Why use a serum?
Skincare can be a lot of different things to a lot of different people. For some, it’s their line of defense against aging. For many, it’s a line of defense against inflammation from acne, rosacea or a compromised moisture barrier. For others, it’s a simple ritualistic process to retain happy, healthy skin. For a vast many of us, it’s a downright addiction of applying 10+ products a day just because we love them so much. (It’s me. I’m guilty of being one of the vast many.)Whether you build your skin care regimen with one, two or eight products; the order of which you apply your products and what they’re made of can make all the difference in your end goal. One step that our team of Clean Beauty Experts (made up of estheticians, makeup artists and hair stylists) can all agree on is that a clean serum is quite often the powerhouse of any regimen. It supports and amplifies the effects of all the other products you use. It’s a super quick, yet crucial step in your lineup; applied between your cleansing/toning step and moisturizer.
The power ingredients and their benefits
Serums are formulated with a slew of different features and benefits. They can help support or reduce any of the following: barrier repair, skin brightening, skin fatigue, fine lines, deep lines, pore size, hyper pigmentation, inflammation, skin sagging, crepiness… the list goes on and on. But HOW do they address these issues? Well, through innovation in powerhouse ingredients and how they are delivered into the skin!Retinol is renowned for its skin smoothing capabilities. Vitamin C is your one stop shop for brightening, lightening and tightening. Hyaluronic Acid is your friend if you love the appearance of instantly hydrated skin. You can find face or body serums with one or ALL of these wondrous ingredients. Not only that, but formulators are constantly coming up with new ways of manipulating notoriously volatile ingredients into a more stable state.
Here’s a phenomenal example: Juice Beauty just released a superstar face serum that makes full use of innovation. The Stemcellular Anti-Wrinkle Retinol Overnight Serum is steeped in skin smoothing ingredients that help improve the skin’s texture and appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. 2.5% “Bio-Retinol”+Retinol are formulated in Juice Beauty’s signature antioxidant-rich juice base. That means a vast majority of the bottle is jam packed with mega nourishing vitamins. A melange of glorious powerhouse ingredients. What more could you want?
Stemcellular Anti-Wrinkle Retinol Overnight Serum
Water or Oil-based Serum?
I know, you’re probably wondering where this is going…. Why is he suddenly talking about the “base” of a serum.I’ll tell you why. Serums house their powerhouse ingredients in a couple different forms. Water-based serums are what you’re probably used to seeing the most. They’re lightweight, absorb quickly in the skin like a super fluid lotion. Oil-based serums are exactly as they sound.
Let’s break down the base of the serum and why/how you may benefit from the different options.
Water-Based Serums:
Serums based in water have that silky, slippery, hydrating feel. Water-based products are great for quick absorption and not leaving any heavy texture on the surface of the skin. We love these for customers who are on the oily side of life. Or for customers who love their cosmetics and need them to stay stable throughout the day. They come with an array of active clean ingredients just like their oil based counterparts.
Muri Lelu created a prime example of a water-based serum. It has a generous amount of anti-inflammatory ingredients that are all encompassed in a base of water– followed up by Aloe and Cannabis Sativa Extract. Enveloping the skin in bouncy hydration with none of the “thickness” some people are used to in an oil or oil-based serum.
Muri Lelu Bloomrise Sativa
Oil Based Serums:I have a “compromised moisture barrier” and am always fighting the fight of stubborn dry skin. So, I looooove an oil-based serum. That being said, you don’t have to have dry skin to enjoy the oil. In fact, oily to normal skin types can benefit greatly from an oil-based serum. It all depends on the type of oil.
For dryer skin, we often show serums based in Sunflower, Coconut or Olive oils because of their slower absorbency. They help to form a stronger barrier to hold in moisture. Check out One Love Organics Botanical E Youth Preservation Serum for example.
For normal to oily skin, we love oils that balance your natural oil production. Jojoba, Olive and Rosehip oils all quickly condition the skin with rich nutrients and barrier support without leaving it feeling greasy and weighed down. If that’s what you need, I recommend Saint Jane Luxury Beauty Serum.
Our team of Clean Beauty Experts are always happy to select the perfect serum to fit your needs. Whether that’s in a store or chatting with them online, just let them know what your skin goals are and they’ll do the rest. Just remember the simple trick of turning the serum box around and identifying the base of the product. Then, let the hunt for beautiful powerhouse ingredients begin.
