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Not to be confused with something you’d take for an upset stomach, peptides are a worthy ingredient in skincare formulations. And here’s why…

Skincare ingredients are a bewildering bunch and nothing creates more confusion than peptides. Actually, retinoids can be just as tricky to get your head around, but they’re a whole different topic that we’ve already covered before. And anyway, we’re here to talk about peptides.

We’re sure you’ve seen the countless big bucks skincare commercials shouting about peptides, polypeptides, pentapeptides and the like. You know the ones we mean, right? Glitz, glamour and often a Hollywood celebrity thrown in for good measure? Well, hands up if you’ve no idea what the heck they’re talking about, let alone know why you might need to include peptides in your skincare life.

Good news: we’ve come up with the peptides goods, right here, right now. Want the lowdown? Then read on.

What Are Peptides?

According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of peptides is ‘any of various amides that are derived from two or more amino acids by combination of the amino group of one acid with the carboxyl group of another... usually obtained by partial hydrolysis of proteins.’

Wow, that’s cleared that up then. Not.

More simply put, peptides are chemical compounds made up of short chains of amino acids. Amino acids are basically the building blocks of life and are used by the body to make proteins which perform an infinite number of bodily functions, all of which you need to survive. Think growth, healing, the breaking down of food and so on.

While peptides are short chains of between two and around 50 amino acids, proteins are much longer molecules, made up of multiple peptides.

Science lesson over. Well, almost…

Peptides In Skincare

As you know, your skin contains many essential proteins: namely collagen, elastin and keratin. These proteins are the absolute foundation of your skin, giving it support, structure, strength and resilience. Sadly, as your skin ages it starts to lose all these important proteins. In fact, you lose about 1 percent of your collagen every year after the age of 30 which is when the visible signs of aging start to really creep in.

Applying peptides to your skin helps counteract this loss of collagen because peptides act like little messengers to encourage your cells to produce more of it. Your skin sees these peptides as signals that you’ve injured or wounded your skin which kick-starts the cells to produce more collagen and therefore heal itself by restoring a healthy barrier function while firming, strengthening and plumping up your skin. Clever, right?

So, Do Peptides Offer True Benefits For Your Skin?

As with most active skincare ingredients, not all peptides are created equal. Many are unstable, some are too large to be able to penetrate your skin and others just don’t do much. However, there are plenty of peptides that offer true results for a whole host of skin concerns including fine lines, wrinkles, dark spots and hormone-related breakouts.

Matrixyl 3000, for example, is a combination of two peptides that has been independently proven to boost collagen in your skin. In fact, one study showed that Matrixyl can almost double the amount of collagen your skin produces making it one of the most impressive peptides out there.

How To Introduce Peptides Into Your Routine

The best thing about peptides is they’re very well tolerated by the skin. This means they're a great option for almost all skin types and are ideal for treating the delicate skin around your eyes.

If you fancy incorporating some effective peptides into your routine, look specifically for serums, eye treatments and moisturizers that list them in their ingredients. Different peptides target different concerns, but many skincare products combine two or more to offer a complete anti-aging package. Search for fancy names that end in 'peptide' and/or begin with 'palmitoyl,' but remember, products that get left on your skin will be way more effective than those that are washed away. Also, stick with formulations that are packaged in opaque, airtight containers. Many peptides degrade when in contact with light and air, rendering them kinda useless.

Our Eye Gel and Eye Cream are both formulated with peptides, including palmitoyl tripeptides-1 and -5, plus the mighty matrixyl 3000. Collagen loss is very noticeable around the eye area due to the skin being so much thinner than the rest of your face. This means wrinkles, lines and dark circles are going to appear in super fast time and it's why including peptides in your eyecare routine is a really smart plan.

Apply your favorite eye treatment twice a day for the best results, gently patting or smoothing it around the eye area with your ring finger so you don’t put too much pressure on the skin.

And as with any new product that contains active ingredients, always, we repeat always, do a patch test first. Not sure how? We can help you with that, right here.

Word is, when it comes to the varying forms of topical vitamin C, cloudiness is a sign of brighter days ahead. Bear with us while we explain…

Vitamin C is one of the most effective ingredients in skincare. That’s a bold statement, we know, but ask any dermatologist to list their favorite topical antioxidant and we’d bet our lives that vitamin C would be the words on everyone’s lips.

Along with hyaluronic acid and retinol, vitamin C is part of a veritable 'Justice League' of skincare ingredients, offering undeniable benefits for a whole host of skincare concerns. From adding radiance and reducing fine lines, through to improving acne and poor texture, vitamin C works. It just does.

This may sound simple enough, but the thing is, you’ll rarely see the words ‘vitamin C’ on a product’s ingredients list. And you might think this is because skincare manufacturers are out to get you with complicated names, but it’s really not that personal. It’s simply because vitamin C comes in many forms – each with different levels of efficacy, stability, look and even smell. We use a form of vitamin C called sodium ascorbyl phosphate (SAP) across all of our serums and vitamin C products because it works for most skin types and we truly believe in its ability to get the job done without causing irritation. There’s so much more to it than that, but first, let’s have a quick look at vitamin C shall we?

The Facts About Vitamin C In Skincare

Normal skin contains its own relatively high levels of vitamin C whose role is to support, strengthen and protect your skin. A natural and potent antioxidant, vitamin C helps neutralize damage caused by environmental pollutants. It also promotes collagen production and aids healing. However, aging and exposure to UV and pollution causes your levels of vitamin C to dramatically decrease, taking with it the soft, plump, strong and youthful-looking skin you used to know and love.

All this is why vitamin C has made such a name for itself in topical skincare – because a) your skin needs it and b) you naturally lose it through both intrinsic and extrinsic aging.

Simple, right? Ha, not so fast, because this is where things get a little complicated. There's not just one form of vitamin C used in skincare, you see. There are many – some great, some not so much. And the key is to know which ones to look out for.

Many brands use l-ascorbic acid which is the purest and probably the most widely studied form of vitamin C. But l-ascorbic acid comes with its problems. It’s notoriously volatile which means it degrades lightning quick when exposed to light and air. It’s also super potent – sometimes too potent for the skin to handle. Because of these issues, many derivatives of pure vitamin C have been formulated for use in skincare. And this is where the mighty sodium ascorbyl phosphate comes into play.

What Is Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate?

Along with a lengthy list that includes magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, ascorbyl-6-palmitate and sodium ascorbate, sodium ascorbyl phosphate (we’ll call it SAP from now on) is a derivative of l-ascorbic acid. This means that yes, SAP is slightly less effective than its purer sister but – and this is a major but – it has way more of an edge.

SAP is basically a salt form of vitamin C and one of the most stable versions of the pure stuff. Its sodium molecule is the key as it acts like a natural preservative which stops it from degrading on contact with light, air and water, therefore offering more benefits to your skin. In fact, SAP has been clinically proven to improve the tone and texture of your skin. It also works hard to boost radiance, fight photoaging, fade dark spots and reduce acne. Can’t say fairer than that, right?

But that’s not all. In order for your skin to experience the full benefits vitamin C has to offer, SAP has to be converted back to ascorbic acid once applied to your skin. This may sound like a bad thing, but ascorbic acid is a very active, powerful ingredient, which, when applied directly can cause negative side-effects such as dryness, stinging and redness. Having your skin convert SAP back into ascorbic acid after application, however, reduces these chances of irritation and makes the active ingredient much more tolerant by most skin types – even sensitive.

In our opinion, SAP beats l-ascorbic acid hands down, which is we harness its powers in all of our vitamin C products as well as in C-Plus Super Serum, Hyaluronic Acid Serum and Tea Tree Clear Skin Super Serum.

Why Do TruSkin Vitamin C Serums Look So Cloudy?

This is a question we get asked a lot – especially when it comes to our best-selling Vitamin C Serum. And the answer is simple: the cloudiness (or milkiness if you prefer to think of it that way) is all down to that sodium molecule.

Think about when you add salt to water: it immediately becomes cloudy, right? Well, same principal. The cloudiness is not because your serum has oxidized or become ineffective, it’s simply the salt. And it’s the salt molecule that makes this particular vitamin C derivative more effective and better tolerated by your skin.

One of our mottos here at TruSkin HQ is that cloudiness is a sign of brighter days, or more specifically brighter skin, ahead! Get it now?

How To Include SAP In Your Daily Skincare Routine

Whether you’re an avid C fan or just starting out, SAP can offer your skin outstanding results – as long as you use it correctly. 

The most important rule is to start slowly and do a patch test first. Even though SAP is suitable for most skin types, it’s still an active, potent ingredient so you should always perform a patch test on a discreet area of skin before starting a full facial routine. Not sure how to do that? We can help, right here.

Once you’re sure your skin isn’t going to react, gradually introduce your chosen product into your routine two or three times a week as your skin gets used to the active ingredients. Then you can work up to daily use.

Finally, remember, active ingredients like sodium ascorbyl phosphate work on a cellular level, deep within the skin. This means that yes, it might offer you instantly softer, more radiant skin, but its true benefits will need time to fully take effect. We recommend continually using our C products for at least 28 days for those brighter days to really set in.

Retinol often gets a bad rap for drying out your skin and making it super sensitive to the sun. But not everything you hear about retinol is gospel. Here, we sort out the facts from the fiction… 

Retinol is almost unbeatable for reducing the appearance of lines, wrinkles and dark spots. It’s also super effective for clearing up your zits. Even so, retinol sure does get it in the neck. And we think that’s kind of unfair for a skincare ingredient that’s been clinically researched for decades and proven to be one of the best, most effective ingredients you could (and should) be using on your skin.

Sure, haters gonna hate (hate, hate, hate, hate) and yes, like all active skincare ingredients, retinol is not for everyone. But we think it at least deserves a fair deal. So, here, we get to the bottom of the untruths.

Because there's no room in this blog for fake news.

Myth #1: Retinol Is Not As Good As Tretinoin

The Truth: Depending on your skin type, both can be very effective.

The Details: Retinol and tretinoin both belong to the same family: retinoids. Retinoids are active, topical forms of vitamin A that activate certain genes within your skin to stimulate it to turn over more efficiently. Tretinoin (or retinoic acid) is the purest, fastest-working form and therefore the most potent which is why it’s only available on prescription. Retinol, on the other hand, is a gentler version that does the same thing but must be converted into retinoic acid by your skin before it takes effect. Research shows that, because of this conversion, retinol is 20 times less potent than tretinoin, but while it’s less powerful and takes longer to work, this makes it way less irritating and better tolerated by different skin types.

Tomayto, tomahto.

Myth #2: Retinol Is A Terrible Idea For Sensitive Skin

The Truth: Retinol can be an effective treatment for most skin types ­– as long as you use it wisely.

The Details: When it comes to nailing the use of retinol, it’s all about understanding your skin and building up a tolerance. It may be tempting to dive head first into a super strong retinol formulation, but this can have dire effects in the form of redness, irritation, dryness and peeling. And this is where retinol’s bad rap comes from – people using one that’s way too potent for their skin, and applying it too often from day one.

The best way to incorporate retinol into your daily routine is to start with a low concentration and apply it just two or three times a week until your skin adapts. Then you can up your frequency and/or potency accordingly.

Skin still not happy no matter how much you’ve tried? Then retinol might not be for you, so think about alternative active ingredients such as niacinamide, lactic acid or vitamin E.

Myth #3: You Shouldn't Use Retinol Until You're At Least 30 Years Old

The Truth: It’s never too late to start applying retinol, but during your 20s is the sweet spot.

The Details: Most experts agree that retinol is perfectly safe to start using in your 20s when the first signs of aging begin to appear. As the old saying goes, prevention is better than cure, right?

According to Scientific American, your skin produces 1 percent less collagen every year from the age of 20. Collagen is what gives your skin structure and strength, so promoting the quantity and quality of your collagen levels is super important if you want to maintain youthful skin. And what’s the best way to do this? With a topical retinol that's been proven to increase the production of collagen and boost your skin's elasticity.

Myth #4: If Retinol Makes Your Skin Breakout, Stop Using It Immediately

The Truth: Redness, dryness, and breakouts can be part of the skin purging process.

The Details: Unlike allergies or acne, skin purging is when your skin temporarily reacts to a new product or ingredient in your routine, causing it to exfoliate and bring congestion to the surface. Skin purging often creates annoying flare-ups, but this means that whatever you’ve applied to your skin is actually working, so bear with it. More good news: pimples caused by skin purging don’t last as long as regular acne and they’ll heal much quicker, so a little patience will go a long way.

Reckon your breakouts are something more than a temporary reaction to your retinol treatment? Then it's best to seek advice from your dermatologist.

Myth #5: Never Apply Retinol In The Morning

The Truth: Retinol does not cause sun damage, so it's fine to use in the morning and/or night as long as you apply SPF daily.

The Details: Yes, it’s usually advised to apply retinol at night, but this is not because retinol makes your skin more sun-sensitive, but because most retinol formulations are deactivated and made less effective by sunlight. Oh. 

That being said, retinol will thin the top layers of your skin and decrease its ability to protect itself, so you should always apply a daily sunscreen with a broad-spectrum of SPF 30+. But that’s a given anyway.

Myth #6: You Should Never Use Retinol Around Your Eyes

The Truth: Retinol is a totally safe skin treatment for your entire face and neck.

The Details: The skin around your eyes is thinner and more fragile than the rest of your face, for sure, but this doesn’t mean it can’t tolerate retinol. In fact, your eyes are more prone to the visible signs of aging, so a gentle retinol treatment to help boost collagen in this area can work wonders on those fine lines and wrinkles. The potential for irritation is definitely greater than elsewhere on your face, however, so remember not to apply it too close to your eyes and start with just a once or twice weekly application when using it for the first time. You could also apply a moisturizing eye cream afterwards – as long as it doesn’t also contain active ingredients, of course.

Morning skin can often look kind of ‘meh’ – especially if you’ve over-indulged the night before, of course. But with these easy beauty hacks, glowing skin is just around the corner. 

As you all know, lack of sleep, stress, late-night pizza and a few too many pinots are a recipe for disastrous skin. But here’s the thing: life’s not been easy this past year and stuff gets in the way. Yes, in an ideal world you’d get great sleep every night, your emotional wellbeing would be top of the world, a healthy diet would be taken for granted and your all-round perfect lifestyle, would be, well, just perfect.

But you don’t live in a permanent state of perfection. In fact, nobody does. So, all you can ask is to try your best and give yourself a break – for the sake of your skin and your entire well-being. And great news, people: even though looking after yourself is the single most important way to maintain a radiant, youthful complexion, there are many other easy tricks you can employ to help get your skin’s glow on.

Here are eight of the most tried and tested hacks that are simple, but super effective for maintaining wide-awake skin. Even when inside you might be anything but. 

1. Say Hello To Regular Exfoliation

Whether you’re a fan of physical exfoliators like scrubs and cleansing brushes, or prefer a chemical exfoliator like our Daily Facial Toner, one thing’s for sure, exfoliating your skin is one of the best ways to get the blood flowing to your skin.

Exfoliating helps remove dulling dead skin cells from the surface of your skin to reveal a smoother, clearer complexion. It’s as simple as that. Just remember, if your skin is sensitive, don’t go too mad with AHAs or exfoliate too often with a facial scrub as you could cause irritation and dryness.

Literally the opposite of what you were intending.

2. Don’t Even Dream Of Going To Bed In Your Makeup

It’s late, you’re tired/tipsy and you can’t be bothered to properly cleanse your face before bed. We’ve all been there. But think about this for a second: your skin has been sitting behind that makeup for anywhere from 12 to maybe 16 hours. And that’s a helluva long time for it to collect grime, bacteria, chemicals and environmental pollution that could potentially clog your pores and stop your skin from renewing itself as you sleep. Your skin needs to naturally slough off dead skin cells overnight, but makeup will stop it from doing so, making it look increasingly duller the more you skip your overnight cleansing sesh. And if your makeup contains oils? Well, you might as well invite breakouts onto your skin for a permanent pimple party.

Make sure you fully cleanse every night before bed, using a gentle but effective cleanser like our Vitamin C Daily Facial Cleanser which contains the added brightening benefits of vitamin C. More on the mighty vitamin C in a sec...

3. Boost Your Skin With Facial Massage

Make facial massage a part of your morning cleansing routine and your skin will instantly look healthier and more radiant. As with exfoliation, massage increases blood flow to your skin which boosts collagen production and helps remove toxins. It also helps work the muscles for firmer, more youthful looking skin. And that’s always a bonus.

For a fabulous morning radiance boost, use your hands and pads of your fingers to really work your skin in upwards motions as you cleanse. Finish with a quick rinse of cool water to further boost circulation.

4. Hang Your Head Upside Down

If you’re a yoga bunny, doing a headstand every day is an amazing way to increase the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients to your face to really get your glow on. But not everyone has the ability to safely stand on their heads, so if this doesn’t sound like your jam, simply tip your head upside down for a couple of minutes every day and you’ll get the exact some results – minus the core strength, of course. Skincare expert and celebrity aesthetician, Renée Rouleau recommends lying on your tummy and hanging your head forward over the edge of your bed for three minutes per day to help boost your inner glow.

5. Make Friends With Vitamin C

When it comes to radiance-boosting skincare ingredients, vitamin C is the nuts. A mild exfoliant and potent antioxidant, vitamin C helps soften the look of hyperpigmention while protecting the skin from the sun and other environmental aggressors to help prevent new dark spots from developing. It also works hard to brighten and wake-up up your skin as a side-note – kind of like a morning shot of double espresso for your skin... but way better for you;)

Try introducing a vitamin C serum like our C-Plus Super Serum into your daily routine, applying just a small amount to clean skin after toning and before moisturizing. Vitamin C packs a punch, however, so always perform a patch test first to check for sensitivities.

6. Quench Your Thirst… And Your Skin

A thirsty body is a thirsty complexion and dry, dehydrated skin is so not the way to go if you’re in the market for a radiant glow. Therefore, make sure you drink plenty of fluids – especially if you suffer with puffy skin and bags under your eyes due to water retention. Drink a glass of water first thing in the morning and keep a bottle on your desk to sup throughout the day.

When we say drink lots, however, this doesn't necessarily mean you have to stick with water. Herbal teas and fresh juices are also great ways to hydrate. Fruit and veggies contain fibre, nutrients and antioxidants that help flush out toxins and fight skin-damaging free radicals, so up your juicing game with superfoods like carrots, beetroot, tomatoes, cucumber, pomegranate and papaya – all of which are awesome for glowing skin.

7. Lay Off The Heavy Makeup

When your skin is looking particularly sad, it’s tempting to pile on the foundation and concealer. But masking your skin with heavy makeup can sit in your fine lines and pores where it won’t fool anyone. Instead, apply makeup only where you need it. For your foundation, stick with light, mineral-based formulations and apply it on blemishes or uneven areas of your skin. Blend it well over these specific areas only and it’ll look way more natural than an all-over mask of foundation.

For dark, under eye circles, a great trick is to apply a light-reflecting concealer to the inner corners of your eyes only. This is often where dark circles are most obvious so if you lighten up this area it’ll instantly open up your eyes. Finish with a touch of color over the apples of your cheeks, a little gloss or balm on your lips and you’ll be amazed by how such a little amount of makeup can transform a tired face.

8. Curl Your Eyelashes

OK, so this one has nothing to do with your skin, but trust us, curling your eyelashes will instantly make your eyes and consequently your whole face look younger and more wide-awake. Honestly, try it on mornings when you feel like an extra from The Walking Dead and you’ll never look back.  

And now, you are officially ready to take on the world. Eight hours of sleep or not...

What’s the deal with vitamins in skincare and do they really work? Here’s what we know about our ABCs…

Drink plenty of water… get a good night’s sleep… don’t forget to take your vitamins. This stuff has been drummed into you for years, but are you aware that topical vitamins are just as important to your skin’s health as the ones you eat?

Skincare ingredients frequently come and go, and some (yes, we’re talking to you snail mucus) just seem downright insane. But in an often confusing beauty world, there are plenty of ingredients that make absolute sense. Hyaluronic acid and glycerin in your moisturizer? Hell yes. Salicylic acid for exfoliating the skin? Count us in.

And then there are topical vitamins. From A through K, vitamins are an essential part of an effective skincare routine and they offer so many benefits to your skin, it’s hard to write them all down in one blog post. But don’t worry, we’re going to nail it because whether you’re looking to brighten and strengthen or nourish and soothe, you’re going to need at least one skincare vitamin in your life.

Here, we talk you through six of the best…

The Anti-Aging Must-Have: Vitamin A

Vitamin A is rarely mentioned on skincare products, but it’s one of the most important and highly effective ingredients in skincare. Confused? Don’t be, you simply know it as retinol – or the prescription version, tretinoin. Penny. Drops.

Retinol and tretinoin are the topical forms of vitamin A and are two of the absolute darlings of skincare ingredients, without question. We know that’s a bold statement, but ask any derm to name their number one skincare ingredient and we bet retinol would come up more than anything else.

When absorbed by the skin, retinol gets converted into retinoic acid which is super smart acid because it’s able to ‘communicate’ with your skin cells to active collagen production and stimulate cell turnover. This offers a whole host of benefits to aging skin, namely reducing lines, wrinkles and dark spots. As a sidenote, it may also be used to treat acne. 

Retinol can be a little irritating if not used wisely, but we combine it with hyaluronic acid in our Retinol Serum to help hydrate the skin as it works. Because we're clever like that.

The Sensitive Skin Solution: Vitamin B3

We love a bit of vitamin B3. So much so that we recently launched a whole new serum dedicated to it in the form of Niacinamide Serum – vitamin B3’s other, more common name.

Vitamin B3 is fast gaining momentum in skincare for its multiple benefits for all skin types. For one, it’s a potent antioxidant so great for limiting damage caused to the skin by lifestyle and environmental aggressors (sun, booze, pollution etc.).

Vitamin B3 also has powerful anti-inflammatory properties which means it’s ideal for reducing redness, swelling and irritation. Couple all this with the fact that it’s very well tolerated by most skin types and you’ve got the perfect ingredient for anyone with sensitive or acne-prone skin. And that’s not all. It may also be a valid option for soothing rosacea or eczema – just remember to always seek expert advice from your skincare professional first.

The Hydrating Healer: Vitamin B5

While we’re on the subject of the mighty B vitamins, we can’t move on without a shout-out to vitamin B5, also known as pantothenic acid or panthenol, the alcohol form of pantothenic acid.

Great for most skin types, vitamin B5 is a humectant like hyaluronic acid and glycerin. This means it has the power to draw water into the skin to help keep it hydrated. But it’s hydrating powers don’t end there, because vitamin B5 is also an emollient, so it not only attracts water to the skin, but it also seals and locks it all in. This is one of the main reasons we use it in our Eye Cream, FYI.

Research also shows that vitamin B5 helps strengthen and heal the skin’s barrier function, making it perfect for aiding in the treatment of sun burn, eczema and itchy skin. Nice work, B5.

The Glow-Getter: Vitamin C

You’ll be no stranger to vitamin C, we’re sure of it. But do you know exactly how darn good this stuff is for your skin? No? Then here we go.

Vitamin C is one of the most popular antioxidants used in skincare. It’s mildly exfoliating, inhibits melanin production and has the ability to help reverse sun damage. This makes it a super popular choice for anyone looking to include a hard-working antioxidant serum in their routine, but particularly for those seeking to help lighten hyperpigmentation and add radiance to their skin.

Vitamin C can be listed in your skincare ingredients in many forms, including l-ascorbic acid, ascorbyl palmitate, sodium ascorbate and sodium ascorbyl phosphate. We know that’s a lot to remember, but just look for some kind of ascorbic/ascorbyl/ascorbate term and you’ll know that's some kind of C vit. BTW, we use sodium ascorbyl phosphate in our vitamin C range because it offers all the benefits with very little irritation. Winner.

The Master Of Moisturizing: Vitamin E

Vitamin E has been used in skincare for 50 years and counting – and as you know, you should never dismiss your elders, right?

Often seen on your ingredients label as tocopherol, tocopheryl acetate or alpha-tocopheryl acetate, vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant that’s naturally produced by your skin where it helps support, strengthen and maintain its overall health.

Levels of vitamin E deplete over time, however, so adding it to your skincare routine is a darn fine idea – especially if you notice your skin getting drier with age. Why? Because on top of its ability to fight free radicals and protect your skin from the sun, vitamin E has awesome emollient properties which means it’s the bomb at helping to repair and smooth cracks in your skin. And anyone with dryness or dehydration will know exactly how annoying and itchy cracked skin can be.

Try our Hyaluronic Acid Serum for a potent moisturizing hit of hyaluronic acid, vitamin C and vitamin E.

The Skin Strengthener: Vitamin F

A member of the omega-6 family, vitamin F is a blend of essential fatty acids, hence the ‘F’. No, honestly, that’s where it gets its name. You see, sometimes skincare really is quite simple…

Vitamin F is also known as linoleic acid and unlike most of our favorite vits, it can’t be produced naturally by the body, so including it in your diet (olive oil and leafy greens will take care of that) and skincare is vital.

So, what are its benefits for your skin? Well, vitamin F promotes ceramide production which are some of, if not the most important components of your skin’s barrier. Ceramides make up around 50 percent of your skin’s composition and basically hold everything together to keep your skin healthy and strong – kind of like the mortar in a brick wall. Like all the other good stuff in your skin, however, ceramides deplete with age, so anything you can do to help keep them replenished is a great shout. Oh hi there, vitamin F.

The Undereye Brightener: Vitamin K

Vitamin K is relatively new to the skincare world and much research is needed to prove its effects on the skin. That being said, it has definite potential – specifically for helping to reduce dark circles around the eyes. And here’s why.

A fat soluble vitamin produced by the liver, vitamin K is also known as phytonadione. It's essential to your overall health and plays an important role in blood clotting. Because of its role within the blood clotting process many skincare experts and manufacturers believe vitamin K can offer similar effects when applied topically to things like bruising, swelling, redness and excess blood that pools under your eyes. Yes, that's the stuff that causes unwanted dark circles.

The jury's still out on vitamin K, but it's one to keep an eye on. No pun intended.

So, what do you reckon? Time to add a vitamin or two to your skincare routine? We think so. 

Not sure what to look out for in the search for a kick-ass moisturizer? Well, there are some ingredients your skin could probably live without (cough, parabens). Similarly, others have the kind of moisturizing prowess that will never let you down…

Moisturizers often contain all manner of hard to pronounce and even more impossible to spell ingredients – some of which are absolute winners, and others? Well, not so much. So, how do you separate the wheat from the chaff? Knowledge, dear readers, that’s how. Now, we don’t expect you to gen up on every acid, phosphate and peptide known to humankind, but just a smidge of ingredient knowledge will go a long way to reaching the heady heights of perfectly moisturized skin.

Here are some of the most effective, clinically researched moisturizing ingredients to look out for.

Aloe Vera

The aloe vera plant is made up of over 95 percent water so it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to get that as a hydrating skincare ingredient aloe is pretty hard to beat. Aloe also contains polysaccharides and phytosterols which are rich in vitamins and nutrients and work hard to help prevent transepidermal water loss (TEWL). Not sure what TEWL is? Naturally, we’ve got your back: it’s the term used for the amount of water that evaporates from the surface of your skin. The upshot is, you want your TEWL to be low and to do so you need awesome ingredients like aloe vera to help seal moisture into your skin.

Aloe’s also great for treating acne, eczema, rosacea, sunburn and is well tolerated by almost all skin types.

Glycerin

After water and fragrance, glycerin (also known as glycerine or glycerol) is the third most frequently used ingredient in cosmetics. An important component of your skin’s natural moisturizing factor (NMF), glycerin can be produced synthetically or derived from vegetable or animal sources, but don’t sweat, we use kosher vegetable glycerin in our products.

Glycerin works as a humectant, meaning it attracts water from its surroundings then draws it in like a sponge. It figures, therefore, that by applying a humectant like glycerin on a regular basis you automatically increase the levels of moisture available to your skin to help reduce dryness and irritation. Glycerin also has slight keratolytic properties which means it helps soften and shed dead skin cells to increase cell turnover and further improve the skin’s natural barrier function. Is it fair to say that glycerin’s an unsung hero in the world of skincare? Yes, we think so.

Green Tea

Usually praised for its high-powered antioxidant properties, green tea (camellia sinesis) contains a whole host of vitamins and nutrients to help balance and hydrate the skin. Vitamin B2 (riboflavin), for example, works to maintain mucus secretion which regulates sebum production and prevents dryness, cracking and even acne. Meanwhile vitamin E is a powerful emollient that repairs and smooths the skin. More on vitamin E later...

Hyaluronic Acid

Similar to its more unassuming cousin glycerin, hyaluronic acid (HA) is a humectant that sucks water into the skin. Sometimes referred to as hyaluronan on your skincare label, HA can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water which is darn impressive, don’t you think? Your skin naturally contains a fair amount of HA, but as you age and become more and more exposed to environmental stressors, these levels start to decrease – in fact by the time you hit 40 you could have lost up to 50 percent of the stuff. This is why it’s a smart move to include HA in your daily moisturizing routine.

As a skincare ingredient, HA is formulated to act just like your own which means it rarely causes reactions or irritation. Can we get a round of applause for HA, please?

Palmitates

Palmitates might sound a little scary, but they’re really not. Produced from a naturally occurring fatty acid called palmitic acid, palmitates such as isopropyl, cetyl and ethylhexyl are what’s known in the biz as emollients. Emollients help repair, smooth and seal cracks on the surface of the skin to trap in moisture and strengthen the skin’s natural protective layer. They work especially well in skincare when formulated with humectants like glycerin and hyaluronic acid. Humectants deliver the moisture; emollients seal it all in. Clockwork.

Jojoba Oil

Another effective emollient, jojoba oil is one of our favorite, nutrient-rich oils for dry skin because it’s super light, but packs a real moisturizing punch.

Produced from the seeds of the jojoba plant (or simmondsia chinensis if you’re feeling fancy) jojoba oil is extremely stable meaning it can hold up well under extreme conditions without breaking down and rendering itself, well, useless. Jojoba oil is also very similar in its molecular makeup to your skin’s natural oils – more so than any other oil, in fact. This makes it ideal for balancing sebum production while deeply hydrating your skin and sealing it all in. Triple win.

Lecithin

Lecithin is a naturally-occurring phospholipid that’s most commonly obtained from soybeans, milk, corn or eggs. It’s another member of the skin-smoothing emollient family, but also has emulsifying benefits which means it helps stabilize skincare products that contain both oil and water.

But that’s not all, lecithin also acts as a penetration enhancer to allow other active ingredients in your products to better penetrate the skin. Now, that’s what we call an awesome team player.

Shea Butter

Say hello to yet another awesome emollient ingredient: shea butter. Derived from the nuts of the karite tree, shea butter is super popular in skincare because it’s dope at smoothing the skin without the heaviness you might experience from other pore-clogging, occlusive butters like cocoa.

Shea butter is brimming with skin-loving vitamins and fatty acids, is a rich source of free radical-fighting antioxidants and helps restore balance and hydration to all skin types. And while shea butter is produced from tree nuts, those with nut allergies need not worry because it’s very low in allergy-triggering proteins. Look out for its Latin name of butyrospermum parkii on your skincare products. You won’t regret including this baby in your routine.

Vitamin E

Last, but not least, we have vitamin E, often seen on skincare labels as tocopherol, tocopheryl acetate or alpha-tocopheryl acetate.

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble emollient and humectant rolled into one which means it has a clever way of drawing water into the skin and then holding it there to work its moisturizing magic. Your skin naturally contains a solid amount of vitamin E, but as with HA and glycerin, these levels deplete with age – hence its popularity in skincare for decades.

Vitamin E also has anti-inflammatory and repairing benefits so it’s an excellent choice for sun damaged skin or to help heal scars.