If you’ve ever gotten a full body massage, you know how relaxed and rejuvenated you feel right after one. Now, imagine that – but for your face. A face massage done right can do you a lot of good, like helping support collagen production, reduce wrinkles, decrease headaches, lessen acne scarring, and give you a subtle yet noticeably brighter skin tone. It also improves your lymphatic drainage to reduce puffiness and helps with microcirculation (which provides you with that instant glowy look). Your face deserves its spa day, and starting with the best face oils, and gua sha routine can do wonders for your skin.
What is gua sha?
Gua sha is a traditional Chinese healing method that uses a smooth-edged tool to gently stroke and press over the skin to treat chronic pain, inflammation, and other ailments. Originally chiseled from animal bones or porcelain, now the smooth-edged tool is made from stunning crystals like jade or rose quartz.
The ingredients in your face oil are even more critical for an effective gua sha routine. They need to be non-comedogenic (breakouts are not welcome here), skin-friendly nourishing (your face deserves the healthy stuff), and lightweight (because no one wants heavy oil dripping from their face). Lucky for us, a range of prime ingredients – from jojoba to squalane to evening prime rose – provide benefits beyond the surface in some of the best face oils for your most effective gua sha routine.
Jump To The Products:
- DERMA E Radiant Glow Face Oil by Sunkiss Alba
- Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Firming Oil
- Josie Maran Pure Argan Oil
- Maple Holistics Cold Pressed Pure Evening Primrose Oil
- Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula Moisturizing Skin Therapy Oil for Face
- Sunday Riley C.E.O. Glow Vitamin C & Turmeric Face Oil
- Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream Oil
- Sunday Riley U.F.O. Ultra-Clarifying Salicylic Acid and Tea Tree Acne Treatment Face Oil
- Good Molecules Ultra-Hydrating Facial Oil
- cocokind Organic Chia Face Oil
For Radiance and Glow
This collaboration between clean beauty influencer SunKiss Alba and the dermatologist-recommended skincare brand DERMA E has everyone raving about their results. The Radiant Glow Face Oil uses oils like jojoba for moisture, argan for a smoother texture, seabuckthorn for an antioxidant boost, sunflower paired with pumpkin seed for those skin-protecting fatty acids, and natural mineral mica for a subtle shimmer. One major plus: you can use this on other parts of your body like shoulders, collarbone, hands and nails for a truly radiant sunkissed body glow.
For Preventing Wrinkles
Who doesn’t want to firm, brighten, and hydrate their skin? Biossance created this multi-award-winning luxurious facial firming oil blend to provide a lightweight solution to the more common skin aging problems. Squalane is known to boost moisture levels in the skin’s epidermis, vitamin C brightens and evens skin tone, and Damascus rose extract supports collagen and soothes the skin. Pair this beautiful light rose-colored bottle with a gorgeous rose quartz gua sha, and you’ve got a spa day aesthetic you can’t help but reach for any time you want to relax and look good doing it.
For All-Natural Minimalists
Sometimes your skin needs one all-natural multi-tasking ingredient to get the desired results. Jose Maran has been one of the top-rated organic argan oils in the skincare market for years, with only one ingredient: organic argan oil. Revered as liquid gold, this face oil is loaded with essential omegas 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids to condition dry skin and vitamin E to protect sensitive skin. It’s perfect to gently glide your gua sha tools over your face to massage in all the quick-absorbing golden oil and leave behind a hydrated glow that makes you glow like you just got a rejuvenating facial.
For Mature and/or Hormonally-Sensitive Skin
Evening prime rose oil is proven to help overall skin health through oral supplementation by increasing skin’s moisture levels and firmness and improving roughness and elasticity due to potent anti-inflammatory GLAs, or Omega 6 essential fatty acids. As an anti-aging face massage oil, it’s a go-to skincare staple for reducing wrinkles, hydrating delicate skin, and facial redness. Maple Holistics’ cold-pressed certified-vegan oil is excellent for a DIY self-care gua sha session.
For A More Even Skin Tone
If you have issues with uneven skin tone or are looking for a moisturizing face oil with retinol to reduce lines, wrinkles, and dark spots, then this Palmer’s face oil is excellent for a gua sha treatment. Their specialty formula Retinol plus Vitamin C compliments their famous blend of cocoa and shea butter, coconut and olive oil, and Cetesomate-E Complex (aka dry “non-greasy” oil). Your gua sha can glide right over each curve of your face as you relax with the subtle aroma of natural rosehip oil. Every facial therapy session gets you one step closer to restoring much younger-looking skin.
For Dark Spots and Hyperpigmentation
People with medium to dark skin tones typically have issues with dark spots and hyperpigmentation due to inflammation of the skin, acne, and even dehydrated skin. The golden ingredient in this face oil originated in ancient China and Indian regions is the highly praised and even higher antioxidant-giving spice: turmeric. Its history as a skincare staple comes from its bioactive and anti-inflammatory properties, calming your skin as your gua sha helps smooth your texture and lymphatic drainage. Smoother texture + brighter glow + even tone = Sign me up!
For Velvety Soft Skin
Ever wanted your face to look and feel as velvety soft as a cloud? Youth To The People’s Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream oil gets you closer to the results you’re looking for in your skincare routine. Its use of rare super berries like acai, maqui, prickly pear, and goji berry extracts creates an ultra-nourishing experience. At the same time, the high antioxidant levels of moringa and moisturizing benefits of squalane and jojoba oil provide that dreamy glow you’ve been after. After a quick face massage with the fast-absorbing and super lightweight face oil, you can mix a couple of drops into your makeup to keep that glow going all day and night.
For Breakouts and Acne-Prone
Another Sunday Riley favorite – this one for those struggling with breakouts – is their medicated face oil with salicylic acid and tea tree extract. If you’ve wanted to start a gua sha routine, but you’re still hesitant because you’re worried about exacerbating your breakouts and irritating acne scarring, this ultra-clarifying and fast-acting oil could be the answer. This green-tinted oil is formulated for sensitive skin, combining milk thistle & cucumber seed oil to soothe your irritated skin, prevent blemishes, and naturally brighten your complexion. Win-win! Pairing this with a face massage tool can eliminate congested pores that cause blackheads and even help exfoliate skin texture for a smoother and more even skin tone.
For Dry and/or Dehydrated Skin
If your skin is dry and itchy or looks dull and lost its glow, you probably suffer from dry or dehydrated skin. Making sure you drink enough water is an excellent start to a healthier skin microbiome from the inside out, but giving your skin nourishment from the outside is just as important. Good Molecules combines two gentle yet effective ingredients to give your skin the moisture support it needs: Camellia oil and seabuckthorn oil. This fast-absorbing formula provides a simple way to maintain the skin’s moisture barrier with fatty acids from the seabuckthorn while protecting against free radicals with the camellia. Simple, effective, and hydrating? Yes, yes, and yes!
For Daily Moisture
If you didn’t know that chia seeds are the richest source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, now you know. As a morning and night face oil, you can use the dropper or mix it into a DIY rosewater toner that leaves your skin refreshed and moisturized before putting on your daily SPF or night cream. It’s not greasy and melts right in, so it is as quick to use as it is effective. Major bonus points for this brand are the packaging, from the box to the dropper to the bottle, which is all recyclable and made with 100% ethical labor.
