Recovery Crème 50ml

Retinol and retinyl palmitate are both vitamin A derivatives, but they sit at different distances from the active form. Retinyl palmitate is an ester that must first be converted to retinol, then onward through retinaldehyde to retinoic acid, the form that binds retinoid receptors. Retinol is one step closer. Using both means a portion of the vitamin A becomes available sooner and a portion converts more gradually.

The base

Where a lighter retinol formula is built on water, this one is built on lipids. Ceramide NG, squalane, phospholipids and linoleic acid are components of, or closely related to, the skin's own barrier structure. Shea butter, sunflower seed oil unsaponifiables and soybean sterols add to that lipid fraction.

That matters with a retinoid. The most common reason people abandon retinol is barrier disruption during the adjustment period, and a formula carrying its own lipid support is designed for exactly that problem.

Also present

Two peptides, caprooyl tetrapeptide-3 and acetyl hexapeptide-8. Polyglutamic acid, dextran and trehalose hold water at the surface. Tocopherol works as an antioxidant in the skin, while BHT protects the formula itself from oxidation.

Calming and repair

Micrococcus lysate is a bacterial ferment used for its enzyme content, included in formulas concerned with the effects of UV exposure. Evodia rutaecarpa fruit extract and melilotus officinalis are both used for their calming properties, which is a sensible inclusion in a product carrying two retinoids. Biosaccharide gum-4 is a polysaccharide used to reduce the appearance of redness.

Skin that wants a retinoid but needs more emollient support than a lighter cream provides. Suits dry or mature skin, and skin that has struggled with retinol before. Also worth considering if your barrier is already compromised.

Best introduced gradually if you have not used a retinoid previously.

Apply to clean, dry skin in the evening as the final step. Start two to three nights a week and build up as tolerated.

Always follow with SPF 30 or higher the next morning, as retinoids increase sensitivity to UV.

Use alongside

Hydrating serums applied beforehand. A broad-spectrum SPF the following morning, which is not optional with a retinoid.

Keep apart

Other retinoids, including prescription tretinoin and over-the-counter retinal. Two retinoid products at once increases irritation without increasing benefit.

Exfoliating acids such as glycolic, lactic or salicylic. Alternate evenings rather than the same one.

Introducing it

Two to three evenings a week for the first fortnight, building as your skin adjusts. Because the base is already emollient, this generally needs less buffering than a lighter retinol formula.