The Oil Moisturizer That Saved My Shiny, Greasy Skin

Here’s the thing: I’ve had super oily, relentless skin since I was a teenager, and I’ve spent most of my adult life trying to figure out ways to tone it down. I’ve gone overboard on clay masks, pore strips, switching up my cleansers, trying new exfoliators — the list, which is really long, goes on.

The one thing I hadn’t tried was oil; for obvious reasons, I’ve always been pretty hesitant to put it anywhere near my face, never mind all over it. But when I received a sample of Plant Apothecary’s Superfacial Oil Moisturizer, I figured I’d give it a shot.

I’m so glad that I did: Not only did it improve the shiny, greasy appearance of my skin dramatically after less than a week of use, but I’ve finally got that dewy, nice glow-from-within thing going on, too.

The moisturizer itself is lightweight and formulated with some serious power players: soothing tea seed oil (which is responsible for how quickly the product sinks in), astringent hazelnut oil (which tightens pores and regulates oil production), and antioxidant-loaded pomegranate oil (which creates healthy and lasting moisture).

I love how deeply moisturized it makes my face feel as it actively works to keep my skin from overproducing oil at the same time. (I promise this isn’t an ad, I’ve just never backed a beauty product more in my life.)

Finding out that the brand is both black-owned (!) and local to me in Brooklyn was pretty much the icing on the cake. So I don’t just feel justified spending nearly $60 on this dream moisturizer, but I’m pretty happy to do it, too.