How to Layer Your Products
the last time you'll ever have to ask
Can you please, once and for all, tell me the correct order to use products? I feel like even when I have my routine down, I struggle to incorporate anything new or worry I’m using something wrong. I’ve heard thinnest to thickest, but then I also see people on Instagram doing different things, so I get more confused.
I want you to try as best you can to let go of your fear of “using something wrong” and lean in, for lack of a better term, to your own confidence and existing knowledge. You know more about how to order products than you think you do because much of it is actually common sense. To be very clear, I am not saying that if you don’t know the answer, you don’t have common sense, but rather I am encouraging you to trust yourself.
Something that fascinates me as an esthetician and educator, is that as soon as “skin” is involved, people freak out, assume they can’t possibly know the answer and forget about all of the things they do know and are able to apply in other situations. The type of curiosity and self-assurance you might use when trying a new recipe or hobby doesn’t extend to skincare. It’s the same type of reaction I have when I have to do math – my brain gets cloudy, I’m anxious about making a mistake before I’ve even started and I just assume, regardless of how straightforward the problem, that there’s no way I can arrive at the right answer.
Part of this hesitance makes sense to me, as your skin is very different from a baked pasta dish or knitted scarf. Your skin is the thing people see when they look at you. You can’t start from scratch or hide it in the basket beside your couch. But beyond that, I think the main driver of the confusion is the Internet. We are constantly inundated with new products, suggestions, tips, tricks, hacks, and dupes that we forget all of the products, suggestions, tips, tricks, hacks and dupes that we already know. And the currency of the internet conflates virality with accuracy. We question what we know because something that says the opposite has a million views. But that doesn’t mean it’s true!
The most important question to start with is: is it working? The internet has convinced us all that we could always be doing something better, getting even more results, optimizing everything. If a product or routine is not working for you, then yes let’s reevaluate. But if it’s not broken, you don’t need to fix it. If there is one thing I want everyone to learn, it’s that consistency and stability are the best things you can do for your skin.
I know it can be confusing and overwhelming, so here are some tips to help you parse through the noise and consider when you are stuck. I think you’ll find them easy to remember because hopefully, as I’ve said, they just make sense.
What are you doing with the product? Are you washing it off? Letting it fully absorb? Sit on top? Applying with a cotton round? If you are washing something off, like a cleanser or exfoliant, it makes sense that you would do that towards the beginning of your routine, otherwise you are removing the products you want to stay.
How potent do you want the product to be? The closer something is to your skin, the stronger it will be. This is why prescriptions, OTC retinoids, exfoliants and vitamin C are most often used towards the beginning of your routine. You want the active ingredients that are causing change to be closer to your skin for maximum potency. Too potent? You can use this same logic to reduce potency and the potential for irritation. The more layers a product has to get through, the slower it will penetrate. This is why many people buffer their retinoid with a thin layer of moisturizer first. Doing so doesn’t mean the product won’t work or will be less effective, it just means you might take longer to see initial results.
With the above in mind, there can be different ways to use the same product. Products have instructions because they need to. Products tend to only have one set of instructions because otherwise it would be too confusing. But the more important thing to focus on is if the way you are using a product is working for you. Are you using something in a different way than it suggests, but seeing the results you want to see? Great! Use instructions as a guideline, not the final rule. If a recipe says to bake something for 20 minutes but every time you do that it burns, would you keep baking it for 20 minutes or adjust to your specific parameters and try taking it out sooner?
When in doubt, go thinnest to thickest. This allows for thinner products to better absorb and usually makes for a more pleasant experience. It also just makes sense most of the time! Imagine putting your hyaluronic acid serum on top of Aquaphor.
There are very, very few “incompatible” ingredients and being “incompatible” isn’t as scary as it sounds. Your skin isn’t going to burst into flames. When ingredients are incompatible it often just means they destabilize each other and won’t work. You will only notice something is “wrong” when you realize that nothing is happening. The best way to avoid this is to introduce products one at a time, pay attention to how your skin responds and keep your active products to a minimum. And if you’re still questioning your choices…
Listen to your skin. If you are using incompatible products, too many actives or applying products in the “incorrect” order, your skin will tell you if something is wrong. There are obvious signs of overdoing it – redness, dryness, itchiness, flakiness, etc. – but those aren’t the only indications. Are you using something that’s supposed to cause visible change, but nothing is different? Is it pilling when you apply or not absorbing? On the flip side, your skin will also tell you if something is right! Are you using something in a way that’s different from the instructions, but seeing the results you want and enjoy using it? Great! That’s literally all that matters. Don’t overthink it.
Now, what you’ve all been waiting for. Here is a sample routine to be used as a guideline and answers to some common questions. I hope it all is starting to make sense.
Thanks for reading! This is the monthly free issue of Hotline Skin.
Last month, paying subscribers got some Sephora shopping tips, a breakdown of the steps in a facial, a review of my favorite Tatcha products and lazy-day skincare routines. Coming up, we’ll be talking about dupes, prepping for holiday sales and more. You can upgrade your subscription below. Congrats to Jen for winning the first product box giveaway! Winners will be notified by email every month.
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xx,
Jolie