Help! Which Product Goes First?

I know, it can be a little confusing to know which skin care product to use first. To keep it simple, here are two rules of thumb that will help you decide.

Starting with the basics, most of us have learned to cleanse, tone, moisturize. At Annique, we cleanse, moisturize and freshen. We use a freshener, not a toner, and we use it at the end of our routine as the final step.

Learn more about our freshener and how it works in our blog 4 Skin Care Steps to Age Glowingly and also here.

With the basics covered, often the confusion with which product to use comes when we expand to include anti-aging products, serums, oils or a skin treatment product. How do we know where to slot each one in for maximum benefit?

Treatment products are usually used after cleansing before our moisturizer or night cream. Here is where the two rules of thumb would come in.

The first rule of thumb is … thinnest to thickest.

You would apply products with a thinner consistency before those with a thicker consistency.

The second rule of thumb … deeper absorption products go before those that don’t penetrate as deeply into the skin.

The function of the product will determine how deeply it absorbs into the skin. For example, the molecules of moisturisers will stay closer to the surface of the skin than those of serums.

Let’s see who these two rules of thumb work with three specific products. We’re look at the Forever Young Anti-Aging Serum, the Essense Miracle Tissue Oil and the Forever Young Revitalising Cream, our crown product. The Forever Young Anti-Ageing Serum has a creamy consistency which makes it thicker then the liquid Essense Miracle Tissue Oil. The Forever Young Revitalising Cream has the thickest consistency of the three.

As the name suggests, the Forever Young Anti-Aging Serum is designed to assist with the aging process by supporting the skin at a cellular level. It protects the structure of the skin cell improving the density and firmness of the skin.

The Essense Miracle Tissue Oil is an amazing top to toe product. You can use it as an oil treatment for your hair all the way down to your toenails and everything in between. It is used on the face and the body to slow down aging as well as to help the skin heal from stretch marks and scars.

The Forever Young Revitalising Cream is a solid anti-aging product that firms and tightens the skin. All three products are used after cleansing and before moisturizing.

Now let’s apply the two rules of thumb to the three products.

According to the first rule of thumb, thinnest to thickest. The sequence of application would be:

1. Essense Miracle Tissue Oil
2. Forever Young Anti-Aging Serum
3. Forever Young Revitalising Cream

Now, let’s run the three products through our second rule of thumb, that is, deeper absorption products are applied first.

Which of our three products, do you think, would absorb the deepest and which would remain closer to the surface?

First off, it’s important to know the structure and function of serums. Serums have smaller molecules than other creams or moisturizers. Hence, they will penetrate or absorb deeper into the skin than other products including the Essense Miracle Tissue Oil, even though the Tissue Oil has a thinner consistency, and is quick absorbing oil with a dry finish.

In this instance, even though the Tissue Oil is thinner, it will go after the creamy Forever Young Anti-Aging Serum because the serum will penetrate more deeply into the skin. Hence, our sequence of application is actually:

1. Forever Young Anti-Aging Serum
2. Essense Miracle Tissue Oil
3. Forever Young Revitalising Cream

Hence, the complete sequence of application of my Annique products will be:

1. Cleanser
2. Forever Young Anti-Aging Serum
3. Essense Miracle Tissue Oil
4. Forever Young Revitalising Cream
5. Moisturizer or Night Cream
6. Freshener

I hope that the two rules of thumb equip you to feel confident when determining which product to use first. However, if you’d like to feel even more confident that you are getting the sequence of your products just right, do download our FREE Morning and Evening Routine Guide!