Never once in my life did I think I would become a face oil hoarder.  But my moment to confess has come -- while tidying up my skincare area in the bathroom I came to realize I own not two, not five, but 12 different types of face oils!  No face requires this much pampering!!  Rather than be embarrassed about my slick collection, I have decided to use this to my advantage and initiate ...

THE OIL GAMES!



But really, I do think that it will be a great learning moment to just go through these oils and have them battle it out to see which are worth while, and which I could perhaps afford to do without.

Smell: Ooh! Tamanu, Lyonsleaf Marshmallow, Balm Balm Rosehip
These three oils most definitely are the most fragrant and most interesting smelling of the twelve facial oils, although not all will appeal to everyone.

The Ooh! tamanu is completely different from anything else I have ever tried -- some have said it smells like a takeaway curry, my partner calls it the 'steak' oil, but what I smell is a really rich, nutty scent that is both homey and earthy at the same time.  It is definitely particular!  The smell lasts for a long time, and any time you move you will end up with a gentle scent wafting behind you.

Lyonsleaf has a pleasantly sweet floral scent with undertones of a woodier green aroma (a bit like springtime!).  The smell is not overpowering, but definitely sticks around for a while, so if you are planning on using this as a daytime oil, maybe avoid any clashing perfumes.

The Balm Balm oil is the most traditional of the three winners for this category, but rather than a super subtle rose smell, this oil hits you with a mouth-wateringly floral aroma.  It is so lovely, and starts to fill the room as soon as you open the bottle.  However, the scent quickly dissipates, so this could be the perfect oil for day or night.


Consistency: For a light oil that absorbs quickly: Balm Balm Rosehip; For a heavier oil that absorbs quickly: Awake Organics and Inika

The Balm Balm oil is my go to for a daytime oil, as it sinks into my face super quickly, and leaves no residue or shininess.  It rubs in smoothly, and doesn't leave my skin feeling slick at all.

The Ooh! oils are runner up for light consistency, as they are all much 'waterier' than the other oils I have tried, though they are a single ingredient oil, so do not have anything in them to make them lighter necessarily.  They take a while to absorb, but do eventually sink into the skin, and they do not leave too much of a shiny face effect.

I prefer the Awake Organics Frankin-Sense oil and the Inika Rosehip oil when I need extra protection during the day, as they are initially much thicker in consistency than the others, but still sink in fully.  I was actually incredibly impressed by how fast the Frankin-Sense absorbs (probably less than a minute!), and there was not too much shine left behind.  The Inika leaves a bit more of a shine, but it is a dewy look rather than an 'I haven't showered in four days' oil slick.






Size: Trilogy Rosehip
Most of the oils I own are sample or travel sized, as it takes me so long to use up facial products, but if you are looking for a product that comes in a wide range of sizes, Trilogy is your best bet.  Coming in as small a bottle as 5ml and as large as 45ml, this brand has a huge range that can suit every buyer.


Application: This is actually a tricky one, as I found I liked different things about the various application methods.

The full size Ooh!, Balm Balm, MOA, and Trilogy oils all have a dropper that you squeeze to suck up the oil and then squeeze to apply.  I liked this for a few reasons -- there is a lot of control over how much you can apply, complete control over the placement, and it is entirely hygienic as you are not coming into direct contact with the skin

The Lyonsleaf and the Inika both have pump methods of application, and while this is still great for being hygienic, there is slightly less choice over how much you are applying and where it is applied.  You sort of have to pump it into your hand instead of dropping directly onto your face.  However, I love that the pump gives you the 'correct' amount of oil, so the application is much more consistent than any of the others.

The most unique application method from these twelve oils comes from the Awake Organics Frankin-Sense, as this product has a traditional essential oil 'orifice reducer'.  This means that it has a little plastic cap designed to reduce the flow to a single drop.  This is great if you want a smaller amount of oil to use, but can be tricky to control, as sometimes the drops come out in quick succession.


Effectiveness: Ooh! Tamanu and Trilogy CoQ10 Booster for fine lines; the MOA Aphrodite and Le Mont Botanique Unrefined Rosehip for extreme hydration; and the Ooh! Rosehip, Balm Balm Rosehip, and Inika Rosehip for 'all in one' use

Each oil really does have it's own strong points, and each formulation is designed to tackle very specific skin goals.  I have found the tamanu and the CoQ10 are absolute champs at plumping the skin and helping reduce the appearance of fine lines (and stretch marks!).  The MOA Aphrodite oil is quite thick, as is the Le Mont Botanique, and are ideal for night use as they are super hydrating but do not seem to ever sink fully into the skin.  And the best oils for all day and for all skin types I have found are the three rosehip oils that are a little lighter in consistency and that absorb quickly and fully into the face.


Value: Balm Balm Rosehip, Lyonsleaf Marshmallow
The best value for money oils out of these twelve have to be the Balm Balm Little Miracle Rosehip oil and the Lyonsleaf Marshmallow oil, as both come in 30ml bottles for less than £15.  Both are incredibly effective, so for the price you really cannot go wrong.


So who is the winner?  Arghhh I don't know!  I would have to say my favourites are Balm Balm Little Miracle Rosehip and Trilogy Rosehip, as I have found they work really well for my skin and I still prefer the smell of rose over anything else on my face.  However, the Lyonsleaf and MOA oils are really growing on me in terms of their more unique scents, and I love the way the Awake Organics sinks into the skin so efficiently.

I think when it comes down to it, my 'losers' here would be the Ooh! Argan and Ooh! Marula, as I find they don't really have any wow factors for me.  They're okay in a pinch, but the others do so much more for my skin, and have such special things about them that make the oils stick out.

Keep in mind everyone's face is different, and your skin may need different oils at different times of the year (or even times of the month!).  So for now, I will accept my facial oil collection as a quirk in my skincare section, and reach for the oil that best suits my needs.


You can pick most of these oils up over at Love Lula, and the others from The Cruelty Free Beauty Box Shop and a variety of stockists.  I will link to them all below!
Lyonsleaf Marshmallow
Balm Balm Little Miracle Rosehip
Ooh! Tamanu
Ooh! Argan
Ooh! Rosehip
Ooh! Marula
Awake Organics Frankin-Sense Divine
MOA Aphrodite
Inika Rosehip
Trilogy Rosehip
Trilogy CoQ10 Booster
Le Mont Botanique Unrefined Rosehip

Also, if you haven't bought from Love Lula before, you can claim 15% off your first order PLUS 3 bonus gifts -- a travel size Ooh! Argan Oil, and two full-size Ooh! Rosehip oils.  Simply enter code LLFRIEND when you check out with an order of £20 or more.








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