Oils, Serums, Toners + Treatments — Here's Exactly How To Layer Your Skin Care Products

The world of natural beauty is expanding in a big way, especially when it comes to skin care. Shops like Credo Beauty, CAP Beauty, and Follain are bringing it mainstream, and as we pointed out in our beauty trend forecast, even larger brands want in on the green action.

With so many options, it's tempting to fill out your shelves with product. Who are we to judge?! Serums, oils, and treatments are especially large categories—which makes sense, since naturals can be just as potent (and sometimes more so) than their conventional counterparts. They're a solid entry into the world of green beauty.

Minimalists and sensitive skin types, this is for you. "People who are using four to five layers of skin care are adding so many ingredients that a) it's hard to know what's working, b) it's impossible to know what isn't, and c) the skin can only absorb so much in one sitting so it may limit the efficacy of all products," said Sarah Villafranco, M.D., founder of Osmia Organics who also happens to have incredible skin.

No. 2 still holds true—if you apply occlusives, first use water products. But what happens when you're using multiple waters or multiple oils? Layer them lightest to heaviest. This isn't a flawless method because it's impossible to know exact ratios of ingredients in a product, but you can make an educated guess.

Like food labels, ingredient lists on beauty products start with the highest volume and go to the lowest. Knowing this can help you understand the composition of your product.

Beyond that, here are some basic guardrails that help categorize active ingredients by size. Of course, not all sourcing and processing are the same, but this should give you a general idea:

Lightweight oils are also often categorized as "dry." They include rosehip, moringa, maracuja, baobab, marula, and apricot kernel oil.

Mediumweights are great for normal skin and fall in between light and heavy. They include argan, noni, and squalane.

Last but not least, prioritize your products by their function. If you're using a retinol at night for acne or anti-aging purposes, for example, apply it before any other products. The product closest to the skin will penetrate it most deeply, even if you layer well.

Dermatologist Cybele Fishman, M.D., shares her routine, which falls in line with her recommendations to patients. "Typically, I use an antioxidant serum in the morning and put my Elta MD UV Clear moisturizer with SPF on top. In this scenario, you want to put on the antioxidant first so it gets to the layer of the skin you are trying to prevent oxidation in—in simpler terms, the anti-aging ingredient first. If you are using a retinol at night, you want to put that on first, and the serum on top would be for moisture retention, like a hyaluronic acid serum."