How to Use Oils From Head to Toe
Photos: Courtesy of Brands
1/21Face Oils
Sonia Kashuk Radiant Boost Restorative Facial Oil
An Allure editor obsession, this facial oil is as lightweight as pricier oils but you can get it at Target for less than $20. Its blend of hydrating essential oils (sweet almond, sesame, evening-primrose seed, camelina) smells amazing, and it's infused with wrinkle-smoothing retinol. Add a drop to your usual moisturizer for an extra shot of radiance, then tap another drop along your cheekbones to really up the glow factor.
2/21Face Oils
Weleda Almond Soothing Facial Oil
This all-natural oil won a Best of Beauty Award last year, too (can you tell we're obsessed with oils yet?). It's perfect for anyone with sensitive or really dry skin—a few drops transforms redness and dry patches overnight. It's also great for removing stubborn waterproof makeup without even a hint of irritation.
3/21Face Oils
BareMinerals Mineralixirs Eye Nourishing Oil Balm
There's something kind of off-putting about using an oil as an eye cream. But this one is luxurious—and effective. The formula goes on like a gel and melts into an oil as you smooth it over the delicate skin around your eyes, spreading easily and hydrating to minimize crepiness.
4/21Face Oils
L'Oréal Paris Age Perfect Hydra-Nutrition Glow Renewal Facial Oil
Another option for under $30, this oil won an Allure Best of Beauty Award in 2014. It combines olive, jojoba, and marjoram-leaf oils with English lavender, rosemary, geranium, orange peel, Roman chamomile, rose flower, and lavandin (so, pretty much an entire garden) to deliver tons of moisture and brightening power. Plus, it soaks in so quickly that you can layer it under makeup without your foundation sliding off 20 minutes later.
5/21Face Oils
Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil Light
One of the lightest oils we've tried, this multitasking product soaks into skin in seconds and leaves it feeling soft but not at all slick. And while we love it as a facial moisturizer, it has a ton of other uses, too: Rub it into ragged cuticles, dry elbows, flaky lips, scars, and split ends to soothe and heal without creating a greasy mess.
6/21Oil Cleansers
Eau Thermale Avène XeraCalm A.D. Lipid-Replenishing Skin Cleansing Oil
This soap-free face and body cleansing oil won a Best of Beauty Award and a Breakthroughs Award in 2014—it's that good. Meant for anyone with dermatitis or severely dry, irritated, sensitive skin, it provides relief after a few washes. "[It] can actually help rebalance the skin and reduce itching," says Doris Day, a clinical associate of dermatology at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City. It also helps build up skin's antimicrobial layer, which makes skin less likely to become irritated, says Day.
7/21Oil Cleansers
Shu Uemura Porefinist Anti-Shine Fresh Cleansing Oil
Listen up, people with oily skin: "Oil attracts oil," says Jeanette Graf, a dermatologist in Great Neck, New York, so oil cleansers remove excess oils from the skin. This light formula cuts through sebum, makeup, and grime gently, and then rinses away cleanly and easily.
8/21Face Oils
Nars Skin Restorative Night Treatment
Another solid-to-liquid formula, this facial moisturizer is meant to be worn overnight for intense hydration. It might even be more moisturizing than its liquid counterparts. "Because most solid formulas are emulsions of oil and water, they can incorporate effective, water-soluble moisturizers that liquid oils can't," says Ron Robinson, a cosmetic chemist and founder of beautystat.com. One of our testers found that her superparched skin was so quenched and glow-y after one night's application that she actually debated not washing her face the next morning.
9/21Body Oils
Applied to damp skin right after a shower, this blend of evening-primrose, sweet-almond, jojoba-seed, apricot-kernel, sunflower, and passionflower-seed oils soaks in quickly and delivers a ton of moisture. The flowery, citrusy scent is rather addictive (though it's a bit strong—you probably don't want to mix it with other heavily perfumed products).
10/21Body Oils
Tata Harper Iridescent Revitalizing Body Oil
What's even sexier than supersoft skin? Supersoft skin with a healthy-looking glow. This moisturizing body oil is spiked with tiny bronze pigments that give the impression of a subtle tan—plus a dewy sheen. We'll be slathering it on obsessively as we prep for spring.
11/21Body Oils
Ahava Deadsea Plants Dry Oil Body Mist in Cactus & Pink Pepper
It's hard to pick just one thing we love about this product: Not only does it moisturize like a boss and soak in seconds, it also comes in a superconvenient spray bottle that eliminates the messy drip factor associated with some other oils. Oh, and did we mention it smells amazing? It smells amazing. We're not really sure what cactus smells like, but if this oil is any indication, it's sweet, bright, and summery.
12/21Body Oils
Sage & Row Sheer Leg & Body Oil
We'll admit it: The packaging was what first drew us to this product. But the stuff inside the pretty, minimalist glass bottle is just as good. It's technically meant for soothing freshly shaven legs, but you can use it all over—and you'll want to once you see how soft it makes your skin.
13/21Sunscreen Oils
L'Oréal Paris Advanced Suncare Invisible Protect Dry Oil Spray SPF 50+
Some high-SPF products are heavy, chalky, and about as sexy as a bowl of high-fiber cereal. This spray-on oil sunscreen is the total opposite. It gives skin a pretty sheen, smells vanilla-y and delicious, and provides impressive sun protection.
14/21Sunscreen Oils
Supergoop Sun-Defying Sunscreen Oil Broad Spectrum SPF 50
It has a faint beachy scent that'll appeal to sunscreen traditionalists—but all comparisons to old-school sunscreen end there. The sheer spray-on formula soaks into skin completely after a few minutes, so skin feels soft, not greasy. And if the broad-spectrum sun protection and moisturizing formula aren't impressive enough, there's also the inclusion of antioxidants called tocotrienols that help fight free-radical damage and age spots.
15/21Hair Oils
R + Co Tinsel Smoothing Oil
Best for thick, frizzy hair, this combination of argan and jojoba-seed oils smooths frizz and lends a glassy shine. But if you have fine hair, use it sparingly: A few drops are all you need.
16/21Hair Oils
Bumble and Bumble Hairdresser's Invisible Oil
Last year's Best of Beauty winner for best treatment oil, this slippery serum calms flyaways, enhances shine, and even protects hair color from fading—without weighing down even superfine hair.
17/21Hair Oils
Ojon Rare Blend Oil Total Hair Therapy
First things first: This definitely ranks among the prettiest hair products we've ever seen. When at rest, the oils separate into three sunset-colored layers; shake the bottle and they combine lava-lamp style to make a potent moisturizing treatment for dry, damaged hair. Be careful not to overdo it; a drop smoothed through damp hair before styling is all you need.
18/21Hair Oils
Ouidad Curl Recovery Ultra Nourishing Cleansing Oil
This sulfate-free shampoo alternative isn't just helpful for curly hair—it's a total game changer. A lot of sulfate-free curl shampoos are hard to spread, which means you end up using a lot of them, but this one is spreadable, lathers beautifully, and coats hair in hydration.
19/21Hair Oils
Serge Normant Meta Sheer Dry Oil Finishing Spray
Part shine enhancer, part texturizer, this lightweight finishing spray gives hair a glossy finish and cool-girl pieciness (think Alexa Chung). Plus, it smells so good—sort of sweet, sort of musky—that at least one editor has been known to use it in place of perfume.
20/21Lip Oils
Clarins Instant Light Lip Comfort Oil in Raspberry
This product is proof that just because a lip gloss is fruity and pink doesn't mean it's for 13-year-olds. Though it's hot pink in the tube, it's almost completely sheer on lips, lending pretty shine and lasting moisture with absolutely zero stickiness.
21/21Lip Oils
Bite Beauty Cinnamon Plumping Lip Oil
No, this oil won't make you look like you've been through a few rounds of lip injections. What it will do is tingle slightly, moisturize, and stimulate circulation for a very (very) subtle, natural fullness. It smells like Red Hots, which could be a pro or a con, depending on your stance on cinnamon candy.
For more on beauty oils:
• Is Marula Oil the Secret to Perfect Skin and Hair?
