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Get Rid Of The Lunchtime Shine

If your face looks like it could fry an egg by lunchtime, here’s how to get your morning face back without doing your whole routine again.
Close-up of a man with visible oily shine across his forehead, nose and cheek.

Your Matt Look Disappeared

When you left home, your face looked matt and put together. A few hours later, your forehead and nose are reflecting the light and your face looks like your moisturiser never sank in.

Get Your Matt Face Back Now

Use A Tissue Before You Walk Into The Room

You’ve got a group presentation in five minutes and your forehead has decided to catch every light in the building. Get a clean tissue, press it over your forehead then lift away. Use a fresh part of the tissue for your nose, your cheekbones and chin. Don’t rub it - that’ll just spread the oil around and disturb any sunscreen you’re wearing.

Keep Powdered Blotting Papers Nearby

If you know the shine happens on most days, powdered blotting papers can live in your work bag, desk drawer or jacket pocket. 

Press one against the oily parts of your face. The paper takes off the grease and the fine powder leaves the skin matt.

Use A Roller You Can Wash And Use Again

If you don’t want to stock up on packets of blotting paper, try an oil-absorbing roller. Roll the stone slowly over your forehead, nose, cheekbones and chin. Don’t press hard or keep dragging it over the same patch. Once the shine has gone, stop and move on.
Wash your roller after each use because every trip across your face leaves oil and skin debris on the stone. Take the stone out, clean it with warm water and a little face cleanser, then leave it out to dry completely before you put it back together.

Use What You Have At Home

So, you don't want to buy special forehead paper or a roller you have to wash after use. That’s fair enough. A lot of baby powder is made with cornstarch instead of talc, and either version can absorb the oil on your face.
If your face is already shiny, press a clean tissue over the oily areas first. Pour a tiny amount of powder into your palm away from your face, then use clean fingers to press it over your forehead, cheekbones, nose and chin. Once the shine has gone, stop. You don’t want to look like a dusty relic.
If the same areas get greasy every day, use the powder before you leave home. If you wear sunscreen, wait for it to settle first. Press a small amount of powder over the places that usually look shiny and leave it alone to absorb the oil as it appears.

Keep Your Face Matt For Longer

Keep Hair And Beard Products Off Your Face

Hair oil, pomade, leave-in conditioner and beard oil can all end up on whatever you touch next. Wash your hands after you’re done with styling your hair or beard. Keep all your oily products away from the skin around your hairline. Before we blame the bottles, check whether your fringe sits across the shiniest part of your forehead all day.

Your Products May Leave Grease Behind

Before you buy more products to get rid of the shine, try this on a day when you’re staying at home.

Do your normal wash routine, then apply your serum and moisturiser to one side of your face. If you wear sunscreen, apply the same amount to both sides. If you don’t wear sunscreen, leave the other side bare. At lunchtime, compare both sides.

If the full-routine side looks greasier, the serum or moisturiser is adding to the shine.

On another day, after you’ve washed your face, try serum on one side and moisturiser on the other.

If you wear sunscreen, apply it over both sides as normal.

If both sides look equally shiny, the extra products probably aren’t causing the problem.

If sunscreen is the common product, do your normal routine but use a sunscreen with a matt finish.

Your face may need a bit more attention.
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