POV: You’ve just finished your night-time skincare routine and you’ve jumped straight into bed, only to realise, all that skincare has probably rubbed right off onto your pillow (it’s happened to the best of us!). Which brings us to the question: Well, how long does it really take skincare to absorb?
It’s a great question. Because once you’ve invested in yourself, skincare products and a routine, it’s only natural to do everything you can to protect that investment – right?! And once skin type, skin goals and products are cast aside... the only thing left to think about is skincare layering and allowing your products to completely absorb.
Let’s jump in, so you can get the most out of your skincare.
Skincare layering
We’ve covered skincare layering in detail here, but if you’re knew to skincare layering or simply want a recap – stay on!
Skincare layering, or, simply layering skincare in the right order, is essential for product absorption and ensuring that each and every product can work best.
When it comes to layering a good rule of thumb to follow is layering based on a products’ consistency – meaning layer from your thinnest (watery) substance to your thickest substance. In doing so, each product is absorbed into the skin without a product blocking absorption – e.g. we wouldn’t use oil ahead of say a moisturiser, as the oil can block the moisturiser absorbing into the skin. Skincare layering avoids accidental mishaps like this.
Our recommended RAWKANVAS layering routine looks like this:
1. Cleanser
2. Exfoliator
3. Mask
4. Toner
5. Serum
6. Eye treatment
7. Moisturiser
8. Facial treatment
9. Facial oil
10. Lip care
Pause between each step while skincare layering
Aside from enjoying the sensorial experience of your skincare routine, pausing between each step while skincare layering has its practical benefits too.
By layering your skincare slowly, you’re not only allowing your products to absorb completely, but you’re also preventing the likes of pilling. Pilling happens when you pile on products too quickly, before each product has had a chance to absorb, and this causes the products to essentially band together, dry up and roll from your face as opposed to absorbing into it. Pilling can waste your layering efforts and your product too. Obviously, the good news here is that pilling is completely avoidable by slowing down your routine and giving each product sufficient time to absorb.
We recommend at least 60 seconds between each step in your routine.
How long it takes your skincare to absorb
Now that your skincare layering routine is finished, it’s time to let your skincare absorb completely. Considering that no two products are the same, there’s no hard and fast answer for how long exactly you need to wait it out based on what you could be using, but dermatologists recommend up to half an hour for the heavier products (lotions, creams, oils). So the cover all answer here is 30 minutes.
So there you have it! Apply your products in the right order, allow each product 60 seconds to absorb before applying the next product (and prevent ‘pilling’ while you’re at it), then give your skin about 30 minutes to dry completely before jumping into bed. And that’s on maximising the benefits of your skincare!
