How to Use Safflower Oil in a Body Routine

Safflower oil belongs in a body routine when your skin feels tight and dry but you do not want anything heavy on it. It is a light, fast-absorbing seed oil made mostly of linoleic acid, a fatty acid the skin uses to hold water, so it softens without leaving you waiting to get dressed. It works best in the shower or straight after it, on skin that is still damp, and it pairs naturally with an exfoliating step and a body oil or cream to follow.

What safflower oil is, in brief

Safflower oil is pressed from the seeds of Carthamus tinctorius, a thistle-like plant also known as dyer's safflower, long grown for both dye and oil. On an ingredient list you will see it as Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil. The kind used for skin is high-linoleic safflower, around 70 to 80 percent linoleic acid, which gives it its light, quick-sinking feel. It also carries vitamin E and plant sterols.

Why damp skin makes the difference

Oil applied to bone-dry skin has little to work with. Oil applied to skin that is still warm and damp from the shower can hold in the water that is already there. That is the single most useful thing to know about any body oil, and it matters even more for a light one like safflower.

It is also why safflower earns its place in the shower itself. Suspended in a scrub, the oil reaches freshly polished skin in the same motion that uncovers it, while the skin is as wet as it will ever be.

A three-step body routine

1. Scrub, in the shower. Our Hawaiian Black Lava Body Caviar Body Scrub with Charcoal carries sea salt and organic sugar in safflower, coconut, macadamia, kukui, passion fruit and Kalahari melon seed oils. Stir the jar first, as the label asks, so the oils and crystals come together. Massage it over wet skin from the neck down, then rinse with warm water and pat dry, leaving skin a little damp.
2. Oil, while skin is damp. Smooth a few warmed drops of body oil over shoulders, shins and elbows. Our Rosewood and Litsea Cubeba Imperial Jade Body Oil glides on as a pale, silky liquid and leaves a satiny finish with no tacky film.
3. Cream, where skin is driest. For heels, shins and elbows that still feel rough, follow with our Rejuvenating Body Cream with Kalahari Oil. Its aloe and glycerin add a layer of hydration that oils alone cannot.

If you would like the whole routine in one box, The Indulgent Body Box holds the scrub, the Rosewood body oil and the body cream. The Imperial Body Glow Bundle pairs just the scrub and the oil.

Adjusting for your skin

Dry skin that feels tight

This is the skin safflower suits best. Use the full routine, and do not skip the cream on the roughest patches. Oil softens; cream adds water-binding ingredients on top.

Oily or blemish-prone body skin

Because it is light and high in linoleic acid, safflower is often chosen for skin that dislikes heavy oils. You may find the scrub alone leaves enough softness behind, and that a body oil is all you need afterward. Patch test if your skin reacts easily.

Sensitive skin

Go gently with any scrub. Use light pressure, avoid skin that already looks red or feels irritated, and leave a freshly shaved area for another day.

Through the seasons

In cold months, when heating dries the air and shins start to look flaky, the damp-skin routine matters most, and the cream earns its place every time. In summer, many people find the scrub and a quick pass of body oil are enough, and the light feel of safflower and its fellow oils is welcome in the heat.

Mistakes that waste a good oil

• Toweling off completely before the oil. Leave skin a little damp so there is water for the oil to hold.
• Skipping the stir. If the oils sit on top of the jar, the first scoop is too oily and the last is too dry.
• Scrubbing your face with a body scrub. Body Caviar is for the body only, from the neck down.
• Pressing hard. Let the salt and sugar do the work; a firm, steady massage is plenty.
• Leaving the lid off. Safflower is a polyunsaturated oil and reacts with air over time. Close the jar after each use.

Questions about using safflower oil on the body

When should I apply a body oil, before or after drying off?

After a light pat with the towel, while skin is still damp. The oil holds in the water that is already on your skin.

Do I need a body cream if I use a scrub with safflower oil?

Not always. The scrub leaves skin soft, and a body oil may be enough. For very dry or rough areas, a cream adds hydration that oils cannot.

Can I use safflower oil if my body skin is oily?

Many people with oily skin find it comfortable, since it is light and quick to absorb. Start with the scrub alone and add a body oil only where you need it.

Which Marianella set has the full scrub, oil and cream routine?

The Indulgent Body Box: Lava Body Caviar, Rosewood and Litsea Cubeba Imperial Jade Body Oil and Rejuvenating Body Cream, with gold under-eye masks included.