What Is an Essence & Why Should It Be in Your Skincare Routine?
It’s never a bad time to assess your skincare regimen, especially during the cold winter months. After all, when the air is zapping your skin of moisture, it’s an essential time to ensure your products are working smarter
Though you may have your cleanser, serum and moisturizer on repeat, chances are you’re missing one simple step that could completely transform your routine and skin: an essence.
What Is an Essence & Why It’s Important
Consider this! You’re at your go-to workout class and getting ready to begin. Do you A) go straight into the workout? Or B) get a stretch in before you start? Though you may be tempted to exercise right away, there’s a reason option B is recommended.
Similarly, when applying skincare, going right to your serums and moisturizers without “stretching” first can impact the rest of your routine. The stretch, in your skincare regimen’s case, is an essence, which thoroughly preps skin to boost the power of the rest of your routine.
While the benefits of a skin essence resemble those of a serum, essences are typically more lightweight, often even water-thin, allowing it to be absorbed more effectively, providing optimal hydration and nourishment in the process. Not only does it have a higher absorption rate, compared to thicker products, but it also allows for subsequent products to be absorbed more effectively, too. Hence the prep work!
How to Use Essence: Essence vs Toner
No matter your skin type, an essence is a reliable addition to your regimen — even for those with dry, oily, aging or stressed skin. This ultra-thin formula should be used after you cleanse and tone in your daily and nightly skincare routines, but before you treat and moisturize.
Yes, you read that right! Your essence and toner are not the same. In fact, both serve very different purposes, despite having the same watery consistency. Since a toner is used to remove residual makeup, oil, dirt and dead skin cells post-cleanse, it’s often formulated with alcohol. Since many toners are also formulated with a blend of acids, like salicylic, glycolic and lactic acid, they’re also commonly known for their exfoliating quality.
On the other hand, an essence is a treatment used to replenish nourishment that was washed away during the cleansing and toning steps, while also promoting radiance, clarity and minimizing dullness and imperfections. Therefore, essences are usually formulated with nutrient-rich ingredients, like essential antioxidants and traditional skin superfoods (green tea, rice and kelp).
Introducing Perricone MD Cold Plasma Plus+ The Essence
Though it sounds too good to be true, it’s true! This intensely hydrating, balancing essence uses a proprietary liquid crystal delivery system for faster, effective absorption of the formula’s powerful combination of copper tripeptide, niacinamide and fermented rice water.
While copper tripeptide, a naturally occurring amino acid complex, works to renew, restore, firm and protect skin against environmental aggressors, niacinamide visibly minimizes uneven skin tone and dullness by providing moisture barrier protection. Meanwhile, fermented rice water, rich in minerals and antioxidants, helps brighten, hydrate and replenish skin’s moisture barrier.
The result? Healthy, youthful-looking and balanced skin.
So, there you have it! In essence, the benefits of incorporating an essence into your skincare regimen are countless. Your before and after photos could prove it in as soon as 4 weeks — if you do it the Cold Plasma Plus+ way, that is.
