Oily/dry skin, makeup comes off...14. any suggestions? please?

I'm a 14 year old girl, and my skin is what people call ';combination skin';. right after i wash it, it is really dry, but a couple of hours later, it is super oily. I live in wisconsin, so it's not too humid here. I have tried clean and clear washers, skinID, and clearisol. i also have an above-average number of zits, but not acne. my skin is also kind of red. I usually wear some foundation, powder, eyeliner, and mascara. but, all of it comes off within hours.


please don't say ';oh your just a teenager. it will go away';


i'm aware of that-i'm looking for a solution.


so..if anyone has any solutions or really good products for:


-combination skin


-makeup staying on


-red skin


-zits





thanks!Oily/dry skin, makeup comes off...14. any suggestions? please?
Just want to say that it does not sound like you have combination skin to me. It sounds like you have just plain oily skin.





You stated that it is really dry after you wash your face and if that is the only time it is dry, then your face is not really dry. It's just that cleansers tend to strip the face of moisture and oil when it tries to rid the face of bacteria and dirt. I know because I have super oily face and the only time my face is dry is right after I wash it. But an hour or so later it is oily again.





Okay, now that we got that cleared up:





First, regarding your zits, why not just use on the spot treatment. But if you really do have acne, you should stick with your treatment and do not give up. I use Proactiv and the first two months it was great, but then I felt as it started to plateau afterwards. However, I have been sticking to it and my face looks much much better than it did before.





For the oily skin, remember to moisturize your face with an oil-free moisturizer after you wash it. I know it sounds crazy since you have oily skin, but if actually reduces the amount of oil your skin produces. When your face is stripped of oil from the cleansers, your sebaceous glands go into overdrive producing much more oil to replace the oils that were lost.





Next, I strongly recommend an oil mattifier. I use Murad Oil Controlling Mattifier and it works great. It works for 7 hours (which kind of sucks for me since my days are usually 10 hours long) but it is the best product I can find and I do not have to constantly apply blot powder over my face as I used to. It also has willow bark to fight acne. It costs $40 a bottle, but it is worth it. If you are scared to pay that much for it, go to Sephora and ask one of the reps to make a sample for you. Try it for a few days and see if it makes a difference. I know it makes a huge difference for me.





Make sure your foundation is oil-free and noncomedogenic. Foundations with oil will only add to the oily problem and makeup that is not non-comedogenic will add to the zits problem.





Make sure to clean your brushes and/or sponges. This things harbor bacteria and will cause acne. I have been really bad and have not washed my brushes for a month (and I also skipped my Proactiv cleanser for a few weeks) and I noticed I started developing a little acne again. :(





This should be adequate enough. Throughout the day, just use oil blotting sheets since the mattifier already controls oil and applying blot powder will just look cakey (which is why I have to return my once loved MAC Blot Powder this weekend. It worked great when I did not have the mattifier but now it just looks cakey because there is not as much oils to suck up).





For red skin, sorry I cannot help you there. Maybe try an oil-free color correcting primer??? I'm not too sure about this one.Oily/dry skin, makeup comes off...14. any suggestions? please?
Chances are, you have sensitive skin, and are making the problem worse by using acne medications and oil control stuff, your skin is oily because its dry, so once you get your skin well hydrated, the oil should slow down. Try washing your face with something for sensitive skin, like olay, or cetaphil, then moisturize very well with cetaphil moisturizing cream, it comes in a jar and it lasts forever, try this out for a few weeks and stay away from acne stuff, astringents and anything with alcohol, or strong smells, this should help a lot.
I would recommend:


Cleanser: Combination Skin


Moisturizer: Oily Skin


Acne: Spot Treatment since certain areas are already dry I would not apply anything that contains Benzoyl Peroxide or Salicylic Acid all over the facial area. If you don't want to use a drug store spot treatment use aspirin. Crush 2-4 pieces of aspirin (depending on how many pimples you gotta zap) mixed in with water till the solution is paste like. Apply to the pimple and allow to dry out. Believe me this works wonders.





Routine: Remember to wash and moisturize your face twice everyday even if you have oily skin. Biggest misconception is that since the face is already oily it doesn't need to be moisturized. This confuses the skin of lacking moisture therefore can produce extra oils on the skin to compensate. So remember moisturize that skin.





Makeup: Make sure that the makeup you use is oil free. Use a makeup primer prior to applying foundation if oiliness is still sever. Also prep the eye area for application of eyeliner and eyeshadows. (i.e. Urban Decay Primer Potion or MAC paint points)





Hope this helps!