skin texture)

Oily skin may be caused by overactive oil glands, hormonal changes, or using products that strip the skin 

Routine Tips:

Look for lightweight, oil-controlling products, avoid using harsh or stripping ingredients as this can have the reverse effect and cause an increase in oil production, leaving skin more prone to oiliness.

Recommended Lucy Bee Products 

Our Hydrating Foam Face Wash, Reviving Cleansing Cream, Exfoliating Tonic with AHA & PHA, Radiance-Boosting Face Cream and SPF 30 Face Serum, contain ingredients to hydrate the skin, whilst also controlling oil production of the skin. Leave skin balanced and hydrated.

Combination Skin

• A mix of oily and dry areas
• Typically the T-zone is oily, while cheeks may be dry or normal
• Oily T-zone may appear shiny, especially after washing or throughout the day, with enlarged pores and more prone to breakouts and blackheads
• Dry cheeks may feel tight or flaky and look duller.

Routine Tips:

Balance is key, use lightweight products for your T-zone and richer, hydrating products on dry skin. Always finish with an SPF. 

Recommended Lucy Bee Products 

Our Reviving Cleansing Cream, Exfoliating Tonic, Vitamin C Face Serum, and SPF 30 Face Serum will help to nourish skin. Use the Anti-Ageing Facial Oil on areas of concern where dry skin is for extra hydration.

Common Skin Conditions

These can affect any skin type and often need special attention or a consistent skincare routine.

The most common conditions are:

• Sensitivity
• Dehydrated 
• Mature characteristics
• Couperose
• Acne-Prone

Sensitive Skin

Characteristics:

• Redness, irritation or itchiness
• Thin epidermis – translucent appearance
• Dilated capillaries
• Easily reacts to products, weather or diet
• Flaky or dry patches

Common triggers for sensitive skin

There are many factors involved when it comes to sensitive skin.

• Cosmetic products in particular the preservatives and perfumes/fragrances
• Spicy foods, alcohol, hot showers and saunas
• Genetics and environmental factors 

Recommended Lucy Bee Products 

The majority of Lucy Bee products fragrance free where possible, as well as being dermatologically approved for sensitive skin, shop all of our unscented products here. 

 

Dehydrated Skin

Not to be confused with dry skin. Dehydrated skin lacks water (not oil) and can happen to anyone, even if your skin is oily. Lack of sufficient moisture in the cells of the epidermis, which gives dry skin characteristics.

Signs of Dehydration

• Dull, tired-looking ski
• Fine lines or tightness
• Scaly or rough texture

Common causes of dehydration

There are many factors involved when it comes to dehydrated skin. Some things to be aware of are:

• Not drinking enough water 
• Using the wrong skincare products
• Environmental factors
• Air conditioning or central heating
• Harsh skincare products
• Smoking
• Alcohol
• Medication
• The menopause
• Illnesses
• Ageing

If you feel your skin is dehydrated try and drink plenty of water and take into consideration central heating, air conditions, weather conditions and traveling as these can all have an effect.

Recommended Lucy Bee Products

Use hydrating products including our Reviving Cleansing Cream, Vitamin C Face Serum, Anti-Ageing Eye Cream, Anti-Ageing Oil, Radiance-Boosting Face Cream and SPF 30 Face Serum to help seal moisture into the skin and support the skin barrier. Shop skincare for Dehydrated Skin here. For more details on our Skin Barrier Health read our blog here.

 

Couperose

• Persistent redness, especially on the cheeks and nose
• Skin feels warm and sensitive
• Covers the cheeks and nose
• Rough to touch
• Usually broken capillaries and visible thread veins
• It can feel warm or hot to touch

Recommended Lucy Bee Products

Use calming and fragrance-free products, avoid hot water, harsh products and scrubs, opt for Reviving Cleansing Cream, Radiance-Boosting Face Cream, SPF 30 Face Serum and Anti-Ageing Oil. Shop skincare for couperose here, shop all fragrance free skincare here.

 

Acne-Prone Skin

Acne is an inflammatory disorder of the sebaceous glands. Anyone can suffer from acne from puberty through to menopause.

• Hormonal changes (puberty, menstruation and menopause) during puberty there is an increase in hormones, and testosterone and progesterone influence the production of the sebum and cell activity. 
• Genetics
• Diet and stress
• Cosmetic products or medication

Recommended Lucy Bee Products

Our Reviving Cleansing Cream, Exfoliating Tonic, Radiance-Boosting Face Cream and SPF 30 Face Serum, can help to cleanse clear and protect the skin. 

Mature Skin

Did you know the skin starts to show signs of ageing as early as age 25? Mature skin isn't a type, by a condition that evolves over time. How your skin really ages is really down to genetics, however, the environment does play a role (especially UV rays and premature skin ageing), but you can also help your skin with products and different facial treatments.

Signs include

• Fine lines and wrinkles
• Loss of elasticity
• Sagging or uneven skin tone
• Thinner skin and reduced collagen production

Why it happens:

Collagen and elastin

As we age the fibres (collagen and elastin) in the dermis become weaker. Their replacement rate is slower. With the reduction in collagen it leads to loss of firmness – sagging, wrinkles, poor skin tension and tension and elasticity. This can be made worse by sun exposure, smoking, poor skincare routine and diet.

When we are young, our elastin and collagen production is great which is why you will not see wrinkles or fine lines, if you frown it will bounce back straight away. When we get older this starts to slow down, frown lines will stay present, or when you wake up in the morning you may notice lines that no longer disappear as the morning goes on.  

Recommended Lucy Bee Products

Our Reviving Cleansing Cream, Exfoliating Tonic, Anti-Ageing Eye Cream, Vitamin C Face Serum, Anti-Ageing Facial Oil, Radiance-Boosting Face Cream and SPF 30 Face Serum, contain ingredients to enhance cell renewal, promote collagen synthesis, hydrate and lock moisture into the skin, protect from UV damage. Helping to leave skin plump, even and glowing. Shop our Anti-Ageing Skincare routine here.

How to Care for Your Skin Type

Understanding your skin type is the key to building a routine that really works. whether your skin is oily, dry, sensitive or somewhere inbetween, choosing the right products makes all the difference. 

We've created effective, results-driven and gentle skincare range designed for all skin types.

Explore the full Lucy Bee Skincare Range.

 

Lucy, CIBTAC accredited beauty therapist.

About Lucy Bee Limited

Any information provided by us is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease. We always recommend referring your health queries to a qualified medical practitioner.

Lucy Bee is a lifestyle brand selling food, skincare and soap products all completely free from palm oil and with minimal use of plastic. Lucy Bee is concerned with Fair Trade, organic, ethical and sustainable living, recycling and empowering people to make informed choices and select quality, natural products for their food and their skin.