One of the loveliest ways to simultaneously rid your face of excessive oiliness and soak up pesky pimples is to treat yourself to deep-cleansing face masks for oily skin on a regular basis. And you don’t have to hit up the spas for these!
Hands down the best face masks for oily skin are made up of clays, which is great news for you since you don’t have to fork over a bunch of cash for fancy products.
Pretty much all these detoxifying clays are easy to find, simple to mix, and super affordable, making it supremely easy for you to treat yourself to luxurious spa treatments right in the comfort of your own home, just like the legendary beauties Cleopatra and Queen Nerfititi are rumored to have done.
There are tons of different types of clays and each one has unique skin benefits. Seriously – there’s a clay for everything: firming clays for anti-aging benefits, gentle clays for cleansing sensitive skinned-beauties, moisturizing clays to boost suppleness, and of course, deeply detoxifying clays that are perfect for soaking up excess oils.
The latter is the one we’re primarily interested in today. Read on to find out the best clay face masks for oily skin!
Bentonite Clay
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Bentonite clay is one of the most hardcore clay masks for oily skin – seriously, this stuff will suck everything out of your pores.
It’s well-known for its deeply absorbent and unique detoxifying properties. Here’s how it works: once it’s hydrated, this clay swells open like an immensely-absorbent sponge and its electrical components change to a strongly negative charge – giving it the power to literally soak up and bind positively-charged toxins, heavy metals, impurities, and chemicals through electric attraction.
When applied on your skin, No products found. gets to work drawing out toxins, excess oils, bacteria, viruses, parasites and other impurities from your pores. This stuff is a heavy-hitting oil remover and one of the most absorbent of all clays.
Here’s what you should know about this mask for oily skin:
- Bentonite clay is perfect for fair-skinned beauties since it doesn’t stain. At all.
- That’s ’cause this stuff is pretty white-ish. Keep in mind that high quality bentonite clay is an off-white, almost grey-ish color and avoid buying bentonite clay that is pure, pearly white.
- Bentonite clay is super absorbent – to the point where it can be a little strong for sensitive-skinned beauties. If your skin is prone to sensitivity – mix your bentonite clay with something soothing like yogurt or aloe vera gel instead of plain ole’ water.
The No products found. and you get a whole pound of the stuff, which will last you…forever. Oh, and did we mention this stuff stores incredibly well? Bentonite stays potent forever so if you can’t work your way through your stash, you can always bestow it on your grandchildren. If they inherit your genes, they just might appreciate the mask for oily skin 😉
French Green Clay
- Deep-Cleansing: 100% pure French Green Clay helps draw out impurities for soft,...
- Radiant Results: Tones & tightens skin to help diminish appearance of pores & add a...
- Fast-Drying: Mixes well & is perfect for face masks, body wraps, or recipes for face...
Beautifully hued and wonderfully absorbent, French green clay gets its lovely green color from decomposed plant matter. Thanks to that – this is one nutritious clay, packed with a cornucopia of skin-friendly nutrients like silica, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium, sodium, dolomite, manganese, copper and selenium.
While providing a rich boost of nutrients to your skin, French green clay also goes to work soaking up excess oils and impurities from your pores. This stuff is amazingly absorbent and literally “drinks” oils, toxins, and impurities from your skin.
Here’s what you should know about this clay mask for oily skin:
- French green clay is also wonderful for its toning action and is a must-have clay if smaller pores is on your list of beauty to-dos.
- Like we said, this clay gets its lovely green hue from decomposed plant matter. If the French green clay you’re thinking of buying doesn’t have a green or at least off-green color – pass and look for one that does.
- Not all green clay is French green clay – there’s also green illite clay which is often mistaken for French green clay but is nowhere near as absorbent and effective as French green clay at soaking up oils and impurities.
- Like Bentonite, French green clay is a super absorbent clay which can make it harsh for sensitive skins. Be sure to mix it with a soothing element like yogurt or aloe vera gel when using!
Our favorite pure French green clay is very reasonably priced. Works wonders.
Multanni Mitti (Fuller’s Earth)
- 100% natural clay -No pesticides or chemicals used
- NEW! Durable resealable zip lock closure kraft pouch
- Ideal for extra oily skin types / Heals acne and blemishes
If ever there was a multi-tasking wonder-clay, Multanni mitti is it. This is a must-have clay for anyone who is plagued with oily pores as this stuff is highly absorbent.
In case you’re wondering just how absorbent a clay can be: Multani mitti’s English name, Fuller’s Earth, comes from its original use as a mud used by woolen clothmakers (fullers) to suck out lanolin, oils and other grease from wool. Oh, and we should also mention that this stuff is actually used by military and civil emergency service people to decontaminate the clothes of emergency responders who’ve been contaminated with chemical agents.
Yes – it’s that absorbent.But that’s not all it has going for it – Multanni mitti is packed full of silica (around 70% of its content) as well as magnesium oxide. Both are transdermally absorbed and both are wonderful for skin health and vitality. Silica, as you probably already know, is known to improve skin elasticity and speed wound healing (bye-bye, acne scars). Not to mention, Multanni mitti has been historically used to naturally and safely lighten skin.
What you should know about this clay mask:
- We cannot emphasize this enough: this stuff is absorbent with a capital A. Sensitive-skinned beauties should probably avoid this clay. As for oil-prone beauties – get thee some!
If you’re plagued with oily skin – this is one must-have clay mask.
Go for a 100% Multani Mitti (Fuller's Earth) clay to get all its potent benefits!
Tips on Using Clay Face Masks for Oily Skin
How to Store it. Clays don’t do well with metal. Store your clays – and mix them – in glass or ceramic.
How Often to Use it. If you have super oily skin, you might be tempted to slather on some clay every minute of every day, but you should only use clay masks for around 2 – 4 days a week.
When to Wash it Off. Ever felt a stinging, pulling tightness after washing off a clay mask? That’s ’cause you’re leaving it on too long. You see, the clay mask goes through 3 phases.
Phase one is when you first apply your clay mask and your skin begins drinking in the wonderful minerals the damp clay provides. The second phase is when the clay begins to dry, which exercises your capillaries and stimulates blood flow.
But in the last phase – when the clay is completely dry – it draws out moisture from your skin and causes dehydration and even irritation. You know you’ve left it on too long when your skin feel dry, tight and even itchy instead of refreshed and revitalized.
We suggest wiping off your clay mask before it reaches that flaky, dry stage. When you start to feel it drying (contracting on your skin) and see the mask becoming a lighter color – go ahead and wash it off. You’ve gotten the best out of it already.
Tip: If you want to enjoy the clay mask longer, keep it hydrated with a handy little water spray.
What to Mix with the Clay. You don’t have to stick to boring old water whenever you mix a clay mask. You can always substitute chamomile tea instead of water to soothe pimples or stir in some green tea for extra pimple-fighting powers.
- For a soothing mask, mix your clay with some yogurt or aloe vera gel.
- Want a deeper exfoliation? Mix your clays with naturally-lactic-acid-containing buttermilk.
- For a naturally anti-bacterial solution, stir in a bit of raw honey with your clay.
- And of course, don’t forget that some natural oils are awesome for oily skin – don’t be afraid to stir these oils into the clay mix as well!
