How to Layer Vitamin C With Other Skincare Products
When it comes to skincare, there are few ingredients as widely loved as vitamin C. It has an array of benefits from brightening the complexion and evening skin tone, to helping protect skin through its antioxidant properties. Vitamin C for skin has made its mark on the beauty industry, and its here to stay. When creating a skincare routine, it’s important to know when and how to apply vitamin C, as well as which ingredients it pairs well with. Read on to learn how to layer vitamin C with other ingredients, and our simple guide to building a skincare regime with vitamin C.
What order do you apply vitamin C in your skincare routine?
Where to apply vitamin C in your skincare routine depends on what kind of product you’re using. You can choose from a variety of vitamin C enriched skincare items suited to your skin type, such as:
• Skin Active Brightening Foam Wash: Aims to illuminate dull and uneven looking skin.
• Vitamin C Brightening Serum: Carefully blended to enhance glow and provide dark spot action with a non-greasy formula.
• Skin Active Brightening Glow Jelly Moisturiser: A soft formula infused with super citrus extract to help boost radiance and smooth texture.
The general rule of thumb for structuring a skincare routine is to apply your products in ascending order from thinnest consistency to thickest. In terms of how to layer vitamin C in serum form, it always needs to be applied to clean, dry skin first -– so your skincare routine might look something like this:
1. Cleanse face with a face wash
2. Apply vitamin C serum
3. Layer serums compatible with vitamin C
4. Appy eye cream
5. Moisturise
6. In the AM, use SPF
How to layer vitamin C and niacinamide
Both vitamin C and niacinamide help to brighten complexions, but the way they work towards this goal differs. By targeting dull skin with different tactics, these complementary ingredients can help to diminish the appearance of dark spots, even skin and boost glow. The Garnier Skin Active Vitamin C Brightening Serum is formulated with niacinamide and salicylic acid alongside vitamin C to make layering these ingredients simpler. The serum can be used morning and night. To cleanse and refresh the skin before serum application, pair with the Vitamin C Cleansing Water.
How to layer vitamin C and hyaluronic acid
Vitamin C and hyaluronic acid (HA) are a dynamic duo in the skincare world. Both HA and water-soluble vitamin C occur naturally in the skin, so it makes sense that they work so well together. The skincare benefits of HA come from its hydrating properties, while antioxidant vitamin C encourages a brighter complexion. Together, this pairing assists with the appearance of radiant, bouncy skin by hydrating the skin’s moisture barrier and helping to defend against free radicals. To layer these two ingredients, try incorporating the Vitamin C Anti-Fatigue Ampoule Face Sheet Mask into your skincare routine once a week. Next, top off your skincare routine with a HA-infused moisturiser, like the Hyaluronic Aloe Hydrating Day Jelly Moisturiser .
What should you not layer with vitamin C?
There are some skincare ingredients that don’t pair so well with vitamin C when used at the same time. To make sure your skin can reap the intended benefits of each of your skincare products, it’s important to take care when layering ingredients. Let’s explore which skincare ingredients require some extra consideration when learning how to layer vitamin C.
Can you layer vitamin C and retinol?
Touted for its ability to support skin cell turnover, retinol has cemented itself as a skincare staple in the last few years. In terms of its compatibility with vitamin C, these two ingredients can be powerful tools in your skincare arsenal for supporting brighter, more refined skin. It’s best to use them at different times of day though, so we suggest harnessing the antioxidant properties of the Skin Active Vitamin C Brightening Serum Cream with SPF 15 in the morning to help protect your skin throughout the day. Then apply retinol at night to clean, dry skin.
Can you layer vitamin C and salicylic acid?
Salicylic acid is a popular beta hydroxy acid and can help cleanse and purify the pores - so, can you layer BHAs and vitamin C? Though they can be layered with care, BHAs are chemical exfoliants, while Vitamin C is also acidic, which can be a little too much for skin when layered. We recommend using them separately unless they’re formulated into one well balanced product. When it comes to building vitamin C and BHAs like salicylic acid into your skincare routine, try alternating days or use vitamin C in the AM and salicylic acid in the PM.
Now you know all about how to layer vitamin C with other products in your skincare routine, check out our ultimate guide to sheet masks.