Sebum is not the enemy. But it might feel like it is. It’s actually a naturally occurring oil that keeps skin soft, flexible, and protected from outside stressors. When production tips into excess, it shows up in ways we’re all familiar with: a shiny T-zone by midday, clogged pores that seem impossible to clear, or breakouts that cycle endlessly.
The truth is, oil isn’t the problem. It’s the imbalance. At Haruharu Wonder, we see oily skin differently. Instead of harsh treatments or stripping cleansers that’ll disrupt your skin’s balance (meaning skin will get more oily), our products are built on gentleness. Purposeful formulas built on natural ingredients are the key to managing oily skin. By working with your skin’s natural chemistry, this routine helps restore the balance that makes a healthy, radiant complexion possible.
Why Does Skin Overproduce Oil?
First, it’s important to understand why your skin is oilier than usual. Hormonal fluctuations, stress, and humidity all cause oil glands to work overtime. It’s a year-round issue: dry winter skin can overcompensate with extra oil production, and summer heat triggers it too. Ironically, harsh skincare routines can make the issue worse.
When you strip your natural moisture barrier by overcleansing, using stringent actives, or not moisturizing, you’re actually sending signals to your skin to produce more oil to protect your natural moisture barrier. Our formulas rebalance instead of stripping, a philosophy that’s crucial when addressing oil overproduction.
The Hidden Consequences of Excess Sebum
A shiny complexion is only a surface issue that comes with oily skin. Beneath it, excess sebum mixes with dead skin cells, creating blackheads and breakouts that can be tough to beat. Skin texture becomes rougher, makeup won’t stay put, and you might notice enlarged pores.
Exfoliating more or using products that strip your skin of essential moisture can put you in a loop of oiliness. Without enough proper, intentional hydration, your skin will produce more oil. It’s a cycle that’s hard to break.
At Haruharu Wonder, we prioritize barrier-first care, creating products that work with your skin, not against it. And we design each formula to be both effective and gentle, because skin health comes before quick fixes.
Oil and sebum overproduction can be frustrating, but it doesn’t have to define your complexion. With a routine built on balance, hydration, and barrier support, skin can return to its natural state: calm, clear, and resilient.
Simple Skincare Routine for Oily Skin
This routine for oily skin is balanced to cleanse and care for skin without tipping into damage and irritation. It’s based on the power of natural ingredients that love your skin back.
Steps 1 & 2: Double Cleansing With Care
If you’ve been struggling with oily skin for a long time, the thought of double cleansing with an oil cleanser might not make sense. That’s where Centella Sunflower Makeup-Melting Cleansing Balm steps in. This sherbet-textured balm begins as a balm, becomes an oil, and then melts into a milky texture as you cleanse.
Don’t be afraid of the sunflower seed oil, argan oil, squalene and jojoba oil in this cleanser. They’re nourishing and won’t clog your pores. By opting for a hydrating cleansing step, you’re helping your skin’s oil production cycle reset. Plus, it’s super gentle and dissolves makeup, sunscreen, and daily impurities without having to over scrub and strip skin. It’s infused with centella, which soothes the skin and protects your natural moisture barrier – turning off the signals that cause skin to overproduce sebum.
To complete your double cleanse, reach for Black Rice Moisture 5.5 Soft Cleansing Gel. It's a mild cleansing gel formulated with a slightly acidic pH, mirroring skin’s natural acidity. This pH level protects and maintains your natural moisture barrier without disrupting skin – an important part of breaking out of the oily skin cycle. It’s important to follow Centella Sunflower Makeup-Melting Cleansing Balm with Black Rice Moisture 5.5 Soft Cleansing Gel to remove any excess product and prevent clogged pores, as well as removing any leftover impurities.
Black rice extract is a triple-threat hero: it’s moisturizing, brightening, and delivers a boost of antioxidants. Panax ginseng and trehalose add slow-aging and elasticity benefits. The result is skin that feels fresh and hydrated, with oil levels brought gently under control. You’ll still feel cleansed and refreshed, without the tight feeling that comes with overcleansing.
Combining this cleansing balm and this gentle cleanser for oily skin won’t cause breakouts or shiny T-zones. Properly double cleansing is key to balancing out oily skin types, and ensuring you’re prepped for the benefits of the rest of your routine.
Step 3: Gentle Exfoliation With PHA
You might think of using a facial scrub when you hear exfoliation. But these scrubs or alternative harsh acids can be too aggressive for oily skin, leaving it more reactive and prone to breakouts, irritation, and overproducing oil. Haruharu Wonder’s answer is Centella 3% PHA Gentle Liquid Exfoliating Serum.
PHAs are larger molecules than other acid exfoliators, like AHAs or BHAs, which means they exfoliate on the surface while attracting hydration. This makes PHAs a perfect match for sensitive and oily skin types. Using a gentle exfoliant encourages natural skin cell turnover, leaving a smooth, bright complexion and less clogged pores.
Our serum pairs PHA with centella for soothing, kombucha for nourishment, and our Anti-Sebum P for targeted oil control. The texture is watery and light, leaving skin refreshed without any stickiness. Used a few times a week after cleansing, it keeps pores clear and texture smooth without undermining the skin barrier. Centella 3% PHA Gentle Liquid Exfoliating Serum is balanced with scientifically proven ingredients for real results and natural ingredients to soothe and hydrate.
Step 4: Lightweight Hydration With Niacinamide
Oily skin still needs hydration. In fact, skipping moisturizer is one of the fastest ways to make oil overproduction worse. Haruharu Wonder’s Centella 5% Niacinamide Radiance Gel Cream was created to meet this exact need. Its gel texture is water-light, absorbing quickly to leave skin soft and hydrated without heaviness.
Niacinamide at 5% works alongside vitamin C to brighten and regulate oil production. Squalane and panthenol replenish hydration while protecting the barrier. Centella and madecassoside calm irritation and redness. And clinical tests confirm what you can see and feel: after four weeks, skin shows a measurable increase in hydration and a decrease in pigmentation.
Excess oil isn’t something to fight against. It’s a sign your skin is asking for balance. Haruharu Wonder’s clinically tested, nature-powered lineup offers a path back to that balance, with products that cleanse, exfoliate, and moisturize without compromising skin.
With this routine, shine becomes brightness, congestion becomes clarity, and sebum becomes what it was meant to be: a natural ally to your skin.
AUTHOR BIO
Haruharu Wonder contributor Chloe Zelch is a beauty writer based in NYC with experience writing for some of your favorite makeup and skincare brands. She also does online advertising for major luxury fashion houses. Most importantly, Chloe is a devoted cat mom. She’s passionate about curating acne-friendly routines, and 5% Niacinamide Radiance Gel Cream has earned a spot on her top shelf. Connect with her on Instagram @s1rchloe or on LinkedIn.
The Only Skincare Routine You Need to Balance Oily Skin
Sebum is not the enemy. But it might feel like it is. It’s actually a naturally occurring oil that keeps skin soft, flexible, and protected from outside stressors. When production tips into excess, it shows up in ways we’re all familiar with: a shiny T-zone by midday, clogged pores that seem impossible to clear, or breakouts that cycle endlessly.
The truth is, oil isn’t the problem. It’s the imbalance. At Haruharu Wonder, we see oily skin differently. Instead of harsh treatments or stripping cleansers that’ll disrupt your skin’s balance (meaning skin will get more oily), our products are built on gentleness. Purposeful formulas built on natural ingredients are the key to managing oily skin. By working with your skin’s natural chemistry, this routine helps restore the balance that makes a healthy, radiant complexion possible.
Why Does Skin Overproduce Oil?
First, it’s important to understand why your skin is oilier than usual. Hormonal fluctuations, stress, and humidity all cause oil glands to work overtime. It’s a year-round issue: dry winter skin can overcompensate with extra oil production, and summer heat triggers it too. Ironically, harsh skincare routines can make the issue worse.
When you strip your natural moisture barrier by overcleansing, using stringent actives, or not moisturizing, you’re actually sending signals to your skin to produce more oil to protect your natural moisture barrier. Our formulas rebalance instead of stripping, a philosophy that’s crucial when addressing oil overproduction.
The Hidden Consequences of Excess Sebum
A shiny complexion is only a surface issue that comes with oily skin. Beneath it, excess sebum mixes with dead skin cells, creating blackheads and breakouts that can be tough to beat. Skin texture becomes rougher, makeup won’t stay put, and you might notice enlarged pores.
Exfoliating more or using products that strip your skin of essential moisture can put you in a loop of oiliness. Without enough proper, intentional hydration, your skin will produce more oil. It’s a cycle that’s hard to break.
At Haruharu Wonder, we prioritize barrier-first care, creating products that work with your skin, not against it. And we design each formula to be both effective and gentle, because skin health comes before quick fixes.
Oil and sebum overproduction can be frustrating, but it doesn’t have to define your complexion. With a routine built on balance, hydration, and barrier support, skin can return to its natural state: calm, clear, and resilient.
Simple Skincare Routine for Oily Skin
This routine for oily skin is balanced to cleanse and care for skin without tipping into damage and irritation. It’s based on the power of natural ingredients that love your skin back.
Steps 1 & 2: Double Cleansing With Care
If you’ve been struggling with oily skin for a long time, the thought of double cleansing with an oil cleanser might not make sense. That’s where Centella Sunflower Makeup-Melting Cleansing Balm steps in. This sherbet-textured balm begins as a balm, becomes an oil, and then melts into a milky texture as you cleanse.
Don’t be afraid of the sunflower seed oil, argan oil, squalene and jojoba oil in this cleanser. They’re nourishing and won’t clog your pores. By opting for a hydrating cleansing step, you’re helping your skin’s oil production cycle reset. Plus, it’s super gentle and dissolves makeup, sunscreen, and daily impurities without having to over scrub and strip skin. It’s infused with centella, which soothes the skin and protects your natural moisture barrier – turning off the signals that cause skin to overproduce sebum.
To complete your double cleanse, reach for Black Rice Moisture 5.5 Soft Cleansing Gel. It's a mild cleansing gel formulated with a slightly acidic pH, mirroring skin’s natural acidity. This pH level protects and maintains your natural moisture barrier without disrupting skin – an important part of breaking out of the oily skin cycle. It’s important to follow Centella Sunflower Makeup-Melting Cleansing Balm with Black Rice Moisture 5.5 Soft Cleansing Gel to remove any excess product and prevent clogged pores, as well as removing any leftover impurities.
Black rice extract is a triple-threat hero: it’s moisturizing, brightening, and delivers a boost of antioxidants. Panax ginseng and trehalose add slow-aging and elasticity benefits. The result is skin that feels fresh and hydrated, with oil levels brought gently under control. You’ll still feel cleansed and refreshed, without the tight feeling that comes with overcleansing.
Combining this cleansing balm and this gentle cleanser for oily skin won’t cause breakouts or shiny T-zones. Properly double cleansing is key to balancing out oily skin types, and ensuring you’re prepped for the benefits of the rest of your routine.
Step 3: Gentle Exfoliation With PHA
You might think of using a facial scrub when you hear exfoliation. But these scrubs or alternative harsh acids can be too aggressive for oily skin, leaving it more reactive and prone to breakouts, irritation, and overproducing oil. Haruharu Wonder’s answer is Centella 3% PHA Gentle Liquid Exfoliating Serum.
PHAs are larger molecules than other acid exfoliators, like AHAs or BHAs, which means they exfoliate on the surface while attracting hydration. This makes PHAs a perfect match for sensitive and oily skin types. Using a gentle exfoliant encourages natural skin cell turnover, leaving a smooth, bright complexion and less clogged pores.
Our serum pairs PHA with centella for soothing, kombucha for nourishment, and our Anti-Sebum P for targeted oil control. The texture is watery and light, leaving skin refreshed without any stickiness. Used a few times a week after cleansing, it keeps pores clear and texture smooth without undermining the skin barrier. Centella 3% PHA Gentle Liquid Exfoliating Serum is balanced with scientifically proven ingredients for real results and natural ingredients to soothe and hydrate.
Step 4: Lightweight Hydration With Niacinamide
Oily skin still needs hydration. In fact, skipping moisturizer is one of the fastest ways to make oil overproduction worse. Haruharu Wonder’s Centella 5% Niacinamide Radiance Gel Cream was created to meet this exact need. Its gel texture is water-light, absorbing quickly to leave skin soft and hydrated without heaviness.
Niacinamide at 5% works alongside vitamin C to brighten and regulate oil production. Squalane and panthenol replenish hydration while protecting the barrier. Centella and madecassoside calm irritation and redness. And clinical tests confirm what you can see and feel: after four weeks, skin shows a measurable increase in hydration and a decrease in pigmentation.
Excess oil isn’t something to fight against. It’s a sign your skin is asking for balance. Haruharu Wonder’s clinically tested, nature-powered lineup offers a path back to that balance, with products that cleanse, exfoliate, and moisturize without compromising skin.
With this routine, shine becomes brightness, congestion becomes clarity, and sebum becomes what it was meant to be: a natural ally to your skin.
AUTHOR BIO
Haruharu Wonder contributor Chloe Zelch is a beauty writer based in NYC with experience writing for some of your favorite makeup and skincare brands. She also does online advertising for major luxury fashion houses. Most importantly, Chloe is a devoted cat mom. She’s passionate about curating acne-friendly routines, and 5% Niacinamide Radiance Gel Cream has earned a spot on her top shelf. Connect with her on Instagram @s1rchloe or on LinkedIn.